Scott Piatkowski

City/Township Council · Waterloo Ward 5

All topics Housing Getting Around Climate Food Growth & Planning Budget & Taxes

This candidate finalized their responses after this guide and scoring methodology was published.

Climate & Sustainability

How should municipalities and the Region incorporate climate and sustainability into policy, including development and infrastructure decisions?select up to 3 per part

A. Perspective on climate change

Climate change is an urgent and defining crisis of our time; reducing greenhouse gas emissions should be a primary consideration across municipal decision-making
Commitments passed by previous councils, like the 50x30 pledge or declarations of climate emergencies, should guide current council decision making
Our local and regional governments need to renew coordinated action towards implementing the Transform Waterloo Region strategy

B. Building and development standards

Where possible, require or incentivize energy efficiency standards in new development, beyond current provincial minimums
Require green infrastructure as part of development approvals (e.g. stormwater management, tree canopy, permeable surfaces)
Use development agreements to require climate sustainability measures as a condition of approval

C. Infrastructure and capital planning

Require climate risk and lifecycle cost analysis in major capital decisions
Require climate change mitigation and adaptation impact assessments for large growth decisions (greenfield expansions, settlement boundary changes)
Require an assessment of impacts on aquifer recharge

Describe one concrete policy, incentive, or decision you would prioritize to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Where possible, explain how it balances environmental goals with fiscal responsibility.candidate's own words

Waterloo should look at every development and site plan approval application through the lens of the impact it will have on the demand for water. In practice, that will mean limiting growth until our water issues are resolved (something that I actually advocated in my Waterloo Chronicle column way back in the late 1990s). That includes carefully reviewing major industrial uses; a moratorium should be placed on approving any such uses that would consume an inordinate amount of water, which means no new data centres in the City of Waterloo or the Region of Waterloo.

Would you like to provide any additional context for your views on sustainability?candidate's own words

The above policies may seem like hard choices, but they should have been made twenty-five years ago instead of after we discovered what every farmer in Wilmot Township already knew -- that the underground water supply is not infinite and has to be managed more responsibly. I believe that politicians of that era knew that as well, but they didn't want to admit it publicly and face criticism for stymieing economic growth.