A lack of metrics, unclear lines of accountability and disagreements over the city's proper role in tackling climate change are some of the city auditor general's major findings in her examination of the city's climate change master plan.Ottawa Auditor General Nathalie Gougeon's says the city 'has reached a crossroads' when it comes to meeting its climate change goals.
The city's climate change master plan, approved in 2020, aims to reduce emissions from both city operations and in the wider community. Specifically, it aims to reduce community emissions by 43 per cent by 2025, and 100 per cent by 2050. It also aims to reduce emissions from city operations by 100 per cent by 2040.
"Not being able to measure outcomes and progress goes to the root of not being able to properly inform council," Gougeon told reporters after Monday's meeting. "We want council to have all the information available to them in order to make informed decisions." McDonald said the city will look at what data is available and possibly draw on external subject matter experts to help the track its performance, to be completed by 2025.