Canada to start projects aimed at electric vehicles, road safety, waste management

Investing in innovative municipal infrastructure projects contributes to a clean growth economy and strengthens the middle class by ensuring communities are healthy and sustainable places to live.

François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, and Vicki-May Hamm, President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) announced over $12.1 million in funding for 159 new initiatives in communities across Canada through three programs: the Green Municipal Fund (GMF), the Municipalities for Climate Innovation Program (MCIP), and the Municipal Asset Management Program (MAMP).

The Government of Canada believes that local leaders know best what their communities need and is committed to working with them to strengthen their infrastructure. Municipalities are implementing some of Canada's most advanced green solutions, reducing Canada's greenhouse gas emissions and supporting local priorities such as improving public transit, saving energy and improving waste management.

The projects announced today demonstrate the work being done in municipalities large and small. Examples include:

• The City of Beaconsfield, Quebec is using a grant from GMF to study ways to reduce organic waste disposal through smart collecting and incentive-based pricing. The objective is to reduce the amount of organic waste within the waste stream by 50 percent. The results of this initiative will provide great insight for other municipalities considering a similar program.
• The North Coast Regional District, in collaboration with 31 local governments in British Columbia along the route from Kamloops to Haida Gwaii, are working together to study the feasibility of developing an electric vehicle network of fast charging stations. With funding through MCIP, the study will consider the integration of solar panel canopies, allowing residents and visitors to drive cars powered by sunshine.
• The Town of Iroquois Falls, Ontario is using funding from MAMP to implement innovative mobile sensing technology to gather information on road conditions that will enable them to make more efficient assessments and informed investment decisions on their roadway infrastructure.