The Town of Okotoks is gearing up to implement several sustainability initiatives in the new year.

With the thirty year Environmental Master Plan having been approved last October, the first initiatives from the plan will be rolled out this year.

Dawn Smith, Environment and Sustainability Coordinator for the Town of Okotoks says they are looking to hire a Climate Change & Energy Specialist after receiving a Federal grant.

"We applied to the Federal government for a climate change grant, and were successful in receiving a two year grant for an additional staff position to assist with the climate change GHG (Greenhouse Gas) benchmarking, and also how we could reduce our GHG emissions in the coming years. One of the first things identified in the Environmental Master Plan that we're moving forward with is our green house gas inventory forecast, so what are we expecting things to look like under different scenarios in 50-60 years, and aggressive reduction targets to match those."

Smith says the town will also be pursuing some smaller initiatives.

"We're looking to do a lot more connections with non-profit groups, we're looking to potentially have someone who can come into your home and do primary energy audits, and all of those would of course be offered for free to our citizens, so it's about providing services and education together."

Eco Asset Inventory and water consumption are also areas in which the Sustainability Department will be focusing on in 2019.

 

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