January 2024 - Net Zero Times

As we commence a new year, may 2024 be full of good health and daily acts of kindness towards people and the planet. 

Speaking of acts of kindness towards to our planet in 2023 we experienced a movement in the right direction, with school boards, colleges and universities making sizeable efforts to reduce carbon in the built environment. A number of these projects started in the fourth quarter and some into the new year will reduce carbon by 15-30% with ventilation, repair, duct sealing and optimization (VeRO program). Case Studies are available.

Another noteworthy mention is the gas reduction, it’s worth repeating that natural gas is a major offender in global warming that has contributed to our lack of ski conditions across the country this season. Weaning your organization or your household off gas is more attainable now than ever and thankfully there are incentives from Enbridge and programs like VeRO to help reach our Paris Accord goals.

Making the switch to heat pumps makes good cents as the lifetime cost of a standard heat pump using an electric backup system is 13 percent lower than a gas system with air conditioning. Not to mention an effective way to limit emissions since they do not run on fossil fuels.