Belleville City Council has officially declared a climate emergency in the city.
While the decision is non-binding and has no immediate impact, it does show the city’s willingness to build on its current stable of environmentally-friendly initiatives and could open up the door to more funding from upper levels of government for those green projects moving forward.
Following Monday afternoon’s meeting, Mayor Mitch Panciuk told reporters he hopes the declaration can help the city move forward on at least one major eco-friendly project in the near future.
“I’m very interested in electrification of our fleets, we’re working with our partners with Elexicon Energy and others to see about doing it. I would like to see us flip our diesel fleet to a full electric fleet as soon as possible and we’re working really hard on that. There is funding that’s going to be available and we’re working on it.”
Panciuk also noted that Belleville’s increased investment in public transit and green spaces, as well as its extensive solar-powered network at various city facilities, is making positive strides when it comes to fighting climate change.
