Community Energy Association

The trusted independent advisor to local governments on climate and energy

CleanBC – A Summary for Local Governments

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The CleanBC climate action strategy was released on December 5. To learn about the Province of BC’s actions to address climate change, visit the Province of BC website to download a copy of the document.

CleanBC is a strategy and many parts of it will take months to make their way through to regulations. There are significant implications and actions for local governments to undertake to support saving energy, emissions, and money locally.

This will be an exciting and busy time for the Province of BC and local governments. The Community Energy Association is available to help local governments navigate through all of this through our member meetings, research, awards, FCM PCP Regional Facilitation, and custom advisory services.

Listed below are the CleanBC climate plan highlights and recommended municipal actions:

1) TARGETS

Highlight 1: 9 million tonnes of reductions in the plan gets 75% of the way to 2030 targets with a variety of measures that impact communities. The 2030 target is 40% below 2007 levels.
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. Update your Community Energy and Emissions Plan
  2. Work with technical schools and colleges to identify opportunities to be a regional training hub for the new skills needed
  3. Get clear on opportunities to save energy, emissions, and money in your community/region and engage with the Province of BC over the next 18 months as it fills in actions for the remaining 25% of emissions. Ideally, get clear on what your community/region needs from the province to save more.

Highlight 2: Substantial new electricity generation required past 2030
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. These things take time so start with a renewable energy scan and then move to a feasibility study for high-potential local projects. Then your community will be ready when BC Hydro needs to get more electricity into the grid.

2) TRANSPORTATION

Highlight 1: Zero Emissions Vehicle (ZEV) Mandate: 10% by 2025, 100% by 2040 with purchase incentives, charging incentives, and support for outreach
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. To get your community’s fair share of EV’s, update building requirements so all new buildings (Part 3 and Part 9 under the BC Building Code) are 100% EV-ready
  2. Work with neighboring communities on regional promotion and branding
  3. Plan EV charging infrastructure requirements in Q1 2019 to be ready for charging infrastructure incentives

Highlight 2: 2019 Active Transportation Strategy and grants
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. Review active transportation needs including completing an active transportation plan if one does not exist or is out of date
  2. Through 2019, contact the Ministry of Transportation & Infrastructure to discuss Active Transportation needs and considerations for structuring programs

Highlight 3: 10% of gasoline and 40% of diesel from renewables by 2030
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. When this is enacted, update the ‘business as usual’ projections in your community energy plan

Highlight 4: 100% of inland ferries electric by 2040
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. Celebrate and keep engaging BC Ferries to make sure you understand where your ferries are on the priority list

Highlight 5: 1,700 freight trucks switched to lower carbon fuels
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. Explore opportunities for your municipal fleet to partner with other public sector and private sector fleets to get critical mass to make fuel-switching possible. (CEA is coming out with a guide on this very soon).

3) BUILDINGS

Highlight 1: EfficiencyBC Heat Pump rebates
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. Review EfficiencyBC and promote rebates at the front counter. Consider topping up incentives to move from heating oil and propane to heat pumps
  2. Assess local installation capacity and identify industry training requirements

Highlight 2: Energy rating requirements at Point of Sale or Lease
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. Stay up to date on implementation of mandatory energy labelling

Highlight 3: Step Code: Step 3 by 2022, Step 4 by 2027, Step 5 by 2032
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. Initiate consultation on the BC Energy Step Code with your builder community and explore local incentives for steps before they become mandatory
  2. Train local government staff including building officials on the BC Energy Step Code

Highlight 4: 15% Renewable Natural Gas target
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. Identify potential RNG sources in your community and call FortisBC to investigate the potential

Highlight 5: 80% reduction of diesel electricity in remote communities by 2030 and $63 million CleanBC Communities Fund and Remote Community Clean Energy Strategy
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. Off-grid First Nations: get a community energy plan developed for increasing efficiency and evaluate options to generate electricity locally that are appropriate to the community. Make sure your community is in control and moving at pace with your priorities.

4) WASTE

Highlight 1: 95% Organics diversion target
Recommended municipal actions:

  1. Review your diversion rates and plan what would be needed to close the gap and stay up to speed on available and planned grants

This is a long list for already over-committed local governments. There is help available to prioritize and manage actions in your community to ensure that your community is ready to engage on its terms in the new opportunities to save energy, emissions, and money.