Tuesday, December 5, 2023, 1pm ET There is an important conversation taking place across the country around how best to increase housing inventory and improve affordability. At the same time, efficiently meeting our net-zero goals means adopting electrification in all new builds as soon as possible, to avoid locking in emitting equipment or requiring expensive retrofits. The question is, are utilities in Canada able to meet these needs in the near term?The short answe…

As heat pumps gain popularity, their use of refrigerants and the potential emissions from leakage during their operation have become a growing concern. In this informative session, we will review the current state of refrigerants, the net climate benefits linked to heat pumps, and methods to reduce leakages in the first place. Then we will dive into the transition to low-GWP refrigerants, highlighting Canada’s plan and efforts to reduce HFC levels, and present existing…

There is a wide range of potential policy options to address emissions in buildings. One approach gaining traction within Municipal and Regional Governments is the implementation of building performance standards (BPS). BPS set specific performance targets that buildings must meet within a certain timeframe to reduce energy consumption and/or greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This policy tool encourages building owners to monitor, track, and understand how their buildings …

May 8, 2025 | 12pm ET The need to decarbonize our communities requires us to explore different ways to think about utility planning, to better align infrastructure investments with a carbon-neutral future economy. Decarbonizing the building sector effectively will require us to move beyond building-by-building or appliance-by-appliance approaches. More local and area-based planning approaches to buildings and local energy infrastructure could maximize the transition while m…