Plan targets lower emissions and affordable housing solutions
The Canadian government has announced a new initiative to build more energy-efficient homes as part of its new Green Buildings Strategy (CGBS).
The strategy aims to accelerate retrofits of existing buildings, ensure new constructions are energy-efficient and climate-resilient, and capitalize on economic opportunities in the low-carbon building sector. It includes plans to phase out oil heating in new construction and promote the use of low-carbon building materials.
“We need to take action to retrofit and upgrade the 16 million homes and half a million other buildings standing in Canada today, most of which will still be standing in 2050,” the federal government said in a statement. “And we need new builds to be built more energy-efficient from the onset, especially as Canada rapidly aims to build more homes to address the housing crisis and drive down the cost of housing across the country.”
A key component of this strategy is the new $800 million Canada Greener Homes Affordability Program (CGHAP), which will focus on building more energy-efficient homes.
The CGHAP will support low-to-median-income Canadians, including renters, in reducing their monthly energy bills through home upgrades. This program will provide up to four times more than the $5,000 offered by the existing Canada Greener Homes Grant.
Other key features of the strategy include:
- The Oil to Heat Pump Affordability Grant (OHPA), launched in 2022, which helps low-to-median-income households switch from oil heating to heat pumps, potentially saving $1,500 to $4,500 per year on energy bills.
- The Canada Greener Homes Loan, offering interest-free loans of up to $40,000 with a 10-year repayment term.
- A $300 million Green Municipal Fund initiative to help municipalities deliver energy financing programs for low-rise residential properties.
- A $30 million commitment to develop a National Labelling Approach for home energy performance.
- A new $6 billion Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund to accelerate the construction and upgrading of housing-enabling infrastructure, with $976 million allocated to a new Rapid Housing Stream.
"As we work towards ending Canada's housing crisis, we need to ensure the longevity of new and existing buildings by making them more energy efficient and resilient to the impacts of climate changes,” said Sean Fraser, Minister of housing, infrastructure and communities Canada.
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"The Canada Green Buildings Strategy is all about building more energy efficient and affordable homes and buildings,” added Steven Guilbeault, Minister of environment and climate change. “It is through close collaboration of provinces and territories, municipalities, Indigenous Peoples, businesses, and individuals over the coming years that we can keep this progress going and make a big dent in the emissions coming from out buildings sector."
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