For Immediate Release: July 29, 2016
Stratford Developing a Community Energy Plan with Residents
The Town of Stratford is creating a Community Energy Plan (CEP) which will focus on decreasing the energy use within the municipality including residents, businesses and community infrastructure. This plan will make more efficient use of local, non-renewable resources in order to decrease greenhouse gas emissions throughout the town. With implementation it will make Stratford a more resilient and self-sufficient community with a goal of improving the overall health of the community through cleaner air and increased active transportation use, among other health benefits.
Think of the Community Energy Plan as a road map to a stronger, more resilient community. Through the plan, strategies will be introduced that see lower energy use making Stratford less dependent on non-renewable energy resources and will encourage behavior changes for residents and businesses. Everything from solar panels to town wide energy competitions will be considered in the CEP with feedback and comments collected from the community being the most important component to get it started. A Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan will be included in the overall CEP with the ultimate goal of measuring the amount of greenhouse gases (GHGs) which are being emitted within Stratford and how to lower those emissions in the future. Stratford will be the first community in PEI with a Community Energy Plan and only one of eleven communities in Atlantic Canada. With the growing number of communities in Canada creating CEP's, Stratford will be a recognized leader in sustainability and energy planning.
"The Community Energy Plan is an exciting project for Council and staff and we look forward to having residents and businesses engaged in the process to develop the plan," commented Mayor David Dunphy. "Sustainability is a pillar in our community and this plan will take us in a direction to really be able to show residents and businesses that we are committed to a better future".
There are a number of events planned for rest of the year and into 2017. These events will be used to engage with local residents and businesses to complete the plan as a community. The next events are a pop-up booth on August 6th at the Stratford Farmers Market and a World Café vision session at Stratford Town Centre on August 8th. World Cafés are designed to start conversations and bring as many ideas as possible together in a short amount of time. The World Café runs from 7:00-9:30pm where there will be an opportunity for residents to share their ideas and enjoy a café style treat.
To learn more or provide your feedback on the Community Energy Plan visit www.townofstratford.ca, call (902) 569-1995 or email [email protected].
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For more information please contact:
Wendy Watts
Community Engagement Coordinator, Town of Stratford
T: (902) 569-1995 E: [email protected]