By Cecilia Nasmith

The Climate Change Working Group for the Municipality of Port Hope is collaborating with McMaster University graduate students and faculty in launching a comprehensive survey to help residents and stakeholders inform a Climate Change Action Plan for the municipality.

McMaster graduate students and faculty from the W. Booth School of Engineering Practice and Technology developed the survey with the aim of gathering local information and insights about climate change in Port Hope and the surrounding area. Data collected will help the municipality gain a better understanding of local perceptions and experiences of climate change, examples of current initiatives and their impacts, gaps, barriers and opportunities, priority actions moving forward, and potential roles of municipal government and other stakeholders - including Port Hope community groups.

“I commend the Working Group, including Councillor Mink, for dedicating a great deal of time and energy to this important initiative,” Mayor Bob Sanderson said in the announcement.

“Our community is small but mighty, and I expect that there will be a tremendous response to this survey, with critical information that will guide the development of the municipality’s new Action Plan on Climate Change.

“I look forward to the recommendations from the Working Group in the months to come and support from the municipality on climate-change mitigation for our local area.”

Formerly the Centre of Excellence for Environmental Sustainability Working Group, the newly re-named Climate Change Working Group is responsible for providing advice and recommendations to support the completion of a Climate Change Action Plan. The Working Group collaborates with the Environmental Officer for Northumberland County, as well as McMaster University, graduate students to develop a plan for climate mitigation strategies that can be implemented by the municipality.

Surveys must be completed prior until March 31.

This initiative represents the third and final phase of the collaboration with McMaster and the Municipal Working Group. The partnership was established in September 2019 and the groups have worked together with the goal to develop a strong Action Plan against Climate Change at the local level.

It's an important milestone for the group, chair Bob Biffin commented in the press release, “and I am proud of our accomplishments to date.

“This survey is merely a piece of a larger puzzle, and we still have a long road ahead. The information gleaned from the survey will contribute to a dashboard of options that council will then need to consider, implement, and resource.

“The task is still a sizable one, but I am confident that if we can think global and act local, we can do our part for Mother Nature in our small corner of the Earth.”