megatonnes representing an 11.6% emissions increase over the 2005 baseline. An additional projection has recently been published which includes all efforts which have been enacted by government, consumers, industry and business as of September 2018. This projects that Canada’s emissions will be 701 Megatonnes by 2030, representing a 4% decrease from 2005 levels, still missing the Paris accord target by 26%.

Assuming that Canada does meet the 2030 Paris accord emissions reduction target of 30% emissions reduction from 2005 levels by 2030 there is still a remaining 512 Megatonnes of emissions which would need to be eliminated or balanced by carbon removal in order to meet the 2050 Carbon neutrality goal. For context, if this 512 megatonnes were to be removed from the atmosphere through tree planting it would require the planting of 84 billion trees per year. As part of the same Carbon Neutral announcement it was stated that 2 billion trees would be planted as part of government programs over the next ten years.

Priority 1 Mitigation Actions

Windsor Deep Energy Efficiency Retrofit (DEER) Program

The creation of an energy efficiency retrofit program is the first emissions reduction strategy identified in the CEP. Windsor’s emissions profile is challenged by the age of building stock. The average home in Windsor was built in 1955 while the average Ontario house was built in 1974. Older homes utilize significantly more energy and result in significantly more emissions than newer homes. To address this problem, homes need to be retrofitted with the installation of high efficiency equipment such as windows, doors, furnaces, water-heaters and insulation. In 2017, the City of Windsor received an FCM grant to develop a business case for a retrofit program with the target of retrofitting 80% of Windsor homes by 2041. This program was under development throughout 2019. Administration report, S1/2020, summarizes the Business Case for the program and outlines the proposed next steps.

District Energy Expansion

District energy (DE) is a high efficiency and low-carbon approach to heating and cooling buildings. Thermal energy is generated at a central location using high-efficiency equipment and this heat or cooling potential is then distributed throughout an urban area with a system of pipes, typically located under roadways. A comprehensive district energy system is a critical aspect of infrastructure for cities that lead the way in low-carbon development, energy sustainability and energy resilience. The City of Copenhagen provides an aspirational example of DE integration with 97% of the City’s heating provided by DE reducing emissions by 650,000 Tonnes C02 per year and saving residents an average of 1400 EUR annually, per resident.

Windsor presently has a small district energy system located in the downtown core, which provides heating for a few private and municipally owned buildings including City Hall, WIATC, Transit Terminal and Caesar’s Windsor.