Reducing our climate impact and building stronger communities

As extreme weather events become more common, this Earth Day it is more important than ever that we work towards building a resilient community that can adapt to our ever-changing climate. Since 2023, the City has invested over $1.1 billion towards climate initiatives to support projects that help reduce the impact of severe weather and build stronger communities.

Last fall, Council approved Climate Ready Ottawa, a strategy that aims to help to prepare for the impacts of climate change and build long-term resilience across Ottawa. Early work has already begun, including coordinated work across departments on protecting people, infrastructure and essential services from the most urgent climate risks, such as flooding, extreme heat and severe storms. This work includes increased investment in flood preparedness, including protecting the drinking water plants from flooding and a new sandbagging machine to support emergency preparedness. 

Building resilience isn’t something the City can do alone, it grows through collaboration and strong connections. This is why we are exploring an Extreme Weather Preparedness pilot program, which could invest directly in neighbourhood and community preparedness to strengthen local readiness for extreme weather events.    

Investments are being made on greening City operations and improving efficiency in how our facilities are powered and run. You may have noticed a zero-emission bus passing by or renovation work being done on your local community centre.

Through the recent Green Fleet Strategy, most of the City’s gas-powered fleet will be transitioned to zero-emission vehicles by 2040 through the adoption of battery electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles.  OC Transpo is already off to a strong start with 97 zero-emission buses cruising around the city, with that total anticipated to more than double by the end of the year.

Many of our facilities have also been receiving a green touch, including the installation of 57 heat pumps, 26 LED upgrades to lights and 11 building decarbonization studies planned this year. Soon, several buildings will also see the glint of solar panels on their rooftops that will help offset some of the energy it uses. All of these retrofits help lower emissions while improving long‑term operational performance.

The City has several programs that you can explore which aim to help protect homes and buildings or even get more trees planted in your area. These programs make it easier to reduce energy use, lower emissions and protect homes from flooding and extreme weather. 

• Explore the various tree planting programs available for public and private spaces.
• Improve energy efficiency and resiliency of your home or building through programs such as the Better Homes Ottawa Loan Program or the Better Buildings Ottawa program.
• Learn how to install a rain garden or other rainwater management projects that help reduce the harmful impacts of rainwater runoff through the Rain Ready Ottawa program.
• Apply to the Residential Protective Plumbing program for financial assistance towards installing protective plumbing devices such as sump pumps and storm and sanitary backwater valves.
• Regularly reviewing your household’s emergency preparedness basics, like making an emergency plan and keeping an emergency preparedness kit, can also help ensure you’re prepared for extreme weather. Stay connected to City communications and other information sources to be informed before, during and after an emergency.

Transparency and accountability are key to meaningful climate action. That’s why we have launched a new public facing Greenhouse Gas Emissions Dashboard – an important step forward in how Ottawa’s emissions data is shared, understood and used. This launch marks an important milestone in the City’s climate journey, making it easy for everyone to see how both the community and the City are doing against emissions targets.