The climate emergency is very real. We know that global temperatures will continue to rise, reaching a warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial times, likely by 2040.
Posted at 10:00 a.m.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was categorical in its most recent report: to hope to limit global warming to an average of 1.5°C, an immediate and drastic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions emissions (GHG) in all sectors is essential. Nevertheless, we must keep in mind that every gesture counts, that no effort is in vain, because, although the temperatures began to rise several years ago, we have the means, and the responsibility, to slow down this process in order to mitigate the consequences.
Obviously, to meet the challenge of combating climate change and adapting to it, we must invest considerable amounts in public transit and infrastructure. We need to prepare our communities for the impacts of rising global temperatures: more frequent heat waves, severe weather events, more recurrent floods as well.
In Quebec, it is imperative to reduce our GHG emissions through public transit, since nearly half of GHGs come from the transportation sector. It is a collective responsibility that requires the collaboration of the Government of Canada, of Quebec, of private companies and of civil society.
However, the Government of Canada’s efforts remain insufficient. Worse still, it recently announced that it does not intend to comply with all of the clauses of the Canada-Quebec Integrated Bilateral Agreement related to the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program, signed in 2018. was in fact committed to disbursing unused amounts from former infrastructure programs for investments in public transit and green infrastructure, two powerful levers for collectively reducing our GHG emissions and promoting our energetic transition. Nearly $350 million must be paid to the Government of Quebec and which is intended for municipalities, but which would ultimately end up in the coffers of the Government of Canada.
For the Union of Municipalities of Quebec (UMQ), this is a huge disappointment. This decision by the federal government seems inconsistent to us for two reasons. First, it contravenes the intergovernmental agreements signed between the Government of Canada and the Government of Quebec. And second, it is in direct contradiction with what the federal government identifies as one of its key priorities, namely the fight against climate change.
Municipalities are leaders in the fight against climate change. The Quebec municipal sector has demonstrated on several occasions that it wishes to implement innovative measures for the climate, change its ways of doing things and collaborate with the governments of Quebec and Canada to develop greener and more resilient communities.
Municipalities have a wide variety of projects on their drawing board and, in the current context, their realization must absolutely be accelerated.
However, to achieve this, municipalities must have access to adequate and predictable funding from both levels of government. The modifications to the Integrated Bilateral Agreement suggested by the federal government would compromise this condition of success.
For all these reasons, we are asking the federal government to reconsider its position and respect the Integrated Bilateral Agreement that it signed with the Government of Quebec. Otherwise, it is choosing to deprive municipalities throughout Quebec of considerable financial means to act effectively and sustainably in the fight against climate change, to the detriment of the future of our communities and our regions.
* The following mayors co-signed the letter: Valérie Plante, President of the UMQ’s Big Cities Caucus and Mayor of Montreal; Évelyne Beaudin, Mayor of Sherbrooke; France Bélisle, Mayor of Gatineau; Stéphane Boyer, Mayor of Laval; Julie Dufour, Mayor of Saguenay; Catherine Fournier, Mayor of Longueuil; Jean Lamarche, Mayor of Trois-Rivières; Gilles Lehouillier, Mayor of Lévis; Bruno Marchand, Mayor of Quebec; and Mathieu Traversy, Mayor of Terrebonne