This is one of the 26 segments of Guy Dauncey’s Climate Emergency: A 26-Week Transition Program for Canada. Excerpted by permission.
To ensure that Canada’s power utilities continue to produce reliable, dispatchable power through the transition to 100% renewable energy, we will provide $100 million in Renewable Grid Research Grants over 10 years to develop improved systems of utility power storage and grid reliability. This will continue and expand the work being done in the joint Canada-UK Power Forward Challenge. Cost: $10 million per year
- To encourage grid stability, we will work with the provinces to enable utilities that adopt time-of-use pricing as practiced by Hydro One and other utilities to receive a one-time 10% corporate tax reduction.
- To reduce Canada’s energy demand from lighting, appliances, and equipment, we will make Energy Star certification mandatory for all new home appliances starting in 2022.
- We will introduce an annual Efficient Appliances Award to find the most efficient (‘Top Runner’) product for each type of appliance, from light bulbs to computer servers and vehicles. Model: Japan. The company producing the winning appliance in each category will be granted the cash equivalent of a one-year GST waiver on the winning appliance, which can be repeated for as many years as that appliance wins its category award. Every two years, we will upgrade the regulated standard for appliances in that category to emulate the most efficient design.
- To discourage the rebound effect that causes people to use more energy as the efficiency of appliances increases, we will work with the provinces to offer power utilities that adopt tiered pricing, as practiced by BC Hydro and other utilities, a one-time 10% corporate tax reduction.
