A few months ago, I told you that the City of Montreal was planning to ban natural gas in new buildings in the fall of 2024. And I have an exciting update to share!
The Metropolitan Montreal Region (CMM) is now In newly built small buildings, the installation of all heating systems and appliances that run on fossil fuels has been officially banned. The landmark regulation will take effect from October this year to April next year.
What makes this even more noteworthy is that the ban will affect a total of 82 local governments., What constitutes Half of Quebec’s population.
“This rule will help Preventing 500,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions In the field of CMM by 2035 It is equivalent to the pollution produced by over 100,000 cars., As Patrick Bonin, climate and energy campaigner at Greenpeace Canada, explains:
This decision is not only consistent with Montreal’s climate plan, Zero-carbon buildings by 2040 —But that is An important step towards achieving Quebec’s carbon neutrality goal by 2050.
“This is a huge victory!” Bonin exclaimed. “Greenpeace Canada has been working to remove the gas from the building for years. Let’s release the gas! It’s a coalition. We are part of that coalition in Quebec.”
© Bialons/ Unsplash. Townhouse on Plateau-Mont-Royal street in Montreal, Quebec.
While this is a big win, there is room for improvement and opportunities to strengthen the ban. For example, the CMM did not ban the replacement of gas boilers in existing buildings, and allowed renewable natural gas in new large buildings. But we will continue to press.
Let’s let off some gas! Union, we are demanding Immediately transition to an energy system that minimizes gas use, prohibits replacement of gas boilers and promotes the transition to 100% electric solutions by complementing energy efficiency projects. We also urge the Quebec government to show leadership and support the province’s ambitious plan to phase out fossil gas in buildings.
“We plan to continue our campaign to get cities, provinces and the federal government to ban gas from their buildings. And thanks to the mobilization of our supporters, we can expect more victories in the near future!” ” said Bonin.
In fact, several cities, including Vancouver, Prévost, Candidac and Mont-Saint-Hilaire, have already adopted similar gas bans, and CMM’s regulations will encourage other municipalities to do the same. With every new ban, we accelerate the transition to cleaner, safer cities and a greener, better world.!
