Climate Action

How we commuted in 2021

• 80.5% travelled by car, truck or van with an average commute of 15 minutes, with 91% of those drives as a singe-occupant trip
• 14.2% went by active transport (walking, bike, other) for an average commute of 14 minutes
• 2% took transit with an average commute time of 25 minutes

Younger people are more likely to use active transportation (18%) compared using vehicles (74%), compared to older populations at 11-14% for active transportation and 80% travelling by vehicle.

The good news is that as we take action toward reducing greenhouse gas emission at home, on the road, and at work, we can also improve health and well-being, protect our natural environment, save money, support clean energy jobs, and prepare for extreme weather.

Source: Climate Projections for the Okanagan Region Report (Feb 2020). Click to see the full report.

The Community Energy Association accelerates bold action by local governments and Indigenous communities related to climate and energy. The CEA grew from a committee established by the Government of BC and the Union of BC Municipalities in the 1990s and was incorporated as a non-profit in 2003. Today, CEA's members and staff live in communities large and small and bring their collective expertise, experiences, passion, and commitment to Truth and Reconciliation to help lower local greenhouse gas emissions and build healthy, resilient communities. 

The CCAP is organized into six pillars of actions that have the biggest impact on reducing emissions in the community.

Actions include improving the energy efficiency of buildings, improving alternative transportation methods (such as bike routes), and reducing and diverting waste from landfills.

Actions fall into three categories:

1. Infrastructure: Investments into the City-owned infrastructure that enable residents to make lower-emissions choices such as active transportation networks and public charging stations.
2. Policy: Changes to City of Penticton policy and regulation that lead to energy and emission reductions in the community such as requirements and incentives for enhanced energy efficiency in new buildings.
3. Engagement: Outreach, education and incentives that inspire residents and businesses to make choices to reduce energy and emissions and prepare for a low carbon future.

Download the Plan

Prepared by Community Energy Association, Penticton’s new Community Climate Action Plan (CCAP) outlines strategies the City can implement now to tackle the biggest sources of GHG emissions.

The CCAP was created with funding provided by FortisBC and the Province's Emotive program. The final plan was approved by Council in November 2021.

The approved CCAP also benefited from input provided by the Community Sustainability Advisory Committee, which played an important role in guiding the document’s development. Additional feedback was received through the City’s successful Blue Skies community engagement process, which supplied input from 357 surveys and 502 responses from 25 school classrooms.

The community engagement process is documented on our digital engagement platform, Shape Your City, at shapeyourcitypenticton.ca/blue-skies.

Thank You

Thank you to everyone who participated in the creation of the plan, including the City’s Community Sustainability Advisory Committee, First Things First Okanagan and other key stakeholder groups.

Download the Plan

When we look at the chart, we can see that our emissions are closely tied to our economic activity. We experience a large decrease in fuel sales when the economy declines, which leads to a decline in emissions. As a community our challenge is how to break that cycle and separate our economic prosperity from our carbon emissions.

Energy & Environment 
Ph: 250-490-2587
Email: climate.action@penticton.ca