I began with NSBI’s business advisory team in 2001, and at that time I was focused on meeting with business owners, evaluating their viability, their opportunities, and of course their potential pitfalls. When I met with businesses years ago, there wasn’t a lot of discussion around global warming, carbon footprints, energy conservation or the environment in general.
What a difference today.
Now when I meet with companies in the Strait region, such as New Page, Ocean Nutrition, and Finewood Flooring & Lumber, it’s clear these businesses are focused on the environment and they are exploring new opportunities to conserve energy. These companies have made capital investments in new technologies so they can burn biofuels; such as fish oil, and wood fibre waste,such as bark and saw dust; as a way of creating clean energy. These companies have cut energy costs, and more importantly, they’ve reduced carbon emissions.
I see these kinds of ecologically responsible attitudes across the entire Strait region. Municipalities and their residents are actively participating in green projects.
Here’s one: The Strait-Highlands Green Action, a three-year milestone initiative of the Strait-Highlands Regional Development Agency (S-HRDA), drives business development in several sectors while working to reduce the region’s carbon footprint. Developing a greenhouse gas emission inventory and forecast was the first step -- and the first milestone. There will be two more milestones in the next two years. The Strait region will set a reduction target, and through community and government support, it will work to reduce energy use and minimize harmful emissions.
Here’s another example: This past year the Government of Nova Scotia created the Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act. It sets out goals of cutting greenhouse gases by 10 per cent below 1990 levels by 2020, and significantly reducing air pollutants by 2010. And there’s the Ecotrust Municipal Program for Clean Air and Climate Change so municipalities can help reach the goals and make our province a healthier place to live.
Blaine Gillis, CEO of the Strait-Highlands Regional Development Agency, is most proud of the leadership role the three municipalities, Inverness County, Richmond County and the Town of Port Hawkesbury, have played in meeting challenges and setting the stage for real environmental change. He says by changing our way of thinking and our use of energy and resources, we can set Cape Breton and Nova Scotia on a path to greater sustainability and create highly skilled employment. I couldn’t agree more.
Looking back, I’ve seen a transformation in the way we, as business people, developers and communities, think about the environment. By investing in green, businesses are stronger competitors and communities are healthier. That sounds like a winning combination to me.