Amidst this agonizing recession, cities are becoming even more selective with approving municipal projects that are centered on sustainability. Municipal budgets and spending power is becoming even more restrained and revenue allocation schemes seem to be more opaque these days. Public transit, waste management programs, wastewater treatment are all important municipal services in which thousands if not millions of citizens depend on. This blog has shared some of the on-going innovations in technology for urban sustainability including rainwater harvesting, green roofs, waste diversion programs and even climate change initiatives. But again, cities are struggling at times to implement these novel initiatives because of tight budgetary constraints. Rainwater harvesting is exorbitantly priced and costs the city a lot of money.
Citizens pay for municipal services through taxes. Property taxes cover a large portion of waste diversion programs, waste water management and to a lesser extent, public transit. When it comes to green projects like green roofs or water conservation, cities are responsible for running rebate programs and providing incentives to citizens who make good responsible choices. Even water distribution and supplying municipal water can be highly expensive. It is going to cost Toronto about $500-800 million to fix, ameliorate and replace its water system infrastructure because demand has been so high placing numerous pressures on the pipes.
Cities need to start aggressively exploring the Green Municipal Fund (GMF), which is provided by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. In short, the GMF is a program that funds municipal initiatives that embrace and benefit the environment, local economies and quality of life. Funding generally focuses on energy, transportation, waste and water- these are all areas of concern that cities like Toronto need to seriously improve. Green roofs for one, fit the criteria of a project that is worthy of receiving funding from the GMF. Toronto can benefit tremendously from this because their current Green roof pilot project has thus far determined that there is sufficient demand for green roofs on commercial and residential buildings in the city. Incentives and rebates are acting as the catalyst for widespread adoption of green roofs and other innovative forms of efficient technology. But cities like Toronto simply do not have the capital to continue funding and subsidizing these programs.
The GMF can provide financing for up to 80 per cent of costs to a maximum of $4 million in loans combined with $400,000 in grants. Also, the GMF offers interest rates 1.5 per cent lower than the Government of Canada bond rate for the equivalent term. Any municipality wanting funding has to fill out application forms to clearly outline the project and how it will embrace the environment or more broadly sustainability.
Key message: Cities need to start becoming more resourceful and pro-active in obtaining their funding for green initiatives. Not many municipalities are aware of the GMF but need to take advantage of it to reach optimal urban sustainability and the efficient use of resources.
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