The United Nations hosted the Climate Summit 2014 in New York City on Sept. 23. The meeting brought together heads of state, as well as world leaders in finance, business and civil society. The objective is to increase the pace for taking ambitious and concrete actions aimed at reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, largely responsible for climate change.
The STM and climate leadership
The summit served to identify the measures and solutions that can be implemented and also to show that leaders from all sectors and all levels are committed to taking action. In response to a UN request, the International Association of Public Transport (UITP), of which the STM is a member, has mobilized its membership to draft a declaration on climate leadership, one that summarizes their commitments with regards to fighting climate change.
In its Sustainable Development Plan 2020, the STM committed to reducing its level of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 39 grams per passenger-km by 2020, or 20 percent less than in 2011. Already acknowledged by several leading actors in the public transit community, this strong commitment was included in UITP’s declaration, making the STM one of UITP’S leaders regarding climate issues.
The STM’s efforts produce results
From 2006 to 2013, the STM lowered its GHG emissions per passenger-km by nearly 10 percent and keeping up its efforts. A number of actions resulted in this progress, including biodiesel use, eco-friendly driving techniques, hybrid-drive buses and TopoDyn transmissions. An increase in ridership also contributed to this result.
To learn more, refer to the Sustainable Development Report 2013. The report outlines the STM’s achievements with respect to sustainability and features the Complete Table of SD Indicators that includes some 200 indicators showing the STM’s progress from 2006 to 2013.