About the Coalition

In 2003, informal discussions began among a group of forward looking home builders and developers of new decentralized energy systems about how future Canadian homes could be better designed for responding to Canada’s clean air and climate change objectives. They also discussed concerns, driven by the Ontario blackout in August, about reliability and supply of electrical power for future homes and the cost of upgrading the electrical system to deal with growth in demand.

The group considered how residential energy could be supplied in a sustainable fashion that minimizes greenhouse gas production. The group also looked at opportunities for decentralized, on-site generation and reduced electrical energy consumption. The conclusion was that renewable energy technologies and energy efficiency/conservation technologies are available that allow homes to consume no electricity from the power grid, on an annual net basis, and to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However the technologies need some initial support to help move down the learning/volume cost reduction curve.

The group recognizes that Canada has an opportunity to go beyond, and build upon, early adopter programs in Europe, the United States and, Japan that supported specific renewable energy technologies or specific energy efficiency technologies to develop a program that delivers a total integrated solution - the Net Zero Energy Home. The potential of this new program builds upon Canada’s pioneering work in energy efficient home construction, embodied in the R2000 standards, adding residential-scale renewable energy production for household needs and additional energy conservation technologies.

In 2004, the group formalized its efforts into the Net Zero Energy Home Coalition and began formulating an action plan to involve other stakeholders and government in turning the vision into a reality.

In pursuit of its vision, the Coalition is helping advance the benefits of the more efficient use of zero or very low impact resources including cleaner air and healthier homes, climate protection and, economic development opportunities resulting from the expanded manufacturing and deployment of energy efficient technologies and appliances and onsite renewable energy generation in Canada’s residential marketplace.

Blueprint Strategy Framework for Net-Zero Energy Home Development and Deployment 

1.  Demonstrate energy efficiency with onsite renewable energy integration

Objective:   Optimize energy efficiency and onsite integration at community scale project levels. Build on existing initiatives and interest to deploy NZEH on a larger scale in Canada.

Supporting strategy:

• Adopt a 1,500 NZEH target to be completed over the next five years in each Canadian province.  Adopt this target as a major program element of conservation and demand side management objectives and energy supply policy goals.
• Build high profile community scale demonstrations and make publicly available all performance data.

2.   Expand builder and related sector support

Objective:   Help builders and related stakeholders gain access to information, skilled trades, and other necessary support to build capacity in this area.  Develop a strategy whereby customer and builder expectations can be managed in the short, and in the longer term – i.e. articulate a path that includes “near net-zero” and net-zero energy targets and timelines

Supporting Strategy:

• Develop and deploy a communications program that enhances builder and architect confidence/knowledge of NZEHs, quality of product(s) and share performance data and experiences.  
• Develop a technology roadmap that supports capacity building, technology development/innovation and cross-sectoral cooperation.
• Develop and deploy a training program for the engineering sector to enhance knowledge of integration and design (i.e. design guides)
• Develop and deploy a training program for builders and trades to properly build and integrate NZEH specs and technologies, particularly through the use of onsite training programs (similar to the R-2000 program).   Example themes include: load estimating, duct sizing, how to build with SIPS, how to install PV, how to install SHW, how to install geo-exchange systems, how to air tighten a house, etc.
• Develop a portal or mechanism to connect the community of NZEH stakeholders to the resources they need, in partnership with groups with similar objectives i.e. Canada Green Building Council
• Initiate a annual NZEH awards and recognition program in partnership with industry

3.   Expand consumer awareness of and public engagement in NZEH value and technologies

Objective:   Help address aesthetic concerns, correlate the value of NZEH to improved knowledge of the product, and quantify energy savings and appraisal benefits of NZEH to drive demand. Illustrate the positive impact of NZEH on climate change, air quality, and public health.

Supporting Strategy:

• Support a pilot consumer awareness and marketing initiative with banks, builders, real estate organizations and appraisal institutes that addresses questions of aesthetic appeal and helps correlate value with improved knowledge of product.
• Work with the realtor community and appraisal sector to place a higher premium on NZEH building as an attractive feature for ownership.  Enlist the support of provincial housing ministries on piloting courses on this topic as part of a future Mandatory Continuing Education Course requirement for license renewal.  Mandate visible energy analysis evaluation for all rental and home sales.
• Establish a high profile brand for NZEH or near net-zero that capitalizes on the evolving consumer preference for energy savings and environmental responsibility. 

4. Financing NZEH Technologies and options

Objective:   Enable mechanisms to help finance NZEH incremental costs.

Supporting Strategy:

• Develop a pilot initiative with builder(s) and utilities for creating a peak load shaving incentive program that can capitalize on monies becoming available through provincial electricity conservation programs. A time of use metering initiative would help support this goal in all provinces.
• Explore tying NZEH development to utility conservation and demand management (CDM) program funds
• Work with municipalities to develop green financing options that can be linked to property values, for example through exempting retrofit or green building improvements from property tax increases (yet enabling these to add to property value!)
• Explore supportive scalable tax incentives based on the energy performance of the home, for example, through provincial sales taxes and/or GST tax abatement, income tax deductions or tax deductions through accelerated depreciation for onsite renewable energy equipment This could be tied with EnerGuide For New Homes and Eco-energy retrofit programs to leverage support of onsite inspections at the cost of the homeowner.
• Work with banks and other stakeholders to pilot a green mortgage program for offsetting NZEH incremental costs that could include below prime interest rates and extended amortization periods

5.  Identify a performance based standard and position NZEH along the continuum of energy efficient housing in Canada

Objective:   Integrate NZEH with current programs and help drive the energy efficiency continuum  in Canada. Capitalize on current opportunity with turnover of new housing stock to implement NZEH on a wider scale.

Supporting Strategy:

• In the short term, establish a harmonized near net-zero energy home definition as the foundation to a medium term NZEH standard
• Encourage energy labelling on new homes in the short term and all houses upon sale in the medium term
• Encourage collaboration and support between all EE programs in this sector.  Spearhead the formation of a key stakeholder group that will map organizational efforts and ensure initiatives are complementary.  This group should include a strong contingent of builders.
• Develop a road map that supports mainstream market deployment of NZEH into the marketplace by 2030, with interim milestone goals and required pathway to get there
   

Benefits

Enhanced collaboration across industry sectors
The increasing growth in energy demand requires a systems approach to energy production and management with integrated solutions that combine technology and innovation across several industry sectors. The net zero energy home delivers the integration of energy efficient design, construction, equipment, lighting and appliance, an integrated control mechanism with onsite renewable energy systems.

Diversified green power generation sources will increase Canada's competitiveness. Relying on traditional paradigms of centralized power generation will limit Canada’s ability to compete to its fullest in the 21st century. Current and emerging economic leaders like Japan, United States and Germany are adopting integrated strategies for energy generation that enable the gradual transformation of their respective energy markets, improving overall reliability, security and, efficiency of their electricity infrastructure through more diverse and dispersed sources of generation. The net zero energy home allows for reductions in peak load demand thus providing utilities the ability to better manage its generation and supply of energy loads to its customers and offering greater flexibility for exporting excess supply to markets inside the North American marketplace.

Cleaner air and climate protection
Net zero energy home is a vehicle toward our objectives of improved health and cleaner air for our citizens. It lends to a sustainable future for our urban and rural communities for coming generations by reducing NOx, SOx and, GHG emissions while reducing the need for construction of large-scale power generating stations.

Regional and economic development
Successful distributed generation programs elsewhere in the world have resulted in expanded manufacturing bases in sectors such as the solar thermal and photovoltaic industries. Based on the Pembina Institute’s estimates that every million dollars invested in onsite renewable electricity systems eight jobs are created, the Net Zero Energy Home proposal will generate a total of 168,000 new jobs.

Global leadership
Net Zero Energy Home builds upon Canada’s pioneering work in energy efficient home construction, embodied in the R2000 standards. The addition of residential-scale renewable energy production for household needs and additional energy conservation technologies offer the potential for provinces and indeed all of Canada to become the world’s first to adopt a national residential strategy based on Net Zero Energy Home design and construction.