Langley City’s Proposed 2022 Budget – New Environmental Initiatives

Over the last little while, I’ve been posting about Langley City’s proposed 2022 Financial Plan and budget. You can read about the main driver of the proposed property tax increase, how assessed value and property tax are calculated, and how Langley City’s property tax compares to other municipalities in Metro Vancouver.

Over the last decade, we’ve seen an increase in extreme weather events. It seemed like these extreme events accelerated in 2021 with a heat dome in the summer and flooding this winter in Langley. The impacts of climate change are real. Langley City’s proposed budget includes line items to help reduce our environmental impact, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating climate change impacts.

The first item is a new ongoing position, an Environmental Sustainability Coordinator (salary is $127,500). The person in this role will:

• Create and support programs that divert waste from landfill, including reducing waste and increasing recycling and composting
• Create and support programs to reduce water usage
• Create and support programs to reduce the carbon footprint of City operations and the overall community
• Create and support programs to mitigate climate change impacts such as reducing the city heat island effect and improving the tree canopy

The City’s proposed capital budget includes:

Creating a Sustainability Framework - Develop a sustainability framework that will illustrate the intersection between three key areas of focus - social, environmental and fiscal programs and initiatives for the City: $100,000 One-Time Cost.

Streetscape Waste Container Study - Assess the City’s waste receptacles and develop a strategy to report back to Council regarding the contamination of the waste materials: $85,000 One-Time Cost.

Urban Forest Management Plan - Hire a consultant to develop an urban forest strategy along with establishing guidelines and actions to perserve and enhance the urban forest in the City over the next 15 to 25 years: $110,000 One-Time Cost.