The master-planned development between downtown Ottawa and Gatineau, Que. it uses post-industrial waste to heat homes and businesses in the winter and the river itself to produce cooling in the summer. The net result is a zero-carbon energy system that will fuel growth for decades to come, said project engineer and developer Scott Demark. “It’s a pretty huge win,” said Demark, president of Zibi Community Utility, which serves as the development’s in-house energy provider. An aerial view of the 34-acre Zibi development between downtown Ottawa and Gatineau, Que., which offers zero heating and cooling systems for residents. (Zibi) He described the creation of Zibi’s zero-energy energy system as a huge undertaking—one that more developers could replicate with the right government incentives and requirements. “I wish everyone did this. I wish the rules were stricter so you had to do it,” he told CBC News. But the federal government’s current approach to encouraging climate-friendly housing and construction, he said, is “not enough and not fast enough.” Scott Demark, president of Zibi Community Utility, said the availability of more government programs and a higher carbon price will encourage more developers to take on low- or zero-carbon projects. (David Thurton/CBC) Jesse Helmer, a researcher who studies climate-friendly housing policy at the Smart Prosperity Institute, said Canada needs federal government action to make buildings significantly more efficient in order to meet national emissions reduction targets for 2030 and 2050. “What the federal government is doing on this front is critical,” Helmer said.
Minister says federal investment ‘not nearly enough’
Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson acknowledges the federal government has a bigger role to play. “There are significant additional resources that we will need to mobilize,” he said. “The federal government has made significant commitments, but not nearly enough.” More money will be needed from other levels of government and from the private sector as well, Wilkinson said. This month, the government launched consultations on the green building strategy, which is expected to be launched early next year. Wilkinson predicted the strategy would unleash an “explosion” in green building construction and jobs. Greenhouse gas emissions from buildings accounted for 18 percent of Canada’s total emissions in 2020 — about 87.8 megatonnes — making it the third-highest source of emissions after oil and natural gas production and transportation. Canada has committed to reducing emissions from the building sector by 37 per cent by 2030 and then achieving net zero in the sector by 2050. Efficiency Canada, an organization housed at Carleton University that researches energy efficiency strategies, estimates that doing all this would require an annual investment of $20-32 billion per year.
The role of individual homeowners
Ottawa is also urging individual homeowners to make their homes more energy efficient through renovations and renovations. A new $4.4 billion loan program announced in the 2021 federal budget — the Canada Greener Homes Loan — promises to provide loans to up to 175,000 homeowners who undertake “extensive energy renovations.” The list of eligible projects it includes the replacement of windows, doors and insulation and the installation of solar panels. The program offers interest-free loans ranging from $5,000 to $40,000. Loans must be repaid within 10 years. Helmer said previous versions of this program have proven popular, but demonstrated the need for refinement to get projects approved more quickly. “It combines ambition with practicality,” he said. “With existing Greener Homes grants and loans, it’s easy to run into bottlenecks and delays.” A separate, similar program launched by the federal government in 2021 has provided $38 million in grants to about 10,000 Canadians. However, demand exceeded supply. more than 170,000 people had applied for the scheme as of June 2022.
A labor shortage could threaten the plans
But a problem is emerging that could sink the federal government’s efforts to substantially improve energy efficiency in buildings — a shortage of skilled workers to do the work. Economists at the Bank of Montreal and elsewhere have pointed out that Canada’s construction industry is already “pushing against labor and capacity constraintsThis could jeopardize plans to build new homes or retrofit existing ones. Figures compiled by Statistics Canada show that job vacancies in the construction and trade sectors have increased by almost 160 per cent over a two-year period. Helmer said the national labor shortage will have to be addressed in some way before significant progress can be made in improving the efficiency of Canada’s buildings. “We can design as many programs as we want … but until we start targeting the labor side of this issue, I think we’re going to have some scaling problems,” he said. Another challenge will be making sure the construction workforce reflects Canada, said Rosemarie Powell, who organizes the annual NexGen Builders Retreat for tribal people pursuing construction careers. He cites statistics showing that people of color make up half the population of the city of Toronto, but only 22 percent of union construction workers. “The government is leading the work that needs to be done on climate change,” Powell said. “The next level we need to look at is that there is equality and diversity among the people working on these building projects.” Wilkinson said tackling the labor shortage was a “big challenge”. To solve this, the minister said the government needs to engage young people – especially Indigenous youth – and consider changes to Canada’s immigration policies.
