The City of Selkirk has seen a decrease in greenhouse gas emissions over the last several years.
When the city began tracking its emissions in 2016, the total corporate emissions were 1,029 tonnes. In 2023, the total emissions from the city dipped to 957 tonnes.
“There’s a lot of opportunity for us to reduce our emissions and also reduce the cost of operations for the city,” said City of Selkirk CAO Duane Nicol.
“We’re really looking at those opportunities; they’re kind of low-hanging fruit, and we’re taking those opportunities right now.”
According to city officials, the reduction is due to operational changes. These include the urban forestry team using electric chainsaws, hedge trimmers, and leaf blowers, and the city opting to buy electric vehicles to replace aging gas-powered ones.
“There’s obviously a lot more that needs to happen, but I think we’ve been making some serious progress,” Nicol said.
Nicol said the goal is for the city government to reach net-zero emissions by 2030. In order to do that, it will have to reduce emissions by nearly 17 per cent every year.
– With files from CTV’s Danton Unger.