Municipal Sustainability Office

Our Projects, Reports, Toolkits & Activities

Drawing upon best practices from existing local and national resources, UNSM developed a Nova Scotia-specific guide for producing a climate change mitigation plan to help municipalities identify and implement strategic measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from their daily operations.  By setting out a framework to direct municipalities through the steps of developing a mitigation plan, this guide focuses on opportunities to reduce municipal energy use that will lead to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and ultimately reduce operational costs. 

The guide is modular in nature and can be used to meet the minimum requirements under the Gas Tax Funding Agreement or to develop a comprehensive mitigation plan.  UNSM recognizes that there are a variety of approaches each municipality can take to address climate change.  This guide will provide the information and direction required to successfully tailor individual approaches, given the unique circumstances of each municipality. 

UNSM’s Municipal Climate Change Mitigation Plan Guide provides:

1. A step-by-step framework to develop a plan to reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions from daily operations through the implementation of energy reduction measures
2. A rationale for completing an emissions inventory to identify relevant reduction measures and provide a reference point for tracking future reductions
3. A suite of suggested reduction measure for municipal buildings, vehicle fleets, streetlights, water and wastewater facilities and solid waste
4. A business case for implementing reductions measures to help demonstrate cost savings
5. Recommendations for implementation and monitoring progress

Click here for a copy of UNSM’s Municipal Climate Change Mitigation Plan Guide.

Wind Energy Development Plan Project

In 2010, the Municipal Sustainability Office issued a request for expressions of interest inviting municipalities to apply for support to develop wind energy plans.  Funding provided by the Department of Energy was awarded to the Municipality of the District of Shelburne and the Municipality of the County of Cumberland to determine zones within each municipality's boundaries where the installation of large wind turbines should be encouraged, discouraged and prohibited.  Click on the links for a copy of the reports from the District of Shelburne and Cumberland County and updates from each municipality (Shelburne and Cumberland) since the reports were completed. 

Wind Primer

Building on the Wind Energy Development Plan Project, a wind primer was developed to outline the three main steps required to develop a wind energy plan (consultation, mapping and policy development), and lessons learned and best practices from the pilot projects completed by the Municipality of the District of Shelburne and the Municipality of the County of Cumberland.  The primer is meant to assist municipalities interested in proactively planning for large wind projects.  A copy of the wind primer can be found here.

Municipal Sustainability Scan Project

To track the measures in which Nova Scotia's 55 municipalities are engaging to reduce greenhouse gas emission levels, and energy and resource use, the Municipal Sustainability Scan Project was developed with funding support from the ecoNova Scotia Municipal Program, Nova Scotia Environment and Service Nova Scotia & Municipal Relations. The Municipal Sustainability Office contracted with the Sustainability Solutions Group in mid-2010 to create a questionnaire, survey each municipality, tabulate and analyze the data; write a report on the findings and create a database of sustainability projects currently engaged in by Nova Scotia municipalities. The project will provide a vehicle for municipalities to track and highlight their efforts to become more sustainable, and inspire leadership and innovation.

The survey results report (PDF - 576 kB) summarizes key findings and provides a snapshot of current municipal sustainability programs and policies. The mindmap database houses information collected from the surveys and will allow municipalities to learn from others' successes and build capacity for future projects. It is designed to be interactive so that the UNSM Municipal Sustainability Office is able to update it as new information is received.*

*Please be aware that the survey results currently posted in the report and database are direct translations of the information provided by the Nova Scotia municipalities that participated in the survey. If you see any errors or omissions and when you have new information to add to the database, please forward your submissions to UNSM Municipal Sustainability Office ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ).

Wind Energy Bylaws & Toolkit

In the fall of 2010, the Municipal Sustainability Office worked with the Nova Scotia Department of Energy to issue a questionnaire to determine what resources municipalities needed to better understand wind energy development.  The results of the questionnaire were used by the Department of Energy to develop a toolkit that clearly illustrates the opportunities and challenges relating to wind power in Nova Scotia.  Download a copy of the toolkit. The questionnaire also aimed to collect all wind bylaws currently in place in our municipalities. Access a listing of these bylaws (52 kB) or the individual bylaws. Please note, if you would like to amend or add a bylaw, please contact UNSM’s Municipal Sustainability Coordinator at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Model Wind Turbine By-Laws & Best Practices for Nova Scotia Municipalities Report Background

Nova Scotia municipalities have an interest and stake in the development of renewable energy projects in the province, and as more municipalities look towards wind energy as a viable component of their energy system, it becomes increasingly important to define how these projects will fit within each community.   The onus is on municipalities to create by-laws that take into account the concerns of their citizens without unduly hampering the development of this important renewable energy resource.

In partnership Nova Scotia Energy, Service Nova Scotia & Municipal Relations and Halifax Regional Municipality, UNSM commissioned a study to outline best practice guidelines and model wind turbine by-laws to aid municipalities in making important decisions about developing wind projects in their communities.

Electronic Viewing Version: Final Report: Model Wind Turbine By-laws and Best Practices for Nova Scotia Municipalities (click here (711.31 kB) to view the full report with appendices electronically. If you wish to print the report, we recommend you use the print versions of this report)

Print Version: Final Report: Model Wind Turbine By-laws and Best Practices for Nova Scotia Municipalities (click here (575 kB)to print the report, without Appendix A (Bibliography). For best results, print on 8.5 X 11 paper. Remember to print back-to-back to save on paper)

Print Version: Appendix A (Bibliography): Model Wind Turbine By-laws and Best Practices for Nova Scotia Municipalities (click here (150 kB)for a printable version of Appendix A. For best printing results, print on 11 X 17 paper.

Corporate Energy & Emissions Toolkit Background

Many municipal governments struggle to manage energy costs and undertake measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as they often lack the resources, both financial and human, to put into practice energy-saving initiatives even though there is a strong business case to do so.  Before municipalities can implement initiatives to conserve energy and reduce emissions, they must calculate their energy use to provide a starting point or baseline for tracking future reductions.  In 2007, UNSM, in partnership with Nova Scotia Energy/Conserve Nova Scotia, Service Nova Scotia & Municipal Relations, and Nova Scotia Environment, commissioned the development of an emissions and energy tool-kit for Nova Scotia municipalities to track their energy use and greenhouse gas emissions.  The Corporate Energy & Emissions Toolkit has three components: a spreadsheet to calculate energy use and greenhouse gas emission from all municipal operations, an instruction manual to provide guidance on using the spreadsheet and educational materials.

The UNSM Corporate Energy and Emissions Spreadsheet.v.2.0 (395 KB)- This is a calculation and quantification tool based on the Inventory Quantification Support Spreadsheet, developed by the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) and administered by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM). The ICLEI tool was modified with permission from FCM and ICLEI. It will assist municipalities in quantifying both their greenhouse gas (GHG) and air pollutant (AP) emissions of their operations. This includes emission from your municipal buildings, fleet and service delivery operations. Please note that an updated version of this spreadsheet was uploaded on October 25, 2011.

The Corporate Energy and Emissions Instruction Manual (125.37 kB) – This manual has been designed specifically to accompany the Corporate Energy and Emissions Spreadsheet. You should read this before you use the Corporate Energy and Emissions Spreadsheet.

The Corporate Energy and Emissions Education Materials (529.36 kB)– This is a power point package to help explain the system for municipalities. It will be used as the basis for training workshops on the Tool-Kit in 2008, however, municipalities may find it a useful to use internally in the coming weeks.

Community Energy & Emissions Toolkit

The Community Energy & Emissions Toolkit is a companion to the corporate version.  It allows municipalities to track energy use and community-wide emission levels for its residential, commercial/industrial and transportation sectors.  Click here for the latest version.

The Community Energy and Emissions User Guidehas been designed specifically to accompany the Community Energy and Emissions Spreadsheet.

Energy Efficient Street Lighting Strategies for Nova Scotia Municipalities Report

Street lights are a significant expenditure and source of greenhouse gas emissions for municipalities.  With in the province, Nova Scotia Power Inc. owns and maintains the majority of street lights and municipalities pay the utility a flat fee based on the number and size of street lights they lease.
 
To provide Nova Scotia municipalities with options for reducing the costs and energy use associated with street lights, UNSM, in collaboration with Nova Scotia Power Inc., Halifax Regional Municipality and Conserve Nova Scotia, commissioned a study to explore energy-efficient street lighting strategies.

The Energy Efficient Street Lighting Strategies for Nova Scotia Municipalities report contains extensive information on the purposes and benefits of roadway lighting, design standards and practices, and how to determine where and when to light roadways.  In addition to the background and technical information, the report offers a review of energy efficient lighting by providing a comparison of the various technologies and practices, along with consideration of barriers and opportunities for their implementation. 

In terms of recommendations, the report offers the following to improve street lighting efficiency and design practices within Nova Scotia: 

1. Consider developing a program to assess and retrofit mercury vapor and metal halide luminaires with more efficient LED or high pressure sodium cobra head luminaires. (currently, approximately 20% of the existing 136,000 street lights in Nova Scotia use less efficient light sources, such as mercury vapor and metal halide).
2. Consider assessing and testing new adaptive lighting or dimming controls which vary the levels of lighting during non-peak traffic flow periods.
3. Since all street lighting products do not perform equally, use the Canadian Standards Association guide (CSA-C653) to compare products and choose the right one for each application.
4. In terms of “how” to light, adopt industry standard design practices and develop  a common Street Lighting Design Criteria based on the Transportation Association of Canada’s Roadway Lighting Design Guide.
5. In terms of “where and when” to light, develop a standard practice based on the report’s recommendations to create a more consistent application of lighting.

The report generally concludes that a “silver bullet” does not yet exist for energy efficient street lighting.  This is due mainly to the lack of proven performance for the newer technologies, such as LED street lights.  However, in an effort to help assess the performance of these newer technologies and test their applicability for our municipalities, a number of pilot projects are currently underway in Nova Scotia.  For example, LED Roadway Lighting Ltd., a company based in Amherst that manufactures LED street lights, is conducting a pilot program to replace 1,100 high pressure sodium lights with LED lights in 10 municipalities across the province.  Also, Nova Scotia Power is in discussions with 2 municipalities regarding a pilot project opportunity through Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) involving a 2-month trial installation of 10 units of adaptive street lighting in each of these municipalities.  The Halifax Regional Municipality is also participating in the NRCan initiative which will program 10 modified street lights to light at different levels depending on nighttime pedestrian and motor vehicle traffic patterns.  It is hoped that the results of these initiatives will provide information to help assess future opportunities for energy efficient street lighting projects across the province.  

Active Transportation

Early this year, UNSM's Active Transportation Committee commissioned a report to summarize the results of its active transportation survey.  Here are the documents:

• Active Transportation Survey Results Report
• Summary of Active Transportation Survey Results
  

Greening UNSM

UNSM realizes that encouraging Nova Scotia municipalities to engage and become leaders in sustainability is only one of our responsibilities.  It is also very important we demonstrate our willingness to "walk-the-talk" and "lead by example".  As part of our efforts, UNSM is making a commitment to "green" our own internal operations:   to look at ways to make our meetings and events, office operation and travel as environmentally responsible as possible.  Once we are our “house in order”, we will proceed with developing a green office practices program designed for our municipalities.  Stay tuned! 

Green Office Procedures Toolkit

A  group of Dalhousie University graduate students in the Faculty of Management program worked with the Municipal Sustainability Office to develop a green office procedures toolkit to help municipalities reduce there energy and resource use.  The Green Office Procedures Toolkitis the result of the students’ efforts.

Idle-free Toolkit for Municipalities

Municipalities in Nova Scotia and in the rest of Canada are working to eliminate unnecessary idling as an easy way to improve air quality, contribute to climate protection and save fuel costs.  Municipalities are well positioned to demonstrate leadership and effectively implement coordinated, community-based, idle-free compaigns.  The Idle-free Toolkit for Municipalities developed by Clean Nova Scotia with funding from Nova Scotia Environment's Climate Change Directorate and Air Quality Branch, provides a framework to help municipalities develop effective programs to eliminate unnecessary idling. The toolkit highlights local and national idle-free initiatives, provides guidance on by-law creation, enforcement and public education, and offers links to valuable idle-free resources.

Save Money, Save Energy & Cut Emissions:  Quick and Easy Steps for Nova Scotia Municipalities Report and Brochure

In 2005, UNSM’s Sustainable Practices Committee commissioned the development of a guidebook and brochure on how to cut greenhouse gas emissions and reduce energy use entitled, Save Money, Save Energy, and Cut Emissions: Quick and Easy Steps for Nova Scotia Municipalities.

You can download the brochure (817 kb) or guidebook (1.3 MB).