Calgary councillor questions climate funding, suggests shift to policing

Calgary’s climate programs are under review as part of ongoing budget discussions, with one councillor raising questions about whether the city should continue funding them at all.

Ward 14 Coun. Landon Johnston has suggested that resources could instead be directed toward public safety services, including policing.

Johnston said his position is informed by information available through the city’s climate hub, which he believes has not been consistently updated.

“If you go to their climate hub, a lot of things haven’t been updated since 2023, 2024, and so they’re not even seeming to be as invested in what they even initially brought up,” he said.

He also linked his stance to concerns raised by residents about safety.

“A lot of people don’t feel safe in the city right now. So if police help me, that happens, then that’s where we should focus our funding on,” Johnston said.

Rob Tremblay, board co-chair of the Calgary Climate Hub, cautioned that reducing climate funding could have significant long-term financial impacts. He pointed to past extreme weather events, including hailstorms and flooding, that have cost Calgarians billions of dollars.

“We need to not just be doing to lessen our climate impact, but we also need to be prepared for the expenses that could come if we’re not prepared for climate change induced events,” Tremblay said.

City council is scheduled to vote on the budget at the end of the month.

The newly-elected council held its first regular meeting since the election last week, focusing on the proposed 2026 budget prepared by the previous council.

The city is proposing $4.6 billion in operating spending and $3.6 billion in capital investments for 2026.

Mayor Jeromy Farkas said last week that because it’s the final year of a four-year budget cycle that was approved by the last council, there isn’t a ton of wiggle room to make changes.

The proposed budget includes a 3.6 per cent overall property tax increase. Farkas is hoping the increase can be cut in half without making any significant sacrifices.