Vancouver mayor departs with green goal still uncertain

Seattle, October 19 

When Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson campaigned for his job in 2008, he made a bold promise: To make Vancouver the greenest city in the world by 2020. Canada’s third-largest metropolis would grab the environmental crown by cutting car travel, enforcing stricter building codes and promoting renewable energy, he said.

But as Robertson prepares to step down after three terms as mayor, following elections Saturday, Vancouver — like many green-leaning cities around the world — is still struggling to achieve as much as it had hoped, though it has made big strides.

“Overall we’re seeing very good results across the greenest city targets and excellent progress heading towards 2020 , but there are a few that are lagging,” Robertson admitted, in an interview with the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Vancouver is one of more than 70 cities worldwide that have pledged to become “carbon neutral” by 2050, meaning they will produce no more climate-changing emissions than they can offset, such as by planting carbon-absorbing trees.

Each is going about achieving the goal in its own way. But because cities account for about three-quarters of carbon dioxide emissions, according to the UN, and consume more than two-thirds of the world’s energy, whether they succeed or fail will have a huge impact on whether the world’s climate goals are met. — Reuters

Unfulfilled dreams

• A cut in greenhouse gas emissions of 33 per cent by 2020
• Double the number of green jobs over 2010 levels 2 years
• Double the firms engaged in green operations by 2020

Objective attained 

The aim to ensure more than half of all city trips are taken by bicycle, public transport or on foot was hit in 2015, five years ahead of schedule