Image source: Urban Retrofit project team
HaliFACT Climate Plan
Background
HalifACT is a comprehensive municipal climate action plan, developed in response to Halifax Regional Council’s 2019 declaration of a climate emergency. The plan aims to reduce community-wide emissions by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 , while strengthening resilience to withstand climate impacts. The plan operates across a large and varied geography, with approximately 400 km of shoreline and a mixture of urban, suburban, and rural communities, making both emissions reduction and climate adaptation central to implementation.
HalifACT integrates climate considerations into every municipal function through 46 actions structured within three pillars: Decarbonised and Resilient Infrastructure, Prepared and Connected Communities, and Governance and Leadership. By coupling emissions reduction with equity, the climate plan exemplifies how local governments can lead on system-wide transformation within government through cross-departmental collaboration.
Location:
Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia, Canada
Typology:
Municipal Climate Strategy and Implementation Framework
Time frame:
Adopted 2020; implementation ongoing through 2030
Emissions Reduction and Efficiency Strategy
HalifACT’s emissions strategy prioritises the decarbonisation of buildings, renewable energy integration, and low‑carbon mobility and transportation. The municipality is targeting net-zero new construction by 2030 and aims to achieve a 50% reduction in energy demand across existing buildings by 2040. Oil-based heating was identified as a major emissions source meaning fuel switching, deep retrofit programmes, and solar installations are central to the efficiency agenda. To date, Halifax has completed deep energy retrofits across major municipal buildings, including ferry terminals, fire stations, and libraries, cutting energy use by up to 76% and installing 4.3 MW of rooftop solar.
Alongside mitigation, HalifACT also coordinates adaption initiatives, such as climate hazard mapping, producing natural asset inventories, undertaking critical infrastructure upgrades, resilient retrofit programming and tree-planting, delivering storm kits, and directing nature-based coastal protection efforts.
Funding for implementation is anchored by the Climate Action Tax, a property levy introduced in 2022 that now generates appoximately CAD $18 million annually. Revenues finance three primary measures: electric vehicle infrastructure (56 fast chargers concentrated in multi-unit residential buildings), building retrofits, and community education programmes. This stable revenue source also enables Halifax to secure higher-level co‑funding from federal and provincial programmes, leveraging local dollars to unlock larger climate investment streams.
Parallel to retrofitting municipal facilities, a property-assessed clean energy financing tool called Solar City has financed CAD $23.5 million in residential solar systems since 2014, reducing an estimated 7,100 tonnes of CO₂ emissions annually. The municipality has also procured 60 electric buses, begun electrifying its corporate fleet, and designed the region’s first electric ferries and carbon neutral terminals.
Delivery Mechanisms
HalifACT is coordinated by the Environment and Climate Change Division and now consist of a team of nearly 30 staff who integrate climate governance across the municipality by way of internal working groups and a dedicated communications branch that ensures transparency with residents. Through a partnership with Nova Scotia Community College, the Building to Zero Exchange has been established to close workforce and skills gaps in building retrofit and net-zero construction.
A hallmark of the plan is its collective governance approach: climate action is intended to avoid “silo-isation” and is therefore woven into decision‑making across transit, planning, and facilities management. This reflects a broader culture shift within municipal government, where climate literacy is increasingly becoming both a policy and operational competency.
Implementation Challenges
Despite its ambition, implementation faces barriers common to mid-sized cities in Canada. Labour and training shortages limit retrofit capacity, while procurement processes favour lowest-cost bids over lifecycle performance. Electrification projects have encountered delays due to utility coordination and reliance on external grid upgrades, which are costly and complex to implement. Public buy‑in for behavioural change remains an issue as well, particularly around reducing household emissions and adopting electric vehicles. Additionally, applying retrofit solutions to multi‑unit and low-income housing requires resource-intensive and tailored supports to achieve equitable outcomes.
Lessons learned
Dedicated revenue enables tangible progess
The Climate Action Tax provides predictable funding, reducing reliance on inconsistent grants or political cycles.
Public communication sustains legitimacy
Transparent engagement and storytelling about energy savings help maintain community trust in climate spending.
Skills development is a prerequisite for scalability
Investing in local training capacity allows Halifax to meet its net-zero construction targets.
Efficiency must be systematic
Coordinating building retrofits with vehicle electrification and renewable generation ensures emissions reductions are embedded across the municipality’s operations.
Governance innovation drives results
HalifACT’s significance lies not only in its technical projects, but in its governance model. The plan seeks to normalise climate thinking across municipal departments, budgets, infrastructure decisions, and public communications.
HalifACT is a mature municipal climate framework, demonstrating how policy integration, stable funding, and community participation have the potential to accelerate emissions reduction while future‑proofing urban systems against climate risk. It is not just an emissions plan, but a climate governance and implementation framework