Seeking Net Zero

NRU
May 29, 2018
Rachael Williams

The City of Markham is undertaking an ambitious municipal energy plan with an objective of net zero energy emissions by 2050.

Titled Getting to Zero, the three main principles of the plan are to decrease local energy consumption, switch to low carbon renewable sources of energy and increase local energy generation from renewable sources. Sustainability Solutions Group was retained as the lead consultant for the project.

Targeting the transportation and building sectors, the plan, approved by council on May 28, requires Markham to find sustainable, non-fossil fuel sources and carbon offsets to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, using 2011 figures as a baseline.

“This is an aggressive target. It’s more aggressive than the provincial and federal goals, but we think it’s very achievable and we certainly need our community on board to help us out with this,’ said Markham sustainability and asset management director Graham Seaman.

The report identifies a number of potential opportunities to achieve its net-zero targets, including new building standards, upgrading the energy efficiency of existing buildings through retrofit programs, greening the bus fleet, and promoting active transportation.

One of the innovative projects underway in Markham is the creation of a geothermal community energy system. The city—in partnership with Mattamy Homes, Enwave Energy Corporation and Alectra Utilities—is researching a way to create a net-zero neighbourhood of approximately 400 homes anchored by a district geothermal system.

This project would be the largest of its type in Canada and would help the provincial and federal governments establish a framework for net-zero construction standards by 2030.

“[Markham] is a very dynamic municipality,” said Sustainability Solutions Group principal Yuill Herbert. “It’s got a culture of entrepreneurialism and a culture of embracing change. It’s a very ambitious endeavor all around to transform an energy system that’s primarily dependent on fossil fuels right now to one that more or less eliminates fossil fuels by 2050.”

Seaman told NRU the city will be working hard push to encourage its residents to take public transit or acquire electric vehicles. Cars are still the dominant mode of transportation in Markham, representing just under half of all vehicle trips occurring within the city.
In partnership with Alectra Utilities, the city is launching a two-year pilot project that will test the impact of electric vehicle charging on the province’s electricity grid. The project required the installation of 16 vehicle charging stations, which are expected to help reduce battery range anxiety among drivers and encourage greater use of electric vehicles.

The report notes the city’s land use is an impediment to achieving its net-zero targets. It is widely recognized that land use patterns can help reduce GHG emissions without major capital investments. For instance, increasing building densities encourages greater use of transit and active transportation modes, and increases the feasibility of district energy.

But over half of Markham’s future developments in the pipeline are set to be built outside of intensification areas.

“If you do land use planning this way, people are not able to walk and cycle and the pathway to zero emissions becomes more expensive,” said Herbert.

The report recommends shifting growth post-2030 into intensification zones and built-up areas to keep the city on track to achieve its net-zero emissions target.

In addition to being an energy strategy, Getting to Zero is also an economic development strategy, said Herbert.

It identifies roughly $700-million in up-front costs between 2017 and 2027 to pursue energy efficient solutions in the building, transportation and energy sectors. But over the long term, the strategy could save the city billions in operating costs and create 35,000 jobs, primarily in the building sector.