After declaring a climate emergency in 2019, the Citizens' Environmental Alliance fears Windsor is falling behind on its environmental initiatives.
Derek Coronado, the group's president, cites delayed reports on the city's progress, reports not available to the public, and an overall breakdown in communication.
"Consultation and communication with the public about climate action has essentially stopped," he said. "The city doesn't update its website to communicate environmental and climate actions."
Coronado is particularly concerned the city recently shelved its Community Energy Plan and, after years of study, rejected the Deep Energy Efficiency Program. Those efforts set targets and tracked progress on the city's efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
"Shelved without any alternative program put forward," claimed Coronado. "That program is the largest source of emissions reductions in the plan."
He also took the city's Environment and Climate Change Advisory Committee to task for not meeting this year, although it's required to hold up to six meetings annually.
The committee's first meeting of 2025 was on Thursday night.
Councillor Kieran McKenzie thinks the committee has been doing a good job, but he agrees with Coronado about the flow of information.
"The suggestion that the city isn't doing enough to meet its environmental targets and issues with capacity with folks who have environmental expertise with the city, I would agree wholeheartedly," said McKenzie. "We are taking steps backwards."
As for the committee, McKenzie said it's been struggling to meet quorum after two members left.
He believes the loss of two employees in the city's environment and climate change department has hampered the public's access to information.
McKenzie thinks the lack of information has hampered city council's efforts to make good decisions.
"We do not have people who can help council do the analysis so council can make the decision either to proceed with its climate change plans or not," he said.
In the meantime, Coronado points out climate change isn't going anywhere.
"I think the city's got to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time," he said. "This is an existential threat. It is not like any other crisis. It is the 800 lbs gorilla of crisis."