Council Unanimously Passes Amendment Related to Green Network Plan - September 24 2019

Halifax city councillors made a change at Tuesday night’s council meeting that will allow for the protection of Halifax Regional Municipality’s wildlife and the corridors they use to move through the city’s ecosystem.

Councillors unanimously passed an amendment on Tuesday evening to the Regional Municipal Planning Strategy, a long range strategy that outlines how future growth and development should take place in the HRM between now and 2031.

The strategy gets reviewed every few years to ensure that it accurately reflects the changing needs and goals of the city. The next review is not for another couple of years, and any future plans set to be introduced can not be put in place until the review.

The change is specifically to the implementation of the Halifax Green Network Plan, which is a city-wide initiative that has been established to ensure that the HRM can continue moving toward being a more eco-friendly city. The exact part of the Green Network Plan that is being changed allows council to go ahead with the protection of wildlife corridors. The corridors allow wildlife such as deer, birds and rabbits in the HRM to move between different habitats more easily.

Karen Robinson spoke for the Sandy Lake Coalition, a conservation group concerned with the protection and preservation of the ecosystem around the Sackville River area.

She is happy that city councillors were able to unanimously agree on an amendment that she believes will directly help Halifax’s ecosystem, by promoting a more vibrant and healthy ecological community.

“Citizens today can have peace of mind knowing that their city is doing something to tackle the larger issue of climate change,” said Robinson.

Robinson said the corridors will protect biodiversity, which is crucial to the survival of all species, including humans.

“This is a great day, it’ll be even better once we get the full plan implemented,” said Coun. Shawn Cleary who motioned to pass the amendment.

Council’s decision comes in the wake of recent protests across the world surrounding climate change. This past week in Halifax, more than 10,000 citizens gathered in front of city hall as part of a demonstration.