On June 13, 2023 Matt Estabrooks stated that he couldn’t support the motion to appoint 3 new members to the Climate Change Advisory Committee (CCAC) citing various process issues but mainly that there are perceived conflicts of interest between proposed members such as Sabine Dietz who works in the climate change industry. There is a lot of money being made in consulting, government grants as well as implementing various climate change mitigation products and services such as what EOS Eco-Energy provides.
The CCAC should not be affiliated with the Town Council in any shape or form. Originally a climate change roundtable was initiated by then Mayor John Higham so it has a history of being intertwined with the council, with members being appointed to it by the council. They even have a full-time climate change coordinator which was half paid for by EOS Eco-Energy.
Instead, the committee should be a separate entity. Like any other resident or group, the committee could present its suggestions to the council at any point in time, which could then be considered and either accepted or rejected.