Ivey Foundation’s Post

Hydro Ottawa, owned by the City of Ottawa, is ramping up its infrastructure development to keep up with increased demand and climate challenges. The utility will now build a new substation annually, a significant shift from its previous frequency of every five years. The rising demand stems from factors like fuel switching, EV charging, and heat pumps. Speaking on the need for these upgrades, Conrad highlighted the necessity to bolster the grid against the escalating impacts of extreme weather events, driven by climate change. Describing Ottawa as the "weather-alert capital of Canada," he emphasized the pressing nature of these investments for resilience. #HydroOttawa #InfrastructureDevelopment #ClimateResilience #CleanEnergy #ElectricVehicles #RenewableEnergy #ClimateChange #GridUpgrades

Great news!! City Of Guelph will review on March 26th a motion to support the decision of the Ontario Energy Board to end gas subsidies. City Of Hamilton passed a similar motion on February 14th supporting the OEB. On that motion the following were included: . Natural gas is no longer the cheapest way to heat homes because heat pumps are now much more efficient (…) . Natural gas is methane gas, which is a fossil fuel that causes approx. 1/3 of Ontario’s GHG emissions, and must be phased out because it is inconsistent with all climate targets (…) . the OEB decision will help lower energy bills and encourage heating systems that are consistent with climate targets and plans (…)” https://lnkd.in/es8PrpvJ #decarbonization #ontario #ghgreductions2030 #climatechangesolutions #climateresilience

Buildings are the third largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Canada. With the abundance of low-carbon electricity in Canada, electrifying buildings will be essential in meeting 2050 net-zero emissions targets. Heat pumps are an integral part of this solution, due to how efficiently they use electricity to heat and cool buildings while replacing fossil fuels. Additionally, heat pumps offer building owners and occupants many benefits including increased comfort, often lower utility costs and access to efficient cooling — increasingly essential due to climate change. Read the full article from Efficiency Canada below:

Canadian provinces are recommended to stop expanding gas infrastructure and invest in electrification to transition Canada to reliable and affordable clean energy. The recommendation comes from research collected in the Canadian Climate Institute’s new report titled Heat Exchange. According to the report, switching to electricity for building heat is Canada’s path to meeting its climate goals at the lowest cost. However, many places in Canada continue to resort to gas for heating.

This is an interesting rebuttal by the Canadian Climate Institute on comments made by the Canadian Gas Association criticism of the CCI's research called Heat Exchange. It's an easy read. A disclaimer is needed: our firm is biased towards electric heating, especially electric radiant heating. The Canadian Gas Association is biased to its members who see the transition as a threat to their business model. So, keep this in mind when reading the article. I think this article does a good job of explaining why we need to make the transition to more sustainable energy and that the transition will take time. #sustainability #electricity #canadianclimateinstitute #radiantheating https://lnkd.in/ehf4-TKw

Congratulations to the most recent DOE RECI grantees! U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementation (RECI) grants support the adoption of state and local #energyefficiency #buildingcodes. The cumulative effects of updated code adoption (from 2010 to 2040) are - $182 BILLION savings on energy costs, and; - 840 MMT of CO2 kept out of the air. That's equivalent to 187 million passenger vehicles and 225 coal power plants over 30 years. The RECI grant program is a vital component of our efforts to address the undeniable warming of our planet and the related catastrophic effects. It's not the whole solution, but it's an indispensable and effective tool. #climateaction #decarbonization #carbonreduction #energypolicy https://lnkd.in/eTxZb_qf

Canadian provinces must rein in their expanding #gas systems or risk incurring staggering costs from stranded assets and failure to meet #climate targets, the Canadian Climate Institute (CCI) warned earlier this month. If provincial governments and regulators continue treating gas as the default option for #heating new homes and commercial #buildings, rather than shifting the lion’s share of that demand to an electrified system dominated by heat pumps, the transition off carbon will cost more than it needs to, the Institute said. As households and businesses abandon the system for cheaper, more efficient electricity, the remaining ratepayers will be left with higher costs. And if those costs get so high that regulators decide they’re beyond ratepayers’ ability to pay, the burden will eventually shift to taxpayers. https://lnkd.in/e8GU2cbm

A good article in The Energy Mix discussing a few of our projects!

This is a good article by Zoë Yunker of The Tyee on the future of natural gas as home heating supply in BC. My comments in the piece centre on the need to focus on the existing built environment, where the bulk of building-related emissions come from. Main points in the article. 1) Although the BCUC has rejected some of the more outlandish proposals from Fortis, especially around guaranteed rates for the unicorn that is renewable natural gas (RNG), the BCUC is still “ambiguous” in its approach to natural gas and future hookups. 2) The Province’s Zero Carbon Step Code (ZCSC) has given local governments the ability to expedite the regulation of emissions in new buildings. (Victoria was the first to adopt the ZCSC, last year.) 3) The elephant in the room is emissions from existing buildings. Transitioning to heat pumps and other electrification pathways is great, but not happening fast enough. Local governments have few policy options to make it happen faster, and then of course, there’s the constant challenge of Fortis dissuading electrification at every turn. My desire is for the Province to provide regulatory tools that would allow local governments to set phase-out dates for fossil fuel systems in existing buildings. Like a Zero Carbon Step Code for *all* buildings. Ideally, it would be paired with incentive and rebate programs that would minimize financial impacts on low-income homeowners so that the energy transition over the next decade or so has minimal adverse impacts on household budgets. With the call for new electricity supply happening this year, it’s reasonable to assume that BC’s economy can be fully electrified. We don’t need gas, and in order to hit our climate targets, we need to rapidly ween ourselves off of it. https://lnkd.in/gsTGpDJe.

A green gas grid for decarbonisation. We take for granted a huge and complex gas grid that keeps us warm and lit up. Can it be repurposed to meet the climate change challenge? The green gases being biomethane, hydrogen & e-NG. Can they be blended and at what percentage? “This is a pipeline-based plan with far less need for pylons.” My article for Bylines Cymru 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Diolch Rachel Morris https://lnkd.in/eDe_YuPY