City of Surrey Named One of Canada’s Greenest Employers

Surrey, B.C. – The City of Surrey has gained national recognition as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers for 2023. This is the fourth year in a row that the City has received this award.

“It is an honour for the City of Surrey to be recognized as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers once again,” said Mayor Brenda Locke. “At a time when the environment and global warming are at the forefront, the need to protect and care for our environment has never been greater. This award is proof that the direction and actions we have taken are making a difference in the sustainability of our City and are building a better tomorrow.”

Guided by its Sustainability Charter 2.0, an ambitious 40-year vision for sustainability in Surrey, the City of Surrey continues to deliver innovative and effective initiatives to ensure that Surrey remains sustainable far into the future. These initiatives include:

• A Climate Action Strategy that aims to meet the ambitious goals of net zero community wide and absolute zero corporate emissions before 2050.
• Surrey’s Rethink Waste program and Biofuel facility, which is designed to process 115,000 tonnes of organic waste a year.
• The City’s successful tree sales, which sold 4,072 trees to Surrey residents in 2022 as part of its efforts to increase tree canopy coverage across the city. The City planted 2,983 shade trees on boulevards and in Parks in 2022.
• The completion of $71.7 million in parkland acquisitions in 2022, resulting in 26.3 acres of parkland being added to the City’s inventory.
• Advancing the designs of multiple Disaster Mitigation and Adaption projects for flood protection and coastal resiliency to augment the City’s drainage capital projects and build the necessary infrastructure for coastal resilience.
• Council adopting a forward-looking Electric Vehicle Strategy in support of a growing network of electric vehicle charging stations at public facilities.

Canada’s Greenest Employers is an editorial competition that recognizes employers that lead the nation in creating a culture of environmental awareness in their organizations. Employers are evaluated and selected based on their unique environmental initiatives and programs; success in reducing their environmental footprint; the degree to which employees are involved in their programs; and the extent to which these initiatives have become linked to the organization’s identity.

For more information on the City of Surrey’s sustainability efforts, visit surrey.ca/sustainability.