Energy & Greenhouse Gas Reduction

The Community Energy and Emissions Plan (CEEP) outlines 31 actions with immediate, short, medium, and long term targets within six key categories: 

1. urban form and buildings; 
2. emissions-free energy; 
3. transportation; 
4. waste; 
5. sequestration and resilience; and 
6. capacity, governance, and equity. 

Some of the proposed actions include to: 

• Develop and implement a strategy to ensure all new buildings in the community are built to “net-zero-energy” standards by 2030;
• Update the City’s internal Municipal Green Building Policy to ensure all new buildings starting in 2025 are built to be “net-zero ready”, and are built to “net-zero energy” standards by 2030;
• Prepare for and catalyze zero emissions vehicle uptake by developing a community-wide Zero Emissions Vehicle Strategy;
• Develop and implement a plan to decarbonize the transit fleet, with an emphasis on taking advantage of current funding for electric buses and charging infrastructure.

 In 2019, Moncton City Council joined thousands of jurisdictions in declaring a climate emergency.  Human-induced global warming reached approximately 1oC above pre-industrial levels in 2017.  Global warming is likely to reach 1.5oC between 2030 and 2052 if it continues to increase at the current rate.  Without "rapid and deep" cuts to greenhouse gas emissions, median projections of global warming are forecasted to reach 3.2 degrees Celsius by 2100. 

It is important to limit global warming to 1.5oC to avoid the most severe climate change impacts and risks to society.  Even with global warming at 1.5oC, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports that the world faces unavoidable multiple climate hazards to health, livelihoods, food security, water supply, human security, and economic growth.

According to the IPCC, stabilizing global temperature will require net human-caused emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) to fall by about 45% below 2010 levels by 2030, and reach “net zero” around 2050.

The Community Energy and Emissions Plan sets out actions and milestones for the entire city; achieving its net zero by 2050 target requires the whole community to work together on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction.

If Moncton's GHG emissions continue 'business as planned', they are estimated to fall only 30% below 2002 levels (13% below 2016 levels) by 2050. This is not enough to prevent the dangerous risks associated with climate change.

Moncton residents, businesses, organizations, and institutions can take action to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by Avoiding, Reducing, Replacing, Sequestering and Offsetting high carbon energy.  Learn about incentives and resources supporting community members' emission reduction here.

Avoid 

• Choose to live in higher density housing which is more efficient to heat and cool.
• Choose to live close to where you work, learn, shop, and/or play to reduce the need for transportation.
• In new buildings, incorporate passive solar design concepts which store heat from sunlight and minimize additional heating and cooling requirements
• Install a geothermal system which regulates building temperature using the relatively constant temperature of the earth.
• Take active transportation instead of driving short trips.
• Manage your building's temperature: install thermostats;  adjust the temperature in unoccupied rooms (warmer in summer, cooler in winter); turn off window unit air conditioners when not home.
• Avoid unnecessary power use during peak energy demand (winter weekdays from 6 to 9 am and 4 to 8 pm), when NB Power relies on higher carbon and imported energy.
• Reduce hot water use: install low flow faucets; take shorter showers; turn water off when shaving, washing hands, and brushing teeth; fix leaky faucets; wash laundry on cold and run full loads.
• Manage lighting: use natural light, turn off unnecessary lights, and use task lighting.
• Hang dry laundry.
• Unplug unused electronics.
• Be efficient with refrigeration and use appliances efficiently.
• Avoid carbon intensive foods and foods with a long transportation footprint (shop local).

Reduce

• Design new buildings to be more efficient than the Building Code (ideally, net-zero ready or net zero).
• Make existing buildings more efficient by replacing old windows and doors, adding insulation, and increasing airtightness.
• Replace old appliances with energy efficient ones.
• Switch to more energy efficient electric space heating and cooling systems (e.g., air-source heat pumps).
• Choose more energy efficient forms of transportation for longer trips where active transportation is not an option (e.g., public transit, e-bikes, electric vehicles, carpooling). 

Replace

• Replace fossil fuel-sourced energy with systems that generate renewable energy (e.g., solar PV).

Remove

• Plant additional trees
• Conserve existing wetlands and forests
• Re-naturalize and re-forest developed lands

Offset GHG Emissions

• As a last resort, purchase carbon offsets when all other methods of emissions reduction have been exhausted to eliminate emissions.