TORONTO, July 7, 2022 /CNW Telbec/ - Helping Canadians upgrade their homes to be more energy-efficient fights climate change, creates good jobs and helps them save on their monthly bills. Home retrofits are a critical piece of Canada's ambitious climate plans.
One of the major contributors to this effort is the City of Toronto's Home Energy Loan Program (HELP), which has completed 245 retrofit projects with 18 more currently underway. HELP was launched in 2014 as the first Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program in Ontario.
Today, Toronto-Danforth MP Julie Dabrusin, who is the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources and to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change announced a $14,568,000 investment through the Community Efficiency Financing initiative to help recapitalize a home energy retrofit financing program in the City of Toronto, on behalf of The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources - alongside Taneen Rudyk, President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM).
This funding will support enhancements to HELP so the program will better support energy efficiency and decarbonization of houses in Toronto, while growing the model nationally. HELP uses a local improvement charge (LIC) financing model and is administered by City staff. The program is open to detached, semi-detached and row houses of any age. The program currently supports energy-efficiency, renewable-energy, energy-storage and water-conservation measures.
The City aims to widen market awareness through planned outreach and provide more support to homeowners, contractors, industry associations and realtors to plan and undertake retrofits. HELP will also continue to increase capacity-building and knowledge-sharing among internal and external stakeholders to grow the model in other communities across Ontario and Canada. HELP is aligned with and supports the City's accelerated TransformTO Net Zero climate action strategy and target to reduce city-wide greenhouse gas emissions in all sectors to net zero by 2040, including all homes and buildings.
The Community Efficiency Financing (CEF) initiative is offered through the Green Municipal Fund (GMF) delivered by FCM and funded by the Government of Canada. The CEF helps communities of all sizes implement innovative local financing programs that directly help homeowners cut their greenhouse gas emissions, make their homes more energy-efficient, comfortable and affordable, while creating local jobs and building the capacity for a thriving retrofit market in Canada's cities.
This initiative is one of the ways the GMF continues to build on its 20-year record of supporting transformative environmental initiatives at the community level. The Government of Canada has invested $1.65 billion in the GMF since its inception, empowering municipalities to support projects that leverage local resources to drive innovative solutions.
"Today's $14.5 Million investment will enable the City of Toronto to build on the Home Energy Loan Program's (HELP) legacy of retrofitting hundreds of homes, in line with Toronto and Canada's ambitious climate targets. This is a tangible step towards bringing energy efficiency, job creation, and affordability to communities across Ontario and Canada."
The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources
"It's critically important to have everyone in the climate fight. Municipalities across Canada are doing their part with innovative solutions that create jobs and climate resilience. Green infrastructure investments in Canadian communities will make our air cleaner, our economy stronger, and set us on the path to a net-zero future."
The Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change
"Energy-efficient homes are more affordable to heat and cool, while reducing emissions and allowing us to adapt to our changing climate. We are working as a partner to our cities to help Canadians make their homes more energy-efficient. "
Julie Dabrusin, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources and to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Member of Parliament for Toronto-Danforth
"Municipalities are on the front lines of climate change and climate action, and communities of all sizes are showing climate leadership at a time when we need it most. The Green Municipal Fund empowers them to get results on the ground. We deliver results with our federal partners – supporting cities like Toronto build a greener, more sustainable community, create jobs and helping Canadians make their homes more comfortable and affordable. Together, we are on the path to net zero."
Taneen Rudyk, President, Federation of Canadian Municipalities
"Reducing emissions from homes and buildings is a critical piece of our TransformTO Net Zero climate strategy and achieving our net zero target by 2040. Ongoing investment and action from all levels of government will be critical to addressing the climate crisis and I thank the federal government and FCM for this funding. I encourage Toronto homeowners to take advantage of the City's Home Energy Loan Program financing and incentives, as well as the federal Greener Homes grant, to make their homes more energy efficient."
John Tory, Mayor, City of Toronto
"Improving energy efficiency and decarbonizing our homes is one of the biggest things that homeowners can do to help address the climate emergency. It will also create a better, more resilient future for our city. I encourage all homeowners to make a plan to improve their homes and explore the loans and incentives available through City's HELP program and other sources."
Councillor Jennifer McKelvie (Scarborough-Rouge Park), Chair of the Infrastructure and Environment Committee
Associated links
- Green Municipal Fund
- Community Efficiency Financing initiative
- 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan: Clean Air, Strong Economy
- The Canada Green Buildings Strategy (nrcan.gc.ca)
- City of Toronto Home Energy Loan Program (HELP)
SOURCE Natural Resources Canada
Natural Resources Canada, Media Relations, 343-292-6100, [email protected], Follow us on Twitter: @NRCan (http://twitter.com/nrcan); Keean Nembhard, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Natural Resources, 613-323-7892, [email protected]; FCM Media Relations, 613-907-6395, [email protected]
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