Staff Report: Climate Action Plan RFP

Staff Report: Climate Action Plan – Request for Proposal

t 250.478.7882
e administration@langford.ca
2nd Floor, 877 Goldstream Avenue
Langford, BC V9B 2X8

DATE

Tuesday, September 2, 2025

DEPARTMENT

Planning

SUBJECT

Climate Action Plan – Request for Proposal

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The purpose of this report is to seek Council’s endorsement of the general scope of work for the Climate Action Plan, prior to issuing a Request for Proposal (RFP) to retain professional consulting services.

Developing the Climate Action Plan (CAP) is identified in the 2023-2027 Council Strategic Plan. The proposed scope of work outlined in this report includes background research and analysis, a Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment, public engagement, and the development of the Climate Action Plan. It is expected that this project will take approximately one year from when the consultant is awarded the project.

BACKGROUND

Council adopted Langford’s first Five-Year Council Strategic Plan in 2023 to set out their vision, core values, and key priority initiatives to guide decision making and staff’s workplan for 2023-2027. This Strategic Plan includes a number of initiatives related to climate action planning, including:

• 1e – Develop a Climate Action Development Permit Area Bylaw.
• 2a – Develop a Climate Action Master Plan including targets for emission reductions.
• 2e – Develop an overarching Disaster Mitigation Strategy with respect to climate change and build resiliency as a community based on specific initiatives.

In addition, initiative 1a – Refresh the Official Community Plan (OCP) included a review of the climate action sections of the 2008 OCP. The new OCP was adopted in June 2025, and Part 9 – Climate Action and Sustainable Infrastructure sets out updated policies, targets, and commitments for climate action and greenhouse gas emission reductions. This work was informed by background research and analysis of Langford’s policies, best practices related to climate action, and a gaps analysis to identify challenges and opportunities for improvement.

Based on the results from this research and analysis, and further exploration of constituent tasks, activities, and processes to implement these policies, staff recommend two separate workflows as follows:

1. Development of Climate Action Plan: this report lays out the recommended scope for the development of the Climate Action Plan, which will inform a Request for Proposals (RFP) to retain professional consulting services.
2. Step Code Adoption: staff are completing a separate report to outline findings and recommendations with respect to the Energy and Zero Carbon Step Code. This will be provided to Council at an upcoming meeting.

COMMENTARY

As directed by the 2023-2027 Council Strategic Plan, staff wish to proceed with a Request for Proposal (RFP) to develop a Climate Action Plan that defines a flexible and achievable path towards a low-carbon, climate-resilient community that safeguards wellbeing across generations.

The Climate Action Plan (CAP) will identify strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (mitigation) and to prepare for climate change risks and impacts (adaptation) while advancing co-benefits that contribute to community resilience, such as health, equity, food security, biodiversity, a resilient and sustainable economy, and others.

The RFP is proposed to include the following general scope of work:

1. Background review and analysis of existing plans, policies, and strategies related to climate action from the City of Langford, regional, provincial and federal governments to identify gaps, challenges, and opportunities for improvement.
2. Conduct a Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment to identify climate change risks, vulnerabilities, and their impacts on City infrastructure, services, and people. This assessment will include current and future climate scenarios and will inform the development of the Climate Action Plan.
3. Analyze the local context and trends including but not limited to demographic data, equity indicators, land use changes, and locally experienced climate change impacts.
4. Review and analyze community and corporate energy use and emissions, advise on greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets, and create a roadmap to achieve the targets through climate action.
5. Consider if and how a Climate Action Development Permit Area could be utilized to advance Langford’s climate action goals.
6. Develop a communications and engagement plan in collaboration with the City staff, and in accordance with the City of Langford Public Engagement Strategy. The communications and engagement plan will ensure inclusive participation from all demographics of the community, particularly Indigenous Peoples and traditionally under-represented, vulnerable, and harder-to-reach equity seeking groups.
7. The consultant will support City staff in establishing an inter-departmental Climate Action Working Group, identifying key interest groups for public engagement, supporting the delivery and facilitation of engagement activities including workshops, and preparing engagement summary reports/memos.
8. Identify and prioritize climate action targets, goals, strategies, and actions, that will be informed by data gathered from the Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment, policy and gaps analysis, local context analysis, corporate and community emissions analysis, and public engagement results.
9. In consultation with City staff, the consultant will write a draft Climate Action Plan and finalize the plan within the agreed timeframe. The Climate Action Plan should include:
   • Specific climate action targets, goals, strategies, and actions for corporate and community climate action;
   • Actionable recommendations to integrate disaster mitigation and co-benefits for climate resilience;
   • Implementation Strategy outlining actions, recommended timelines, and resourcing requirements;
   • Monitoring and Evaluation Approach to track progress of climate action initiatives; and
   • Summary of public engagement activities.

It is expected that this project will take approximately one year from when the consultant is awarded the project.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

The costs associated with developing a Climate Action Plan can be covered through funds provided to the City through the provincial government’s Local Government Climate Action Program (LGCAP). The purpose of the LGCAP program is to provide guidance and support for the implementation of local climate action plans and policies that reduce emissions and prepare the community for the impacts of climate change. It is expected that these funds will fully cover the costs of the consulting work.

LEGAL IMPLICATIONS

The Local Government Act sets out in Section 488 (1) that an official community plan may designate development permit areas for one or more of the following purposes: …. (h) establishment of objectives to promote energy conservation; (i) establishment of objectives to promote water conservation; and (j) establishment of objectives to promote the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

The BC Climate Change Accountability Act Section 4.3 requires an annual ministerial report on climate change risks, and an overview of government’s actions to manage them.

All Local Governments in the province are signatories of the BC Climate Action Charter, committing to measuring and reporting their community-wide GHG emissions.

STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT

• 1e – Develop a Climate Action Development Permit Area Bylaw.
• 2a – Develop a Climate Action Master Plan including targets for emission reductions.
• 2c – Review and action the Food Security Policy as detailed in the OCP.
• 2e – Develop an overarching Disaster Mitigation Strategy with respect to climate change and build resiliency as a community based on specific initiatives.

OPTIONS

Option 1