Once complete, the City’s revised Municipal Energy Plan will:

Green Buildings are key to urban environmental sustainability through establishing a sustainable built form. The City of Vaughan continues to set the bar high for construction of green buildings with the adoption of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), an internationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings.

In 2009, the Green Energy Act and its regulation, Ontario Regulation (O. Reg.) 397/11, required broader public sector (BPS) organizations in Ontario, including municipalities, to publicly report on energy consumption and associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions annually. The regulation also requires publishing and implementing five-year energy conservation and demand management plans (energy management plans) related to the assets and operations of the organization.

Climate Change and COVID-19

Grow Zones

In taking the Mayors’ Monarch Pledge, the City committed to identifying opportunities for revised mowing programs and planting pollinator-friendly plants. Vaughan has embarked in identifying Grow Zones which will be left as natural enhancement areas. Natural enhancement areas will not be mowed but left with tall grass and plants. The City will continue to identify priority Grow Zone sites and are developing signs to promote this initiative.

Benefits of Grow Zones:

The Plan was created following the Walkerton incident of 2000, that contaminated the drinking water of the community’s municipal well. The Plan is mandated under the Clean Water Act, 2006 and municipalities are mandated to implement the Plan. 

Agriculture in Vaughan

Yes! There is Agriculture in Vaughan. A York Region 2016 Census Release Report on agriculture revealed that there was 3,069 hectares of farmland (including prime agriculture) in Vaughan and 57,702 total hectares in all of York Region.

​What are the Five B's?

The Five B's are pollinators - birds, butterflies, bees, beetles and bats! Most of us think of butterflies and bees when it comes to pollination, but we can’t ignore other insects, birds and mammals that play an important role in pollination.

Next Steps

In December 2019, Council adopted the new 2019 Green Directions Vaughan and now it’s time for the City to demonstrate how we lead and how we operate to create a sustainable and resilient Vaughan. Throughout 2019 and beyond, the City will take the following steps to guide Vaughan to help maintain a healthy natural environment, vibrant communities and a strong economy: