For Immediate Release

June 08, 2016

Toronto: The Province’s new 5-Year Climate Change Action Action Plan will help Torontonians get ready for climate change, says the Toronto Environmental Alliance.

“This plan sets the stage for building a better Toronto,” says Franz Hartmann, Executive Director of the Toronto Environmental Alliance. “It helps residents, it helps City Hall and it helps businesses move towards a much brighter future for our city.”

Residents will benefit with new programs to reduce home energy use and to help them rely less on their cars to get around the city safely. This includes more and safer, cycling and pedestrian infrastructure, eliminating minimum parking space requirements, and expanding electric vehicle charging stations. It will also protect low income Torontonians from higher bills.

City Hall will benefit with access to a $250 million fund designed to help municipalities deliver projects that reduce carbon emissions. City Hall will also benefit from new rules that make climate change planning a requirement and that gives them new powers to support green policies like community energy planning.

Local businesses will benefit with new energy reduction programs that reduce their energy bills, reduced traffic congestion and lots of local economic activity generated by local energy retrofit activities.

“This Action Plan kickstarts a much-needed effort by governments to show Torontonians there is real hope for the future,” said Hartmann. “This Action Plan provides hope. Now we need to make sure Torontonians embrace it and make it a reality.”

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For more information, contact: Franz Hartmann, Cell: 416-606-8881.