2023-09-25 08:00:00
The CAQ government will soon table a bill to rate the energy performance of buildings in order to force owners to improve, but Radio-Canada has learned that it does not target plexes and houses, which they regret specialists.
The office of Minister of the Environment Benoit Charette indicates that the bill will concern institutional, commercial and large residential buildings, without wanting to specify further.
Two sources involved in the preparations of the bill confirm to us that Quebec limits its intentions to large condo towers, but not to smaller homes, as France has done. The government is showing timidity, according to one of these sources.
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Electric heating of buildings exacerbates power needs during winter peaks, while Hydro-Québec is increasingly lacking.
Photo : Radio-Canada / Martin Thibault
The minister’s office recognizes that the energy efficiency of buildings in Quebec is one of the major environmental issues.
Buildings represent 10% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but also, and this concerns the government, they draw more than 25% of Quebec’s total electrical power needs during winter peaks, while the province is seeking more power.
The continued electrification of Quebec’s housing stock exacerbates this problem; three-quarters of Quebec homes are heated with electricity.
The lack of power even risks slowing down the deployment of charging stations for electric vehicles at home and therefore the electrification of transport, the sector that emits the most GHGs.
An energy rating which was to be compulsory after 2023
In the Quebec Energy Transition, Innovation and Efficiency Master Plan presented by the former Liberal government in 2018, it was planned that energy rating would become mandatory for single-family homes (new or resale) after 2023.
This plan involved implementing the first stages of a mandatory energy rating system for new construction and the resale of single-family homes.
This government [de la CAQ] lacked courage, deplores Jean-Pierre Finet, analyst in economic regulation of energy for the Regroupement des organisms Environnemental en Énergie.
The French model
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The performance of French housing is classified from A (extremely efficient) to G (extremely inefficient).
Photo: France 3 Paris Ile-de-France
In France, an A-rated house is very well insulated and consumes very little energy to heat or cool. Conversely, a G-rated house is considered a “thermal sieve” or energy sieve.
It is obligatory to inform the tenant or future buyer of the energy rating of a home. Since 2022, buildings rated F and G can no longer suffer a price increase.
Since January 1, 2023, housing classified G and which consume more than 450 kWh of energy per m² per year are prohibited for rental (New window). In 2025, it will be prohibited to rent all housing classified G. In 2028, it will be the turn of classified F then of classified E in 2034.
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Distribution of French residential stock according to energy performance rating.
Photo: France 3 Paris Ile-de-France
Quebec “late”
We are years late, deplores Pierre-Olivier Pineau, holder of the Chair of Energy Sector Management at HEC Montréal. According to him, Quebec should require that all new constructions be passive buildings, which corresponds to a maximum consumption of 15 kWh per square meter per year for heating, compared to more than 100 on average currently.
The expert would like a system inspired by France: Once the energy ratings are known, owners should have 10 to 20 years to bring their building to an A level, if they are not already there and aid programs [prêts sans intérêts] should be provided to assist them.
After this 20-year period when renovations are made, owners of homes rated less than A would see their municipal property taxes increase.
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This house is a model of energy efficiency. It has thick insulated walls, solar panels, heat pumps and energy-efficient windows.
Photo: The Canadian Press / JONATHAN HAYWARD
In Quebec, since 2021, it is prohibited to install oil heating appliances in new residential buildings in the province. From December 31, 2023, it will also be prohibited to install a device of this type in existing residential buildings and to carry out major repairs on existing devices.
Last year, the City of Montreal implemented a new regulation that requires owners of large buildings to disclose the sources and quantities of energy that their buildings use.
A firm helps Quebec prepare the bill
This summer, the Ministry of the Environment signed a contract with the firm RD2 Inc. to provide support in the preparation of the bill. The term ends in March 2024.
The director of the firm, Denis Bourgeois, is a recognized expert in the field of energy performance of buildings, explains the ministry to Radio-Canada. He also has specific expertise in energy and environmental disclosure and rating systems for buildings.
Denis Bourgeois declined our interview request. In a publication in 2022 on the VoirVert.ca site, the sustainable building portal in Quebec, he wrote that we really need to think about the quantity of glass surface on a project, because it will have an impact at minus 25 degrees. From this perspective, the important thing is not so much to improve the envelope, but rather to enhance the thermal inertia of the building.
Several ways to improve the energy performance of a building :
insulation, airtightness of doors and windows; control of interior and exterior lighting systems; heating, ventilation and air conditioning (heat recovery, sizing of equipment); insulation of pipes.
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