44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 7, 2023 10:00AM
- Nov/7/23 1:09:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I can see that this topic has been on the minds of everyone here over the last few days. The Government of Canada understands that the effects of climate change have been devastating for many families and Canadians from coast to coast to coast.
In fact, the Canadian Climate Institute estimates the annual costs will amount to $25 billion by 2025, and by mid-century, the estimate costs of climate change on our economy in Canada are half of the projected GDP growth of our entire country. That is an astounding and devastating amount of damage, which climate change is already causing.
In 2023, we saw a record wildfire season, with some areas burning double those of historic records. Hundreds of thousands of Canadians had to evacuate their homes. It is safe to say we all watched in horror as we saw those fires rage across the country. That is not the only climate disaster or extreme weather event this country has gone through in the past several years. We have seen record floods and heat domes and many other natural disasters.
Meanwhile, Canadians are facing an equally pressing affordability challenge as energy prices have skyrocketed. With winter coming very soon, households are facing higher heating bills. The government is taking real action to keep life affordable and to fight climate change at the same time, and now we must go further faster.
This is why the Government of Canada recently announced major new funding to help households switch away from polluting home heating oil to efficient and clean heat pumps. We know home heating oil is three times to four times more expensive than other forms of heating. It being the most carbon intensive, and also the most costly, is exactly why recent measures have targeted home heating oil right across the country.
Low- and middle-income households are struggling to make the switch to environmentally friendly heat pumps mainly because of the upfront cost, so we get that. We get that the upfront cost is truly the barrier to making the transition. Canadians want to do their part, and we want to encourage people to make the switch as soon as possible. Helping out with that upfront cost would really help them make that switch. That is what we have heard, and that is what we are doing.
We also recognize that acquiring and installing a heat pump can take a number of weeks, if not months, and people will still be facing high oil heating costs in the meantime. Two weeks ago, the Government of Canada announced an expansion of the funding for heat pumps, making the average heat pump free for low- and medium-income Canadians.
The strengthened oil to heat pump affordability program will partner with interested provinces and territories to increase the amount of federal funding eligible for homeowners so they can receive not just $10,000 but up to $15,000 for installing a heat pump in their house, adding to an additional $5,000 in grant funding to match provincial contributions in jurisdictions where programs are co-delivered.
Low- to medium-income households who heat their homes with oil and sign up to participate in the OHPA program to switch to a heat pump will also receive an upfront payment of $250. On average, homeowners who switch from oil to cold climate heat pumps to heat and cool their homes save between $1,500 to $4,700 per year on their home energy bills. That is a whopping $125 to $400 per month of savings. That is a sizeable affordability measure that will help Canadians who are struggling to heat their homes and are using oil to do so. They are obviously subject to some of the highest costs to do that.
The idea is to provide households with funding to help make the transition from heating oil to more efficient, environmentally friendly electric heat pumps that much easier. This new heat pump funding is in addition to what we already were doing to support Canadians in these uncertain times.
I also want to talk about a few of the climate measures our government has put in place that are funding all kinds of other important initiatives. I do not mean to give the impression that this one program is all we are doing, or the newest measure we have announced is the only thing we are doing. There are many other aspects of the federal government's plan to fight climate change, build a stronger economy and reduce emissions.
Under the low-carbon economy fund, for example, a new intake for one of our funding streams has just opened. It is called the low-carbon economy challenge. The Government of Canada remains committed to supporting projects that reduce Canada's greenhouse gas emissions, generate clean growth, build resilient communities and create good jobs for Canadians. So far, the low-carbon economy challenge is providing more than $250 million to support 94 projects that invest in proven low-carbon technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
I want to take this opportunity to highlight some projects we recently funded through the low-carbon economy fund. We have supported a range of projects, including replacing oil-fired boilers with electric models at a YMCA in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador; waste emissions reduction projects in Alberta; SaskPower's northern first nations home retrofit program in Saskatchewan; and home heat pump retrofits in Atlantic Canada, starting this year. Projects like these support the local economy, drive clean innovation and help Canada achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
The fund also supports climate action by indigenous peoples. We recently funded some indigenous-owned and indigenous-led renewable energy, energy efficiency and low-carbon heating projects. There is the Peavine community solar farm project, which will offset a portion of Peavine Métis Settlement's electricity needs, thanks to a solar photovoltaic system. There is the Tl'etinqox community bio-heat project, which will displace 100% of the propane used in six community buildings, a church building and a healing centre in that community.
We have also funded projects through the climate action and awareness fund. The fund is investing over $206 million over five years to support Canadian-made projects that help to reduce Canada's greenhouse gas emissions. This fund focuses on supporting youth climate awareness and climate research as well as advancing climate change science and technology. I think about projects like Science North's touring and stationary innovative climate change experience for young Canadians.
Under this fund, the Government of Canada is also funding projects that are focused on strengthening Canada's science capacity to identify, accelerate and evaluate climate mitigation solutions and strategies. The idea is to create jobs for Canadians who work in science and technology, academia and at the grassroots community level. These jobs are critical as we continue to build knowledge, skills and a sustainable net-zero emissions economy by 2050.
I also want to highlight the climate action fund, which was in existence from 2018 to 2020. It provided up to $3 million annually to support projects delivered by students, youth, indigenous peoples, non-profit organizations, small and medium-sized enterprises, and research and educational institutions. They are projects like the Green Building Council's work on redesigning our architectural landscape, Random Acts of Green's mobile app, and Agriculture in the Classroom Saskatchewan. These projects show us that Canadians are ready to take action against climate change in their everyday lives.
These are only a few examples of funding initiatives that the Government of Canada has put in place to support Canadians as well as organizations and businesses in the fight against climate change. By taking the lead on climate action, Canada can become a leader in many of the new technologies the world will need to support action on climate change while unlocking economic growth and trade opportunities.
We have seen many other projects. Some of the most prominent ones are the major investments made in incentivizing private investment in our electric vehicle battery supply chain as well as automobile manufacturing. Those are big, exciting announcements, but there is a lot more going on at different scales within our economy.
Canadians have asked us to take action on climate change, really because they know that our economic growth and prosperity depend upon it. It is the biggest opportunity for our economic growth, and it helps us address the affordability challenge because climate change, in fact, is the biggest contributor to inflation that we have today globally.
We have listened on all fronts, and we are delivering on all fronts.
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- Nov/7/23 1:20:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I think the member and I stand on opposite sides of this debate, as always, in the House.
The Conservatives do not seem to really understand that climate change is real. They deny the science and they do not understand what it means to invest in Canadians and take advantage of the clean growth opportunities that, really, our economic prosperity depends on for generations to come.
We know that the price on pollution has been documented numerous times to give back more to 80% of the population and, specifically, to low-income and middle-income families. That has been documented by the Parliamentary Budget Officer.
We also know it is the most cost-effective market-based mechanism for incentivizing and disincentivizing the kinds of changes that we need to see in order to fight climate change.
I am sure I do not have more time, but I would love to debate it with the member perhaps at committee.
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- Nov/7/23 1:22:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I know that some members of communities have had challenges with the administration of the Canada greener homes grant and program. I know there are constituents in my riding who have also taken full advantage of that program and have been able to access both components of it. They have retrofit their homes to get as close to net zero as possible. That included installing an extreme cold climate heat pump, as well as solar panels on the roof and a two-way meter so that they can feed into the grid.
That seems to be the recipe for getting a lot of Canadian households as close to net zero as possible. Remember that this saves them hundreds and hundreds of dollars per month on their home energy bills.
I would be happy to look into the member opposite's specific question. Obviously, I do not know that specific case and what might be holding up the application of that member of her constituency. I would be happy to look into it.
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- Nov/7/23 1:24:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my understanding is that extreme cold climate heat pumps work in Canada. There are examples of them working all the way up as far north as one can get.
They are actually very effective, far more efficient in terms of the use of energy. Really, I cannot think of a better solution for wider adoption that Canadians can take advantage of to get those cost savings on their energy bill.
The member opposite does not seem to understand the technology. Maybe he should do his homework.
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