Community Energy Planning

Canadian communities have an important role to play in energy. They influence nearly 60 percent of energy use and 50 percent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions nationally. Energy consumption and GHG emissions are attributed to the way energy is used to heat, cool and operate buildings, through the waste management process, as well as through land use and transportation. Figure 2 illustrates the proportion of energy used in communities and the way in which it is used. Figure 3 illustrates that energy use is growing in Canadian communities and could increase by about 75 percent by 2050 over 2006 levels under a business-as-usual scenario. Figure 4 illustrates the potential impact that local governments can have over energy end use in a community.

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  Figure 2: Energy End Use in Canadian Communities

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  Figure 3: Potential Increase in Energy Use in Communities across Canada

Figure 4: Local Government Influence on Energy End Use and GHG Emissions¹⁰

In addition to being one of the highest energy users per capita globally, Canadian communities have among some of the highest global energy costs per capita. Table 1 highlights average annual energy spending by businesses, households and governments in small, mid-sized and large Canadian communities. On average, a community of 100,000 can spend $400 million across the community on energy per year and much of that spending typically leaves the local economy.

Table 1: Annual Energy Spending in Small, Mid-sized and Large Communities¹¹

Projected growth in energy consumption and the increasing costs associated with energy use are posing significant risks to Canadian communities, threatening to affect the quality of life of all Canadian residents and businesses.

Community energy planning can mitigate the risks associated with growing energy consumption and the inefficient use of energy in communities. Table 2 lists the many economic, environmental, health and resilience benefits of implementation.

Table 2: The Benefits of Community Energy Planning

There are a number of emerging opportunities supporting an energy transition in Canadian communities such as:

• Climate policy: Ambitious international, national and provincial/territorial policies are emerging in favour of a more integrated approach to energy planning. The Paris Agreement signals an unprecedented multinational agreement to raise the bar on energy and climate change action.
• Supportive policies: The Pan Canadian Framework on Climate Change presents opportunities for energy and climate action in Canadian communities. At a provincial and territorial level there are over 640 policies, programs and regulations supporting community energy planning.¹³
• Urbanization: The preferences of Canadian homes and businesses are evolving. Today, 81 percent of Canadians live in urban regions, seeking improved connectivity between the places they live, work and play.¹⁴
• Clean tech: There is a significant opportunity to capitalize on the global clean tech market, which is expected to grow from $1 trillion in 2016 to $3 trillion by 2020.¹⁵
  Currently, Canada’s share represents 1.3 percent of the global market.¹⁶

Traditionally, Canadian communities have planned for buildings, transportation, land use and waste in silos. The way in which communities are planned locks in energy and emissions impacts for decades. There is an untapped opportunity to integrate buildings, transportation, land use, waste and water systems to achieve greater energy efficiency, reduce GHG emissions and drive economic development.¹⁷ 

Over 200 communities across Canada, representing more than 50 percent of the population, have developed a CEP to transition and integrate the way energy is planned for and used across the community.¹⁸

CEPs are often led and implemented by local governments in partnership with a broad range of community stakeholders, including energy distribution companies, the real estate sector, the private sector, NGOs and provincial/territorial governments.

CEPs often vary from community to community, however they contain many of the following common elements:

• Community-wide energy and/or GHG emissions inventories
• Energy conservation and/or GHG reduction targets, and in some cases sub-sector targets for the building, waste and transportation sectors
• Proposed community-wide actions and strategies to meet the targets, including but not limited to, energy efficiency in buildings, planning and policy measures, transportation (including public transit, active transportation, low carbon vehicles and other transportation actions), waste, distributed energy resources (including renewable energy, district energy and combined heat and power), and water conservation
• Analyses of the economic, environmental, health and social benefits of implementation
• Key Performance Indicators to allow the community to monitor and report on implementation

CEPs also vary with respect to the level of detail contained in energy inventories as well as how deeply the economic, environmental, health and social benefits of CEP implementation are analyzed.

Table 3 describes various approaches to CEP development as well as the resources required to develop and the type of information they provide. Communities should pursue an approach that aligns with the community’s priorities, size, demographics, and available resources.

Table 3: Approaches to Community Energy Planning¹⁹

The process of implementing a CEP will differ from community to community and depends on a number of factors, ranging from the community context, to resources, management and engagement with community stakeholders. Table 4 lays out the steps most often undertaken in the CEP development and implementation process.

Table 4: CEP Development and Implementation Process^*

• Community Energy Planning: The Value Proposition
• Policies to Accelerate Community Energy Plans: An Analysis of British Columbia, Ontario and the Northwest Territories

West Five (www.west5.ca) is a 70 acre, mixed-use site located in London, Ontario. The site is being developed by Sifton Properties, in partnership with S2E Technologies. When completed, the neighbourhood will include 2,000 residential units, commercial and retail space, and parkland. The development will include a number of Smart Energy Community Principles,⁸⁹ including energy efficient buildings (e.g. the use of enhanced insulation), the use of renewable energy resources (e.g. solar shingles) and matching land use needs and mobility options (e.g. siting services such as grocery stores at community terminals nodes). The site will include London’s first net-zero office building and net zero townhomes.

Read the Community Energy Knowledge Action Partnership case study here.

The City of London Community Energy Action Plan (CEAP) was adopted in 2014. Alongside the plan, the City of London developed a background document describing a methodology for monitoring and reporting on community energy use. The background document describes a methodology for developing annual energy and emissions inventories. The document describes how the City of London will also work with stakeholders to develop new Key Performance Indicators, including economic, transportation, and energy performance indicators. The results from energy and emissions inventories, and other Key Performance Indicators will be included in an annual progress report outlining implementation progress of the CEAP.⁹⁰

The City of London, Ontario has conducted an economic analysis to measure various economic impacts and potential benefits of implementing their Community Energy Action Plan (CEAP). The analyses, conducted in-house, demonstrate community-wide energy spending, the proportion of energy spending leaving the local economy and the potential to recirculate energy spending based on the implementation of their plan.

The approach undertaken and resources are available here:

• Energy spending analysis
• Video supporting energy spending analysis: Turning energy data into energy dollars
• The City of London has also produced infographics based on the analyses, available here

The Region of Durham Community Climate Change Local Action Plan highlights the estimated environmental, economic and social impacts of implementation. The plan is available at: Durham Region (2012). From Vision to Action Region of Durham Community Climate Change Local Action Plan.

The New York City Department of Transportation created a methodology for measuring the economic impacts of improved streetscapes and active transportation infrastructure on retail sales. The study is available here: New York City Department of Transportation (December 2013). The Economic Benefits of Sustainable Streets. 

Coquitlam’s award-winning integrated financial planning framework is comprised of three separate but complementary planning processes. These processes result in a set of integrated plans that support the overall vision and mission of the City and align activities and resources to achieve the strategic goals and annual business plan priorities set by Council.

• Council’s Strategic Plan – aspirational, future-looking plan, updated every four years following the municipal election. It articulates the vision, mission, values and broad strategic goals. Progress of the plan is monitored through an annual review of key performance measures and accomplishments
• Business Plan – translates the high level strategic goals into annual business plan work items and priorities, established by Council. A set of performance measures are reviewed annually to monitor success of the business plan
• Financial Plan – provides the resourcing strategy to support the strategic and business plans. Updated annually, it is a five-year plan that includes both operating and capital components

Evaluation of achievements informs the next cycle of planning. For example, the City’s performance is reviewed every four months with a Trimester Report to Council. It includes an update on the progress of the work items under the Business Plan priorities and a review of operating and capital budget variances, labour vacancies, economic indicators including construction and development activities, and major spending during the trimester. The intent of the report is to view the City’s activities and progress balanced with the status of the City’s financial and human resources.

In this model, it is important that staff responsible for developing and implementing the CEP ensure that its goals and actions are reflected in Council’s (strategic) plan and that these goals and actions maintain a high profile throughout the budgeting/financial plan process.

See the Strategic Plan here: City of Coquitlam (2012). 2012-2015 Strategic Plan. 

The Community Energy Planning Committee was established by City Council on September 10, 2007, following the completion of the Community Energy Plan (CEP).⁷⁹ The Committee is chaired by the Mayor and includes representatives from across the Community. The primary purpose of the Committee is to assist the City of Yellowknife in an advisory capacity to ensure the CEP is implemented and evolves in an effective manner. The scope of the Committee is to report and make recommendations to City Council through the appropriate standing Committee of Council on the progress and direction of the CEP implementation.⁸⁰

Edmonton City Council formed an Energy Transition Advisory Committee.⁸¹ Committee members serve two year terms and sets out to encourage and promote the strategy, provide advice to Council regarding the implementation of the strategy and assist Council in developing performance measures.

In 2012, the City of Kelowna adopted a Community Climate Action Plan containing 87 actions to be implemented by 2020. Of those actions, 59 were assigned to the local government and 28 were assigned to community stakeholders, including utilities, provincial government and others. In an effort to ensure that community stakeholders understood their roles in the implementation of the plan, the City of Kelowna circulated letters to the organizations responsible for implementing actions in the plan. These letters enabled the City of Kelowna to move forward on implementing actions that are not within its jurisdiction.⁸²

In 2014, the City of Markham began to develop a Municipal Energy Plan (MEP). As part of the MEP, the City created a Stakeholder Working Group.⁸³

The desired outcome of the Stakeholder Working Group is to provide recommendations and feedback on the development of Markham’s MEP including:

• Identifying energy opportunities and solutions to increase local energy production and conservation
• Identifying synergies between industry stakeholders to implement MEP recommendations

See the Municipal Energy Plan Stakeholder Working Group Terms of Reference here.

See the list of stakeholders participating in the MEP Stakeholder Working Group here.

While CEPs are often led by a local government, they do not have to be. CEPs can be developed at different scales, for example at a regional or neighbourhood scale. Developing a CEP at an alternative scale may be an effective approach for your community if:

• You are a small community with little capacity to develop a CEP
• You are a large community whereby a CEP may not be an effective way to meet the highly varying needs across the community
• You live within the jurisdiction of a regional government and can find efficiencies by coordinating among communities in the region

How to Get Started

• Refer to Appendix IV – Provincial/Territorial Municipal Organizations that may have Community Energy Planning Resources. Many organizations across Canada provide community energy planning support and can connect communities with the resources or contacts needed to get started
• Consider reaching out to local government staff, regional government staff or neighbouring communities as well as local energy distributors, to begin discussions about possible models for community energy planning
• Consider that many local energy distributors or provincial/territorial governments provide or match funding to support the development and implementation of a CEP
• Consider risks associated with staff turnover and attrition. Many communities, and most often rural and remote communities, face high staff turnover. High staff turnover can lead to a fragmented implementation process and the loss of relationships and corporate knowledge with respect to implementation. In addition, all communities face the risk of losing corporate knowledge as a result of staff attrition
• Consider the approaches listed in Strategy 3: Develop a Governance Model that Supports a Community Energy Transition. The focus of this strategy is to embed the CEP within the processes of the local government and focus on building a network of champions, and redundancy in staff involvement in the CEP
• If possible, provide incentives to reduce staff turnover, such as:

• Provide professional development opportunities such as training programs
• Offer frequent formal and informal recognition and/or awards based on performance to improve employee morale and motivation
• Provide employee engagement opportunities to improve employee contentment and loyalty
• Sometimes, corporate knowledge may lie with a contractor that has been retained for community energy planning consulting services for the community. Consider engaging or re-engaging with former consultants if your community is facing a loss of internal corporate knowledge about previous efforts related to the CEP

The Community Energy Planning Committee was established by City Council on September 10, 2007, following the completion of the Community Energy Plan (CEP).⁷⁹ The Committee is chaired by the Mayor and includes representatives from across the Community. The primary purpose of the Committee is to assist the City of Yellowknife in an advisory capacity to ensure the CEP is implemented and evolves in an effective manner. The scope of the Committee is to report and make recommendations to City Council through the appropriate standing Committee of Council on the progress and direction of the CEP implementation.⁸⁰

Edmonton City Council formed an Energy Transition Advisory Committee.⁸¹ Committee members serve two year terms and sets out to encourage and promote the strategy, provide advice to Council regarding the implementation of the strategy and assist Council in developing performance measures.

CEP reporting is coordinated annually by the Community Energy division of the Business Development and Enterprise department, and presented to the Corporate Administration, Finance & Enterprise Committee (this Committee is appointed by Council and made up of Councillors). A dashboard is used to display progress within eight key activity categories, plus a description of the status for each individual activity.

See the Guelph Community Energy Plan here.

Efficiency One in Nova Scotia, formerly Efficiency Nova Scotia, has provided on-site energy managers for organizations such as Cape Breton University, Capital District Health Authority, Dalhousie University and Nova Scotia Community College. These embedded energy managers help to identify and coordinate projects to achieve substantial energy efficiency savings. For example after first six months of the partnership between Efficiency One and Capital Health in 2012, several projects were initiated totalling savings of $118,000 per year.⁹¹ 

Eco-Ouest, led in partnership with CDEM, SSD, has developed a program designed to help provide expertise to smaller municipalities in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta that face resource and capacity constraints for CEP development and implementation. Eco-Ouest has partnered with rural municipalities in each of these provinces to create energy and GHG emissions inventories and Climate Change Local Action Plans such as the inventory for the Rural Municipality of St. Clements and plans for the Rural Municipality of Saint-Laurent and Rural Municipality of Taché. CDEM also incorporates a regional perspective by comparing neighbouring communities’ energy and emissions performances and sharing successful projects and case studies.⁹²CDEM. (n.d.). Eco-West. Retrieved from CDEM Website

The Yukon Energy Solutions Centre is part of the Energy branch in the Government of Yukon Department of Energy, Mines and Resources.

The Energy Solutions Centre offers community-level energy services to such as:

• Providing technical information and financial incentives to encourage the use of energy efficient appliances and heating systems at the local level
• Providing comprehensive energy planning services, including energy baseline assessments and policy reviews
• Providing training courses to build local technical capacity to implement community energy plans and projects
• Participating in outreach and public education on the health, safety, economic and environmental benefits of energy efficiency and renewable energy

To learn more about the Energy Solutions Centre visit http://www.energy.gov.yk.ca/about-the-energy-branch.html

Consider the following GTI Advice on how to engage with staff within the local government.

Consider the following GTI Advice on how to engage with staff within the finance department.

Once staff across the municipality are engaged, amend existing and new job descriptions to include CEP considerations.

Include tasks for all positions responsible for implementing local government plans, including department heads in the above-listed departments. While the level of responsibility and tasks will vary according to the position, consider the following language as a starting point:

“The incumbent performs a variety of routine and complex technical work … including supporting the development and implementation of the Community Energy Plan.”

The City of Yellowknife adopted a CEP in 2006. With a target year of 2014, Yellowknife aimed to reduce its corporate GHG emissions by 20 per cent and its community GHG emissions 6 per cent, based on 2004 levels. It budgeted $500,000 annually for energy efficiency, renewable energy conversions and public awareness. By February 2013, the City surpassed its target and the projects implemented now save the City an estimated $528,000 per year.⁷⁶

One of the last steps initiated during the implementation of the CEP was the adoption of a renewal process for the plan. This renewal process included the development of a strategy for public and community stakeholder engagement to support the creation of a CEP for 2015-2025. Yellowknife has since embarked on a process where a new assessment of the Community’s GHG emissions will be completed and new targets will be established.

The Community Energy Planning Committee was established by City Council on September 10, 2007, following the completion of the Community Energy Plan (CEP).⁷⁹ The Committee is chaired by the Mayor and includes representatives from across the Community. The primary purpose of the Committee is to assist the City of Yellowknife in an advisory capacity to ensure the CEP is implemented and evolves in an effective manner. The scope of the Committee is to report and make recommendations to City Council through the appropriate standing Committee of Council on the progress and direction of the CEP implementation.⁸⁰

Edmonton City Council formed an Energy Transition Advisory Committee.⁸¹ Committee members serve two year terms and sets out to encourage and promote the strategy, provide advice to Council regarding the implementation of the strategy and assist Council in developing performance measures.

The City of Yellowknife Community Energy Plan Communications Plan describes a detailed approach for engaging with the public.⁸⁶ At the core of the plan, there is a recognition that in order to reduce GHG emissions across the community, Yellowknife residents and businesses must change current energy use practices. This requires a shift in awareness, attitudes and behaviour with respect to GHG emissions. The overall communication goal of the plan is to inform Yellowknife residents of changes that the City of Yellowknife will make and to implement communication programs that encourage ongoing reductions in Yellowknife GHG emissions.

Business models within the real estate sector are evolving. Some of the factors influencing this shift include, but are not limited to:

• The evolving preferences of home buyers and businesses. There is a growing mismatch between the high demand for energy efficiency buildings and homes and the supply. Similarly, there is a growing demand for compact, mixed-use neighbourhoods and communities
• Increasing concerns from building owners and operators about the growing cost of energy as a proportion of overall building operating costs
• Federal, provincial and territorial policies evolving in favour of energy efficiency, integrated land use and transportation and distributed energy resources
• Significant, untapped opportunities for integrating distributed energy resources into building design

These changes have impacts on real estate developers, building owners and operators, architects and real estate agents and while some organizations are taking the lead when it comes to community energy projects, many have yet to catch up. Table 10 summarizes some of the realities the real estate sector is facing and describes how participating in the community energy planning process can add value to their business models.

Table 10 – The Value Proposition of Community Energy Planning to the Real Estate Sector

Consider the following when engaging with the real estate sector.

Provincial and territorial governments are essential in the community energy planning process:

• Increasingly, provincial and territorial governments and their respective agencies are placing a growing emphasis on energy and emissions.³⁹ Community energy planning offers a platform to achieve deep energy and GHG reductions while facilitating economic growth and can directly help achieve provincial and territorial objectives
• Health care costs represent a large, and increasing portion of most provincial/territorial budgets and community energy planning can help to reduce these costs
• They also oversee policies and programs that may impact or be impacted by community energy planning.
• They may also have technical expertise needed for CEP development and implementation
• They may have energy end use data and
• Key Performance Indicator data needed to monitor implementation progress

Consider the following when engaging with provincial and territorial governments.

The City of London, Ontario has conducted an economic analysis to measure various economic impacts and potential benefits of implementing their Community Energy Action Plan (CEAP). The analyses, conducted in-house, demonstrate community-wide energy spending, the proportion of energy spending leaving the local economy and the potential to recirculate energy spending based on the implementation of their plan.

The approach undertaken and resources are available here:

• Energy spending analysis
• Video supporting energy spending analysis: Turning energy data into energy dollars
• The City of London has also produced infographics based on the analyses, available here

The Region of Durham Community Climate Change Local Action Plan highlights the estimated environmental, economic and social impacts of implementation. The plan is available at: Durham Region (2012). From Vision to Action Region of Durham Community Climate Change Local Action Plan.

The New York City Department of Transportation created a methodology for measuring the economic impacts of improved streetscapes and active transportation infrastructure on retail sales. The study is available here: New York City Department of Transportation (December 2013). The Economic Benefits of Sustainable Streets. http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/dot-economic-benefits-of-sustainable-streets.pdf

The City of Edmonton, Alberta (population 812,000) adopted Edmonton’s Community Energy Transition Strategy in April 2015 and a corresponding City Policy C585 in August 2015.⁷⁸ The Strategy, which represents a renewal and upgrade of their 2001 plan, was approved unanimously by City Council. Based on extensive citizen consultation, the strategy includes twelve strategic courses of action and an eight-year action plan with more than 150 tactics.
There is a lesson to be learned in how Edmonton’s Sustainable Development Department communicated the need for the strategy. First, it was framed as a risk management strategy designed to protect Edmonton’s quality-of life from climate and energy risks. Secondly, it provided a compelling economic business case involving ten community-scale programs (for advancing energy conservation, energy efficiency and renewable energy uptake) that would deliver a net public benefit of $3.3 billion over 20 years.

The Community Energy Planning Committee was established by City Council on September 10, 2007, following the completion of the Community Energy Plan (CEP).⁷⁹ The Committee is chaired by the Mayor and includes representatives from across the Community. The primary purpose of the Committee is to assist the City of Yellowknife in an advisory capacity to ensure the CEP is implemented and evolves in an effective manner. The scope of the Committee is to report and make recommendations to City Council through the appropriate standing Committee of Council on the progress and direction of the CEP implementation.⁸⁰

Edmonton City Council formed an Energy Transition Advisory Committee.⁸¹ Committee members serve two year terms and sets out to encourage and promote the strategy, provide advice to Council regarding the implementation of the strategy and assist Council in developing performance measures.

In 2012, the City of Kelowna adopted a Community Climate Action Plan containing 87 actions to be implemented by 2020. Of those actions, 59 were assigned to the local government and 28 were assigned to community stakeholders, including utilities, provincial government and others. In an effort to ensure that community stakeholders understood their roles in the implementation of the plan, the City of Kelowna circulated letters to the organizations responsible for implementing actions in the plan. These letters enabled the City of Kelowna to move forward on implementing actions that are not within its jurisdiction.⁸²

In 2014, the City of Markham began to develop a Municipal Energy Plan (MEP). As part of the MEP, the City created a Stakeholder Working Group.⁸³

The desired outcome of the Stakeholder Working Group is to provide recommendations and feedback on the development of Markham’s MEP including:

• Identifying energy opportunities and solutions to increase local energy production and conservation
• Identifying synergies between industry stakeholders to implement MEP recommendations

See the Municipal Energy Plan Stakeholder Working Group Terms of Reference here.

See the list of stakeholders participating in the MEP Stakeholder Working Group here.

The City of London, Ontario has documented public engagement efforts in a document entitled Learning from People: A Background Document for the Community Energy Action Plan: https://www.london.ca/residents/Environment/Energy/Documents/Learning_from_People.pdf
As part of the development of the Community Energy Action Plan, the City of London undertook a campaign called ReThink Energy London. The City of London held a Community Energy Strategy Workshop and the London Roundtable on the Environment and the Economy to inform the development of the Community Energy Action Plan. Community Energy Strategy Workshop included an interactive energy mapping exercise that involved 31 participants from electrical, natural gas and thermal utilities, internal departments, environmental and transportation advisory committees and provincial staff, among other stakeholders. The city’s energy map was used to help stakeholders identify energy opportunities and risks, and to generated ideas and principles for energy actions in key areas such as buildings, transportation and low carbon energy generation in the City of London. Outcomes from the workshop can be found here: https://www.london.ca/residents/Environment/Climate-Change/Documents/London_FINALSummaryofWorkshop_May11.pdf

The City of Yellowknife Community Energy Plan Communications Plan describes a detailed approach for engaging with the public.⁸⁶ At the core of the plan, there is a recognition that in order to reduce GHG emissions across the community, Yellowknife residents and businesses must change current energy use practices. This requires a shift in awareness, attitudes and behaviour with respect to GHG emissions. The overall communication goal of the plan is to inform Yellowknife residents of changes that the City of Yellowknife will make and to implement communication programs that encourage ongoing reductions in Yellowknife GHG emissions.

In 2007 and 2008 the community of Fort Providence, Northwest Territories (population 735), in partnership with the Arctic Energy Alliance, developed an energy profile.⁸⁷

The objective of this exercise was to provide the community, and key decision makers, with a snapshot of energy use in the community.

The energy profile was developed to communicate a large quantity of energy data, including energy consumption, energy end use, cost of energy, and GHG emissions. Similar to any community that looks at energy use and costs per capita, the energy profile revealed significant opportunities to conserve energy and improve efficiency within the community.

Eco-Ouest, led in partnership with CDEM, SSD, has developed a program designed to help provide expertise to smaller municipalities in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta that face resource and capacity constraints for CEP development and implementation. Eco-Ouest has partnered with rural municipalities in each of these provinces to create energy and GHG emissions inventories and Climate Change Local Action Plans such as the inventory for the Rural Municipality of St. Clements and plans for the Rural Municipality of Saint-Laurent and Rural Municipality of Taché. CDEM also incorporates a regional perspective by comparing neighbouring communities’ energy and emissions performances and sharing successful projects and case studies.⁹²CDEM. (n.d.). Eco-West. Retrieved from CDEM Website: http://www.cdem.com/en/sectors/green-economy-1/eco-west

The Yukon Energy Solutions Centre is part of the Energy branch in the Government of Yukon Department of Energy, Mines and Resources.

The Energy Solutions Centre offers community-level energy services to such as:

• Providing technical information and financial incentives to encourage the use of energy efficient appliances and heating systems at the local level
• Providing comprehensive energy planning services, including energy baseline assessments and policy reviews
• Providing training courses to build local technical capacity to implement community energy plans and projects
• Participating in outreach and public education on the health, safety, economic and environmental benefits of energy efficiency and renewable energy

To learn more about the Energy Solutions Centre visit http://www.energy.gov.yk.ca/about-the-energy-branch.html

All stakeholders will have varying levels of interest in the CEP based on their core business. Consider segmenting stakeholders before you begin engaging with them.

Consider segmenting stakeholders within a matrix to determine (1) their willingness to engage and (2) their level of influence with respect to implementation. It is good practice to focus first on the stakeholders with a high influence on energy and GHG emissions. See the Stakeholder Segmentation Matrix Template in Figure 5 as an example.

Figure 5 – Stakeholder Segmentation Matrix Template

An energy map illustrates spatial information about energy end use in a community. It can visually identify opportunities for reducing energy use (e.g. targeting energy efficiency programs), opportunities for shifting modes of transportation (e.g. transit projects), potential sources of energy (e.g. biomass), and opportunities for distributed energy resources (e.g. district energy systems).⁴⁵

Consider the following when developing an energy map:

• Before developing an energy map, consider the overall objectives of your CEP. Use the energy map
• as a strategic tool to illustrate opportunities to achieve those objectives.
• Many energy data providers may not provide parcel-level information due to privacy constraints, however parcel-level data is often not needed to illustrate energy opportunities in your community. Consider developing your map at a postal code scale. If possible, identify energy intensity by land use type or building type or by hectare or m²
• Maps should include key roads and/or buildings to help viewers orient themselves
• Consider developing a variety of maps to illustrate energy use in buildings and transportation
• Energy maps can be presented to stakeholder groups such as energy distributors, real estate developers, and the public in charrettes, stakeholder meetings, workshops and focus groups. Maps can be used to illustrate the objectives of the CEP, and to obtain input on actions to include in the CEP.

In 2012, the City of Kelowna adopted a Community Climate Action Plan containing 87 actions to be implemented by 2020. Of those actions, 59 were assigned to the local government and 28 were assigned to community stakeholders, including utilities, provincial government and others. In an effort to ensure that community stakeholders understood their roles in the implementation of the plan, the City of Kelowna circulated letters to the organizations responsible for implementing actions in the plan. These letters enabled the City of Kelowna to move forward on implementing actions that are not within its jurisdiction.⁸²

In 2014, the City of Markham began to develop a Municipal Energy Plan (MEP). As part of the MEP, the City created a Stakeholder Working Group.⁸³

The desired outcome of the Stakeholder Working Group is to provide recommendations and feedback on the development of Markham’s MEP including:

• Identifying energy opportunities and solutions to increase local energy production and conservation
• Identifying synergies between industry stakeholders to implement MEP recommendations

See the Municipal Energy Plan Stakeholder Working Group Terms of Reference here.

See the list of stakeholders participating in the MEP Stakeholder Working Group here.

The City of London, Ontario has documented public engagement efforts in a document entitled Learning from People: A Background Document for the Community Energy Action Plan: https://www.london.ca/residents/Environment/Energy/Documents/Learning_from_People.pdf
As part of the development of the Community Energy Action Plan, the City of London undertook a campaign called ReThink Energy London. The City of London held a Community Energy Strategy Workshop and the London Roundtable on the Environment and the Economy to inform the development of the Community Energy Action Plan. Community Energy Strategy Workshop included an interactive energy mapping exercise that involved 31 participants from electrical, natural gas and thermal utilities, internal departments, environmental and transportation advisory committees and provincial staff, among other stakeholders. The city’s energy map was used to help stakeholders identify energy opportunities and risks, and to generated ideas and principles for energy actions in key areas such as buildings, transportation and low carbon energy generation in the City of London. Outcomes from the workshop can be found here: https://www.london.ca/residents/Environment/Climate-Change/Documents/London_FINALSummaryofWorkshop_May11.pdf

The City of Yellowknife Community Energy Plan Communications Plan describes a detailed approach for engaging with the public.⁸⁶ At the core of the plan, there is a recognition that in order to reduce GHG emissions across the community, Yellowknife residents and businesses must change current energy use practices. This requires a shift in awareness, attitudes and behaviour with respect to GHG emissions. The overall communication goal of the plan is to inform Yellowknife residents of changes that the City of Yellowknife will make and to implement communication programs that encourage ongoing reductions in Yellowknife GHG emissions.

CEP reporting is coordinated annually by the Community Energy division of the Business Development and Enterprise department, and presented to the Corporate Administration, Finance & Enterprise Committee (this Committee is appointed by Council and made up of Councillors). A dashboard is used to display progress within eight key activity categories, plus a description of the status for each individual activity.

See the Guelph Community Energy Plan here.

The City of London Community Energy Action Plan (CEAP) was adopted in 2014. Alongside the plan, the City of London developed a background document describing a methodology for monitoring and reporting on community energy use. The background document describes a methodology for developing annual energy and emissions inventories. The document describes how the City of London will also work with stakeholders to develop new Key Performance Indicators, including economic, transportation, and energy performance indicators. The results from energy and emissions inventories, and other Key Performance Indicators will be included in an annual progress report outlining implementation progress of the CEAP.⁹⁰

Annual energy and GHG inventories can be expensive to conduct and may, in some cases, illustrate only incremental changes with respect to energy end use and emissions in a community. As a result, small communities should consider developing inventories at longer intervals (e.g. bi-annually, or every five years). In the interim, communities can focus on monitoring and reporting on secondary indicators, which are often less expensive and easier to monitor, and which can still indicate implementation progress.

GTI research has identified that there are many ways to measure CEP implementation. Some approaches include:

• Measuring reductions in community-wide energy or GHG emissions: If energy and GHGs are falling in a community, the CEP is effectively being implemented. Note that federal, provincial/territorial policies, economic transitions and other external factors often play a role in overall GHG emissions
• Measuring secondary Key Performance Indicators: The effectiveness of a CEP can be measured by the extent to which secondary Key Performance Indicators are achieved. Secondary indicators include indicators that are related to overall energy consumption (e.g. reduction in energy spending, number of jobs created, reduction in vehicle kilometers traveled, shifts in mode splits, energy efficiency retrofits, or increased waste diversion rates)
• Tracking the number of actions completed in a CEP: While this is a rudimentary approach to measuring the impacts of implementation, it can signal the extent to which local government processes are supportive of implementation
• Assessing Implementation Readiness: The Community Energy Implementation Readiness Survey enables a community to assess the extent to which conditions are in place to support ongoing implementation

The City of London Community Energy Action Plan (CEAP) was adopted in 2014. Alongside the plan, the City of London developed a background document describing a methodology for monitoring and reporting on community energy use. The background document describes a methodology for developing annual energy and emissions inventories. The document describes how the City of London will also work with stakeholders to develop new Key Performance Indicators, including economic, transportation, and energy performance indicators. The results from energy and emissions inventories, and other Key Performance Indicators will be included in an annual progress report outlining implementation progress of the CEAP.⁹⁰

Embedding the CEP into the budget process can draw positive attention among senior managers to the level of priority of the CEP. As a result, local government departments may be able to find ways to advance their own priorities by aligning their work plans with CEP actions (e.g. economic development and district energy, planning and higher density, transportation and bike paths, or solid waste and composting). Table 13 describes the steps to embed the CEP into the budgeting process.

Table 13: Considerations for Integrating CEP Actions into the Budgeting Process

Communities struggling to gain the support of council to develop a CEP should consider implementing single projects to demonstrate the value and widespread benefits of implementing community energy initiatives. Often times, demonstrating small successes can help garner support to develop a complete CEP.

Consider the following:

• There are endless opportunities to change the way energy is delivered and used in our communities. Remember that it is almost always most cost-effective to focus first on actions that focus on reducing energy consumption. This can take place in the form of energy conservation and efficiency in new and existing buildings, waste and organics diversion, and reducing trip distances for the movement of people and goods
• Figure 6 includes three action categories that summarize some of the greatest opportunities for community energy planning. Communities are often advised to start first with the actions at the top end of the pyramid as they typically require a low level of investment and can have significant impacts on reducing energy and GHG emissions
• While payback periods should be reasonable, consider that sometimes a longer payback period may result in a stronger return on investment. Select a project that will deliver both

 Figure 6 – A Summary of the Opportunities for CEP Implementation⁴⁹

• It typically takes 5-7 years for a CEP to complete a development/implementation cycle
• Renewal should typically take place every 5-7 years to ensure that actions as well as the supporting rationale, data, analysis and impacts are up-to-date. Consider renewing the CEP when the majority of the actions in the CEP have been implemented or assessed for feasibility
• A community aiming to achieve an 80 percent reduction in energy and GHG emissions by 2050 will complete five to seven cycles between now and 2050
• Consider electoral, budgeting and other planning cycles when deciding on a frequency for CEP renewal
• Be explicit about when the CEP will be renewed
• Be adaptable. If circumstances change, consider renewing the CEP more or less frequently than was decided on initially
• If possible, avoid renewing the plan within 5 years of adoption. Renewal within a 5 year time frame can lead to “planning paralysis”, where it falls into the trap of expending its efforts on creating plans to the detriment of implementing them

• Consider developing a CEP at a regional scale. Participating local governments can then contribute a fair proportion of the cost to fund a dedicated staff person
• Consider housing the CEP within a local NGO, which may have access to more or different sources of funding to support a dedicated staff person
• Note that it is important to dedicate a staff person to oversee CEP development andimplementation

The City of London, Ontario has conducted an economic analysis to measure various economic impacts and potential benefits of implementing their Community Energy Action Plan (CEAP). The analyses, conducted in-house, demonstrate community-wide energy spending, the proportion of energy spending leaving the local economy and the potential to recirculate energy spending based on the implementation of their plan.

The approach undertaken and resources are available here:

• Energy spending analysis
• Video supporting energy spending analysis: Turning energy data into energy dollars
• The City of London has also produced infographics based on the analyses, available here

The Region of Durham Community Climate Change Local Action Plan highlights the estimated environmental, economic and social impacts of implementation. The plan is available at: Durham Region (2012). From Vision to Action Region of Durham Community Climate Change Local Action Plan. https://www.durham.ca/community/climate_change/2012DurhamLAP.pdf

The New York City Department of Transportation created a methodology for measuring the economic impacts of improved streetscapes and active transportation infrastructure on retail sales. The study is available here: New York City Department of Transportation (December 2013). The Economic Benefits of Sustainable Streets. http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/dot-economic-benefits-of-sustainable-streets.pdf

The City of Edmonton, Alberta (population 812,000) adopted Edmonton’s Community Energy Transition Strategy in April 2015 and a corresponding City Policy C585 in August 2015.⁷⁸ The Strategy, which represents a renewal and upgrade of their 2001 plan, was approved unanimously by City Council. Based on extensive citizen consultation, the strategy includes twelve strategic courses of action and an eight-year action plan with more than 150 tactics.
There is a lesson to be learned in how Edmonton’s Sustainable Development Department communicated the need for the strategy. First, it was framed as a risk management strategy designed to protect Edmonton’s quality-of life from climate and energy risks. Secondly, it provided a compelling economic business case involving ten community-scale programs (for advancing energy conservation, energy efficiency and renewable energy uptake) that would deliver a net public benefit of $3.3 billion over 20 years.

In 2007 and 2008 the community of Fort Providence, Northwest Territories (population 735), in partnership with the Arctic Energy Alliance, developed an energy profile.⁸⁷

The objective of this exercise was to provide the community, and key decision makers, with a snapshot of energy use in the community.

The energy profile was developed to communicate a large quantity of energy data, including energy consumption, energy end use, cost of energy, and GHG emissions. Similar to any community that looks at energy use and costs per capita, the energy profile revealed significant opportunities to conserve energy and improve efficiency within the community.

In 2010, a series of by-laws and by-law amendments were adopted by Halifax City Council whereby a memorandum of Understanding was signed between the City and Refreshments Canada requiring the vending industry to voluntarily improve the energy efficiency of the vending machine fleet over 3 years. The estimated cost savings of the program were $500,000 per year and an annual reduction of 5,000 tons of GHG emissions. VendingMisers installed on the vending machines resulted in a 25-50 percent reduction in energy consumption per machine.⁸⁸

West Five (www.west5.ca) is a 70 acre, mixed-use site located in London, Ontario. The site is being developed by Sifton Properties, in partnership with S2E Technologies. When completed, the neighbourhood will include 2,000 residential units, commercial and retail space, and parkland. The development will include a number of Smart Energy Community Principles,⁸⁹ including energy efficient buildings (e.g. the use of enhanced insulation), the use of renewable energy resources (e.g. solar shingles) and matching land use needs and mobility options (e.g. siting services such as grocery stores at community terminals nodes). The site will include London’s first net-zero office building and net zero townhomes.

Read the Community Energy Knowledge Action Partnership case study here.

CEP reporting is coordinated annually by the Community Energy division of the Business Development and Enterprise department, and presented to the Corporate Administration, Finance & Enterprise Committee (this Committee is appointed by Council and made up of Councillors). A dashboard is used to display progress within eight key activity categories, plus a description of the status for each individual activity.

See the Guelph Community Energy Plan here.

The City of London Community Energy Action Plan (CEAP) was adopted in 2014. Alongside the plan, the City of London developed a background document describing a methodology for monitoring and reporting on community energy use. The background document describes a methodology for developing annual energy and emissions inventories. The document describes how the City of London will also work with stakeholders to develop new Key Performance Indicators, including economic, transportation, and energy performance indicators. The results from energy and emissions inventories, and other Key Performance Indicators will be included in an annual progress report outlining implementation progress of the CEAP.⁹⁰

Efficiency One in Nova Scotia, formerly Efficiency Nova Scotia, has provided on-site energy managers for organizations such as Cape Breton University, Capital District Health Authority, Dalhousie University and Nova Scotia Community College. These embedded energy managers help to identify and coordinate projects to achieve substantial energy efficiency savings. For example after first six months of the partnership between Efficiency One and Capital Health in 2012, several projects were initiated totalling savings of $118,000 per year.⁹¹ 

Eco-Ouest, led in partnership with CDEM, SSD, has developed a program designed to help provide expertise to smaller municipalities in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta that face resource and capacity constraints for CEP development and implementation. Eco-Ouest has partnered with rural municipalities in each of these provinces to create energy and GHG emissions inventories and Climate Change Local Action Plans such as the inventory for the Rural Municipality of St. Clements and plans for the Rural Municipality of Saint-Laurent and Rural Municipality of Taché. CDEM also incorporates a regional perspective by comparing neighbouring communities’ energy and emissions performances and sharing successful projects and case studies.⁹²CDEM. (n.d.). Eco-West. Retrieved from CDEM Website: http://www.cdem.com/en/sectors/green-economy-1/eco-west

The City of Hamilton amended its Zoning By-law to support a transit-oriented multi-residential building, reducing parking space requirements from 1 space per unit in a multi-unit residential dwellings to 0.47 parking spaced per unit due to the building being located in a transit-oriented neighborhood.⁹³

Official Plans outline growth objectives and guide the land use planning of a community. Depending on the Province or Territory and the community, can be called an Official Plan, Official Community Plan, Development Plan, Master Plan, Municipal Plan, or Comprehensive Plan. For many communities the Official Plan guides all land use making decisions. CEP actions related to integrating land use and transportation, enhancing energy efficiency, and accelerating the implementation of distributed energy resources, can be included in an Official Plan.

The Regional Municipality of York, Ontario: The Regional Municipality of York Official Plan, encouragesall local municipalities within its jurisdiction to develop a CEP and requires local municipalities to develop CEPs for Regional Centres, which are primary focal areas for intensive development. It also requires local municipalities to develop CEPs for each new community area to reduce community energy demands, optimize passive solar gains through design, maximize active transportation and transit, and make use of renewable, on-site generation and district energy options including but not limited to solar, wind, water, biomass, and geothermal energy.⁵⁴

The Resort Municipality of Whistler, British Columbia: The Resort Municipality of Whistler notes in its Official Community Plan that “As a signatory to the BC Climate Action Charter the Council of the Resort Municipality of Whistler has expressed its understanding that anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases are affecting the global climate; that reducing these emissions is therefore beneficial and important to all citizens; and that governments must act promptly to mitigate climate change. The Municipality considers it appropriate to adopt targets, policies and actions intended to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases within Whistler and resulting from activities related to the ongoing operation of the resort community. The targets are stated below, along with related policies and actions. Other relevant policies and actions are found throughout the OCP, because the Municipality recognizes that reducing greenhouse gas emissions can be achieved by all sectors of the resort community, and in all aspects of its operation.”⁵⁵

Other plans include Transportation Plans, Urban Forest Management Plans, Housing Plans, Solid Waste Plans, Economic Development Plans, Sustainability Plans and others.

Most CEPs will contain actions that relate to transportation, urban forest management, housing and solid waste, among others. Staff developing these plans should become aware of the actions in the CEP and how they impact their work plans.

Communications Plans

The communications department is responsible can incorporate the CEP into both internal and external communications.

Internal Communications

• Update staff on CEP implementation often through internal communications channels
• Encourage staff to share anecdotes on CEP implementation with the communications department so that they may be disseminated frequently

 External Communications

• Engage with the public when deemed appropriate (e.g. for program implementation and significant CEP updates). See Strategy 7: Engage Community Stakeholders and Recognize their Implementation Progress
• Some local governments administer household/business surveys. Consider including questions within the survey that may provide data for Key Performance Indicators. See Strategy 8: Monitor and Report on CEP Implementation

Zoning by-laws state how land will be used in a community and outlines specific requirements for building use, density, height, size, and location. Zoning by-laws and amendments can be used to encourage or require intensification targets, the integration of land use and transportation, the acceleration of alternative modes of transportation, distributed energy resources, and energy efficiency requirements.

Energy efficiency in the City of Halifax, Nova Scotia: In 2010, a series of by-laws and by-law amendments were adopted by Halifax City Council whereby a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the City and Refreshments Canada requiring the vending industry to voluntarily improve the energy efficiency of the vending machine fleet over 3 years. The estimated cost savings of the program were $500,000 per year and an annual reduction of 5,000 tons of GHG emissions. VendingMisers installed on the vending machines resulted in a 25-50 percent reduction in energy consumption per machine.⁵⁷

Distributed energy resources in the City of Vancouver, British Columbia: In 2013, the City of Vancouver adopted a by-law requiring owners of new buildings proposed for construction and existing buildings undergoing significant alterations in the Southeast False Creek neighborhood to connect to the local district energy system.⁵⁸

Distributed energy resources in the City of Calgary, Alberta: The City of Calgary adopted revisions to the Centre City By-law providing incentives for green building features including district energy connections, co-generation facilities and electric vehicle charging stations, among others.⁵⁹

Increasing density and compact, mixed-use communities in the City of Calgary, Alberta: The City of Calgary adopted a zoning by-law amendment rezoning a mall parking lot to allow for a high-density residential development in a mixed use area. The development provided residents with greater access to essential services and amenities and reduced their dependency on private vehicles.⁶⁰

Increasing density and compact, mixed-use communities in Koo’s Corner, British Columbia: In 2002, Koo’s Corner, located in the Strathcona neighbourhood in Vancouver, British Columbia was completed. The project represents a best practices as it relates to infill development. The City of Vancouver allowed a higher density for the project than what was permitted in the Vancouver Charter, enabling the project to be viable.⁶¹

Increasing density and compact, mixed-use communities in the City of Richmond, British Columbia: The City of Richmond identified as a priority in its 2014 Community Energy and Emissions Plan to review subdivision by-laws to encourage transit-oriented design to support investments in active transportation infrastructure.⁶²

Parking incentives in the City of Hamilton, Ontario: The City of Hamilton amended its Zoning By-law to support a transit-oriented multi-residential building, reducing parking space requirements from 1 space per unit in a multi-unit residential dwellings to 0.47 parking spaced per unit due to the building being located in a transit-oriented neighborhood.⁶³

Site plan control is a tool that local governments can use to ensure that certain requirements are met before a site is developed. By including design considerations in site plans, communities can promote energy and GHG reduction activities, including energy efficiency requirements such as those used in outdoor lighting.

Site plan control in Toronto, Ontario: The Toronto Green Standard (TGS) uses site plan approvals to require new private and public development to meet green building requirements. As of January 31, 2010, the City of Toronto uses this two-tiered set of performance measures for new development, organized by three building types. It requires planning applications, including zoning by-law amendments, site plan approval and draft plan of subdivision to meet Tier 1 requirements. Tier 1 requirements are mandatory and Tier 2, a higher level of performance, is voluntary. These performance measures were instituted to address a number of issues, consistent with the Official Plan’s broad policies, including air and water quality, greenhouse gas emissions, energy efficiency, solid waste and the natural environment.⁷¹

Height and density bonusing allows developers to exceed height and density limits established in zoning by-laws, in exchange for community benefits.

Height and density bonusing in the City of Port Coquitlam, British Columbia: In 2008, the City of Port Coquitlam adopted a regulation allowing developers to be eligible for density bonusing if proposed developments achieve LEED Silver Certification equivalency in designated areas within the municipality. Funds collected are deposited into the City’s facilities amenity fund and the social housing amenity fund and are allocated to meet council’s strategic goals.⁶⁴

A plan of subdivision is used when dividing land into two or more lots intended for separate ownership and outlines all the details and conditions required for development. A community could integrate an energy lens into the approval process by including considerations regarding walkability, the creation of compact neighbourhoods, energy conservation through street and lot layout to optimize passive solar gains and conditions for use of photovoltaics, and the construction of energy efficient homes.

Plans of subdivision in the City of Toronto, Ontario: The City of Toronto requires large development proposals within a Community Energy Plan area to submit an Energy Strategy. This requirement applies to Plans of Subdivision and Official Plan and Zoning By-law amendments.⁶⁸

Plans of subdivision in the City of Richmond, British Columbia: The City of Richmond identified as a priority in its 2014 Community Energy and Emissions Plan to review subdivision by-laws to encourage transit-oriented design to support investments in active transportation infrastructure.⁶⁹

Development cost charges in the City of Penticton, British Columbia: The City of Penticton reduces Development Cost Charges for low energy impact developments by 50 percent.⁷²

Development cost charges in the Niagara Region, Ontario: The Niagara Region Development Charges Reduction Program offers development charge exemptions ranging from 50-75 percent for developments located within central areas, or on brownfield sites within central areas and for LEED projects.⁷³

Parking charges can provide a variety of benefits, including traffic reduction, increased turnover of spaces, reduced cruising for parking, and new revenue for the municipality. Parking charges are often used in tandem with an overall reduction in parking spaces, which leads to more compact development and promotes alternative forms of transportation. In turn, energy consumption and emissions are reduced.

Parking Charges in the Town of Banff, Alberta: In 2014 the Town of Banff, Alberta introduced a parking charge pilot program converting free parking in the downtown core to paid parking in an effort to encourage the uptake of alternative modes of transportation among residents and tourists.⁷⁴

The following resources are available to help communities get started with their CEP.

• Community Energy and Emissions Plan Guide (Community Energy Association)
• Community Energy Planning Primer for New Brunswick Municipalities (QUEST)
• Advancing Integrated Community Energy Planning in Ontario: A Primer (QUEST)
• How to Create a Local Action Plan (Federation of Canadian Municipalities)
•  Passing Go: Moving Beyond the Plan (Federation of Canadian Municipalities)
• Community Energy Planning Guide (Natural Resources Canada)
• Community Energy Planning in Yukon: Determining Priorities of Local Governments (Yukon Energy Solutions Centre)
• Illustrated Guide to Community Energy (Collaborative for Advanced Landscape Planning)
•  Cleantech Community Gateway

One of the greatest success factors to CEP implementation is engaging with other communities and with organizations that have the tools needed to accelerate implementation. The following organizations and communities of practice may have information available to help find the tools needed to implement particular aspects of your CEP.

British Columbia

• Community Energy Association (CEA) – communityenergy.bc.ca
• QUEST BC Caucus – https://questcanada.org/caucus/bc
• BC Mayor’s Climate Leadership Council – http://communityenergy.bc.ca/bcmclc/
• Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) – http://www.ubcm.ca/
• Planning Institute of British Columbia (PIBC) – https://www.pibc.bc.ca/
• BC Climate Action Toolkit – http://www.toolkit.bc.ca/

Alberta

• QUEST Alberta Caucus -https://questcanada.org/caucus/ab
• Alberta Energy Efficiency Alliance (AEEA) – http://www.aeea.ca/
• Alberta Professional Planners Institute (APPI) – http://www.albertaplanners.com/
• Alberta Council for Environmental Education (ACEE) – http://www.abcee.org/
• Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) – http://www.auma.ca/
• Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties (AAMDC) – http://www.aamdc.com/
• Alberta Innovates – http://www.ai-ees.ca/
• Municipal Climate Change Action Centre (MCCAC) – www.mccac.ca

Saskatchewan

• Eco-Ouest – http://www.cdem.com/en/sectors/greeneconomy-1/eco-west
• Conseil de la Coopération de la Saskatchewan (CCS) – http://ccs-sk.ca/
• Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) – http://www.src.sk.ca/industries/energy/pages/default.aspx
• Saskatchewan Professional Planners Institute (SPPI) – http://sppi.ca/
• Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) – http://www.suma.org/
• Saskatchewan Economic Development Association (SEDA) – http://www.seda.sk.ca/index.cfm
• First Nations Power Authority of Saskatchewan (FNPA) – http://www.fnpa.ca/

Manitoba

• Conseil de développement économique des municipalities billingues du Manitoba (CDEM) Eco-West – http://www.cdem.com/en/sectors/greeneconomy-1/eco-west
• Manitoba Professional Planners Institute – http://www.mppi.mb.ca/

Ontario

• QUEST Ontario Caucus – www.questcanada.org/caucus/on
• Ontario Professional Planners Institute – http://ontarioplanners.ca/
• Association of Municipalities of Ontario – www.amo.on.ca/
• Clean Air Partnership – http://www.cleanairpartnership.org/

Québec

• Agence de l’efficacité énergétique – http://www.efficaciteenergetique.gouv.qc.ca/
• Association Québécoise pour la maîtrise de l’energie (AQME) – http://www.aqme.org/
• Climatisation et chauffage urbains de Montréal (CCUM) – ccum.com
• Conseil Patronal de l’Environnement du Québec (CPEQ) – http://www.cpeq.org/fr
• Fédération Québécoise des Municipalités – http://fqm.ca/
• L’Ordre des Urbanistes du Québec – http://www.ouq.qc.ca/
• QUEST Caucus du Québec – https://questcanada.org/fr/caucus/qc
• Regroupement national des conseils régionaux de l’environnement (RNCREQ) – http://www.rncreq.org/
• Hydro Québec – http://www.hydroquebec.com/promoteurs/developpementurbaindurable/

Atlantic Provinces

• QUEST Nova Scotia Caucus – https://questcanada.org/caucus/ns
• Union of Nova Scotia Municipalities (UNSM) – http://www.unsm.ca/sustainabilityoffice.html
• QUEST New Brunswick Caucus – https://questcanada.org/caucus/nb
• Association of Municipal Administrators of New Brunswick – http://www.amanb-aamnb.ca/
• Atlantic Planning Institute – http://www.atlanticplanners.org/
• Clean Foundation – clean.ns.ca
• Ecology Action Centre – https://www.ecologyaction.ca
• EOS Eco-Energy – eosecoenergy.com

Territories

• QUEST North Caucus – https://questcanada.org/caucus/north
• Yukon Energy Branch – http://www.energy.gov.yk.ca/publications.html
• Association of Yukon Communities – http://www.ayc-yk.ca/
• Council of Yukon First Nations – http://cyfn.ca/
• Yukon Conservation Society – http://www.yukonconservation.org/energy_climate_change.htm
• Yukon Research Centre – http://yukoncollege.yk.ca/research
• Arctic Energy Alliance – aea.nt.ca
• NWT Association of Communities (NWTAC) – http://www.nwtac.com/
• Nunavut Association of Municipalities (NAM) – http://www.nmto.ca/governance/nunavutassociation-municipalities

National

• Natural Resources Canada – https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/efficiency/communities-infrastructure
• Canadian Energy Research Institute (CERI) – http://www.ceri.ca/
• Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) – www.fcm.ca/home.htm
• The Natural Step – http://www.naturalstep.ca/
• Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) – https://www.sdtc.ca/en
• Sustainable Cities – http://sustainablecities.net/