Outside Homes Co./Unsplash
The Town of Oakville is "exploring the feasibility of a home energy retrofit program" and is asking input from residents with an online survey. The survey is open now and available to answer until March 27, 2022.
A municipal home energy retrofit program opens the door for "access to financing for homeowners to complete home energy retrofits that could potentially improve their home’s energy efficiency and reduce energy costs," according to the Town.
To gauge interest in starting a program, Oakville is "inviting residents who own detached, semi-detached and townhome properties to take the new home retrofit survey and provide their input."
Some examples of an energy-efficiency retrofit include:
- Wall or Roof insulation
- Lighting changes
- Window upgrades
- Improved temperature controls
- High efficiency furnaces
- Air conditioning or hot water heater upgrades
- Low-flow faucets
This new program reflects one of the Town's priority projects from the Council-endorsed Community Energy Strategy (CES), which is "a collaborative initiative between the Town of Oakville and Oakville Hydro" aiming to "reduce energy consumption and cost of residential properties."
The Town says those costs account for 33% of the town’s total energy use and represents the second largest source of the town’s GHG emissions at (27%).
The potential program "would consider the use of local improvement charges (LICs), an existing tool available under the Municipal Act, 2001. This financing tool would give homeowners easier access to the upfront capital cost to complete energy retrofits, with the amount paid back gradually through property tax payments."
In 2020, the Town of Oakville endorsed the CES to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2041 and 80% by 2050. The development of a residential energy retrofit program is one of the priority projects from the CES.
Input collected from the survey will be, according to a Town office, used for "a feasibility study on developing a potential home energy retrofit program." Residents can also sign up to join a focus group on Friday, March 25, 2022 to share their input.
Mayor Rob Burton says he "encourages homeowners to take the home retrofit survey to help shape a potential home energy retrofit program for our community."
"By addressing residential energy consumption and making energy improvements more accessible to homeowners," says Burton, "we can reduce our overall carbon footprint."
You can learn more on the program and the Community Energy Strategy, take the survey, and/or sign up for the focus group by visiting Oakville's Community Energy Planning page.
