The City of Peterborough aims to develop impactful projects, programs, and policies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and adapt to climate change. In 2025, the Climate Change Action Plan 2.0 – Pathway to Net Zero 2050 (CCAP2.0) was approved by City Council. The CCAP2.0 targets emissions created in our community, such as from buildings and transportation. The CCAP2.0 is the central guiding document to decarbonize key polluting sectors in Peterborough till 2050.
The City will continue actively pursuing the implementation of mitigation measures to enable achieving the ambitious goal of net zero emissions. However, the City recognizes that sustained support is needed from the provincial and federal governments to influence and implement decarbonizing actions outside the authority of the municipality, such as updating building codes and vehicle emission standards. To track implementation progress, annual updates on CCAP2.0 initiatives will be submitted to City Council.
Climate Change Action Plan - Community Strategies |
The CCAP2.0 community strategies are categorized into seven Big Moves: Land Use: transform urban design and land use to implement sustainable actions to achieve higher densification. Green Buildings: built environment minimizing energy usage through swapping out fossil fuel energy sources for space heating and cooling, water heating. Energy Supply: shift away from fossil fuels to renewable energy generation via local energy production. Sustainable Transportation: public transit and active transportation are expanded with the use of electric and hydrogen vehicles for commuting as well as for freight and off-road vehicles. Industry: reduce the energy intensity of the sector. Waste: accelerate waste diversion and incorporate circular economy principles into the waste sector. Forestry and Carbon Capture: enhance urban forests and implement carbon capture strategies when feasible. |
Climate Change Action Plan - Corporate Strategies |
The corporate strategies focus on five themes: Buildings, Fleet, Water & Sewage, Streetlighting, and Solid Waste. The City of Peterborough is accelerating municipal action to lessen GHG emissions being emitted from corporate sources and to demonstrate local leadership. The following are examples of corporate strategies that will diminish GHG emissions:
For more examples of climate action progress by the City of Peterborough, visit Municipal Action. |
In 2019, City Council declared a climate emergency that expressed support for greatly accelerating timelines for introducing climate actions and to consider new actions and proposals to significantly lower GHG emissions. In the declaration, Council identified the need to achieve a target of 45% GHG emission reduction by 2030 below 2011 levels and net zero by 2050. The enhanced targets and CCAP2.0 are now aligned with the latest climate science that supports holding global temperatures to 2oC or below.
Climate Emergency Declaration, September 23, 2019 |
At the meeting of September 23, 2019, Council adopted the following motion in declaring a Climate Emergency: Whereas:
That Council, pursuant to its authority under section 10 of the Municipal Act, 2001, hereby declares a climate emergency within the City of Peterborough for the purpose of naming, framing and deepening our commitment to protecting our community, its economy, and its eco systems from climate change, and,
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In 2019, the Peterborough Environmental Advisory Committee (PEAC) was founded as a community body to provide advice to Council and city staff on sustainability, environmental, and climate action matters. The Committee meets nine times per year to discuss and submit feedback for consideration on corporate and community-focused initiatives. A monthly climate initiatives update report is presented to PEAC members regarding the latest ongoing climate action projects being led by the City of Peterborough. The Committee also receives presentations and reports from other departments and divisions seeking PEAC input.
All PEAC meeting documents can be accessed on the City Council Meeting webpage by searching in the Upcoming Meetings section for the most recent committee agenda or scrolling down to the Past Meetings section for archived meeting documents.
The municipality has created supporting plans and policies that have been designed to aid in climate mitigation and adaptation in Peterborough.
Update of Official Plan |
The Official Plan, is a guiding document that sets the vision and direction of how community growth will be undertaken in Peterborough to 2051. The Official Plan update includes a significant number of policies that directly and indirectly address mitigation and adaptation. Highlights of climate policies within the Official Plan include:
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Corporate Energy Management Plans |
The City of Peterborough is mandated by the Province of Ontario to report annually on the energy consumption of city-owned facilities and create a five year energy plan to curb energy use. The municipality established the inaugural Corporate Energy Management Plan - 2014 to 2018, that outlined the initial energy reduction measures to achieve 5% reduction in energy use from 2013 levels. The following are the included measures:
In 2021, the City of Peterborough completed its second iteration with the introduction of the Corporate Energy Management Plan - 2019 to 2023. The new plan seeks to reduce corporate energy use by 10% from 2018 levels. Highlights of the plan include:
In 2024, the third iteration of the City of Peterborough's Corporate Energy Management Plan Update 2024-2028 was completed. The updated plan is targeting to lower corporate energy consumption by 5% by 2028 from 2023 levels. Achieving the abatement goal will be enabled by the following actions:
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Flood Reduction Master Plan |
After the 2004 Peterborough flood the City of Peterborough commissioned the development of the Flood Reduction Master Plan. The following recommendations from the plan have since been implemented or are continual actions to lower the likelihood of a similar flood event occurring:
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Watershed Plan |
To enhance the long-term protection of the watershed that Peterborough is located within, the Peterborough Watershed Plan - Our Watershed, Our Blueprint is being developed. The first phase of the plan is to improve understanding of the multiple sub-watersheds within the city that comprise the larger watershed that drains into the Otonabee River. This research phase includes a detailed inventory of water resource systems, natural heritage features, and cultural values of the sub-watershed within the community. The Watershed Plan complements climate adaptation by elevating the extent of knowledge for areas of the city that may flood or be impacted by flooding. |
Community Climate Change Resiliency Strategy |
The Community Climate Change Resiliency Strategy (CCCRS) is a comprehensive adaptation plan that is being developed to lower the risk and vulnerability of Peterborough to the effects of extreme weather. The CCCRS is being finalized before implementation throughout the community with the following strategies being recommended:
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Urban Forest Strategic Plan |
The urban forest canopy in Peterborough is an excellent resource for climate adaptation and mitigation. Trees have the ability to reduce flooding by slowing rain water as well as capturing and storing carbon dioxide. In 2011, the Urban Forest Strategic Plan was developed to guide the municipality in protecting and enhancing the tree canopy. The plan targeted eight strategic objectives:
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