The City of Nanaimo is working in partnership with the Regional District and Mainstreet Research to help homeowners improve their homes by making them more energy efficient with an end goal of making them emit less greenhouse gases.
The City of Nanaimo says homeowners should not be alarmed if they are contacted by Mainstreet Research for the purpose of this survey and this is just their method of directly gathering information so the RDN and the city can identify barriers when it comes to making upgrades more feasible and affordable.
According to the RDN buildings (commercial, institutional, and residential) account for 19 per cent of the community greenhouse gas emissions within the RDN and residential buildings account for 70 per cent of those buildings’ emissions which is why the study, and retrofits, are imperative for reducing emissions in the region to 80 per cent below 2007 levels by 2050.
Mayor Leonard Krog says reducing emissions can be very costly which is why the city is working with partners to determine the best course of action to help residents.
“We all want to reduce our carbon footprint, but it is expensive to do so,” Krog says. “What we need is a way to reduce costs barrier and make energy-efficient options more accessible to everyone.”
RDN Chair Vanessa Craig says the district provides financial support for those who what to make the upgrades, but the study will help improve those services.
“The RDN’s Green Building rebate and outreach programs provide support to residents wishing to make their homes more climate resilient, but we’re interested in learning how to improve these services going forward.”
The study is being partially funded by a $175,000 grant from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities; Community Efficiency Financing initiative awarded to the city and RDN in the fall of 2022.
According to a media release both the City of Nanaimo and the RDN currently offer rebates for home energy efficiency program improvements in conjunction with the province of BC, and the Government of Canada.
