A zero carbon alliance looks set to become a reality, after Dunedin city councillors voted in favour of the proposal on Tuesday.
This was despite some reservations about the "undoubtedly ambitious" target.
The agreement approves in principle the concept of establishing a Zero Carbon 2030 Alliance involving the University of Otago, the Otago Regional Council, Otago Polytechnic, local runanga and the Southern District Health Board as founding members.
It will look to take a partnership approach to reducing the city’s emissions.
Principal policy adviser Jinty MacTavish emphasised the zero carbon 2030 target set by council last year was "undoubtedly ambitious"; however, conversations with key partners, including the tertiary institutes, indicated they were willing to work towards the goal.
Cr Jim O’Malley said he would prefer the zero carbon goal was set for 2035.
He was supportive of the alliance, but wary it would not produce results after the initial "big hurrah".
"I’m very supportive of it going forward but I will become louder and louder in my criticism if nothing comes of it."
Further organisations and businesses needed to be added to the alliance to ensure it had impact in reducing emissions, he said.
Cr Lee Vandervis said he could not support the alliance as it would lead to an "ever-wider talk fest".
Council efforts to reduce emissions so far had been "all talk", he said.
"None of this massive spending we are undertaking on behalf of ratepayers produced any real emissions reductions."
Cr Chris Staynes said climate change was not something council could ignore.
"The world is burning ... 2030 [zero carbon] is slower than what this planet needs."
All councillors except Cr Vandervis voted in favour of the alliance.
Crs Marie Laufiso and Carmen Houlahan were absent.
Terms of reference will be developed with potential members of the alliance before a final draft is given to council.
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Comments
"The world is burning". Really?
I didn't feel that burn this week with all that snow, sleet, rain and windchill.
Last DCC meeting transcript. Mayor Hawkins on DCC Climate Change 'framework'.
' ..... what we were after, or certainly what I was after when we set out to choose a framework for this was we could better express our overarching ambitions about sustainability within our strategic framework and this does that very clearly but I think it also offers us a lot in the way of how we might integrate our various council strategies and ambitions overall which is a slightly bigger question and the reason I asked the question about how they relate, I think this is stronger conceptually and it’s also built on the sustainable development goals so it’s kind of hard coded into the architecture and therefore the best of both worlds ..um, and this is..It’s pretty fundamental in terms of asking two questions: one: How we sustain our community and that is your social foundation and then in turn how our community sustains our planet and that is our ecological ceiling and I think being able to graphically demonstrate that in whatever form that takes through the conversation we have with Okaha and others. I think having that very clearly spelled out at the front of our plans and ....'
RHUBARBRHUBARBRHU
Ha ha, funny! The ability to say everything while saying absolutely nothing, thanks for that Diane.