Vancouver city councillor wants to ban natural gas in homes
Posted May 30, 2023 11:41 am.
Last Updated May 30, 2023 12:03 pm.
A Vancouver city councillor is putting forward a motion Wednesday, hoping to ban all infrastructure that allows new residential builds to have natural gas hookups.
Coun. Adriane Carr says, along with the goal of the city being “net zero carbon” by 2050, it is much safer for people and the environment to not use natural gas in homes.
“I’ve really been learning a lot about the impacts of the methane gas burned, and gas stoves and fireplaces — the impact especially on children in the home,” she told CityNews.
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Carr’s motion, “Ensuring Healthier Climate-Smart Homes,” says that at least 25 per cent of “today’s global warming is driven by methane from human actions.”
“Pipeline-grade natural gas suitable for residential consumers is over 90 percent methane,” it explains.
“Methane has more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide over the first 20 years after it reaches the atmosphere and 28 times greater global warming potential than carbon dioxide on a 100-year timescale.”
It also notes the province recently established new greenhouse gas limits on all new buildings, finalized in its building code on May 1.
“[We] have to become extremely innovative and very focused on where can we get the biggest bang for the buck. Where do we invest the money? How much will it cost? Where do we get that money from to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to the maximum,” Carr said.
According to the motion, current city bylaws have prohibited the use of gas for space and hot water, but still allow it for fireplaces and stoves. Carr says this motion would help close that gap.
“When you do a new building, if you have to put in a whole infrastructure for the gas line, as opposed to just hooking up to the electricity, there is that extra cost, and if you do put in a gas line, which some homes are doing right now, you’re going to have to retrofit,” she said.
Carr’s motion will be presented to council for staff to report back on a plan to update the city’s building bylaw as soon as possible.
