Climate Action

Central Saanich increases incentives for heat pumps!

Heat pumps provide a clean alternative to natural gas, oil or wood heating that can reduce your space heating carbon footprint by over 90%. As of January 2020, Central Saanich is offering an additional $350 rebate for Central Saanich residents who switch from a fossil fuel-powered (oil, natural gas, or propane) heating system to an electric air-source heat pump. That brings the total rebates available to Central Saanich residents to up to $4,200! Incentives will be approved on a first come first serve basis, while quantities last. Learn more about rebates for home efficiency at CSaanich.ca/HomeRebates.

BC Hydro Rebates for electric vehicle chargers

If you are installing electric vehicle chargers at your condo, apartment or business you can apply for a rebate of up to $2000 per charging station. If you are installing a charger at your home (single-family, townhouse, or duplex) you can apply for a rebate of $350 to purchase and install. Once preapproved, all work must be completed, and applications submitted within 90 days after the installation of the charging station, or by February 28, 2021, whichever comes first.

Central Saanich Electric Vehicle and Electric Bike Strategy

The District is half way through a committee consultation process for the development of the District’s Electric Vehicle (EV) and Electric-Bike Strategy. The Strategy will recommend action items to help achieve the Districts Climate Leadership goals of seeing more low-emission transportation within the District.

Meet an EV Committee Member:

After purchasing an Electric Vehicle in January ’20 and installing a Level 2 charger, I began looking for ways to reduce my overall electrical consumption. My first thought was to install solar panels on my roof, then discussion with some members of the Victoria EV Club got me considering instead the value of a heat pump. I eventually opted for the heat pump because it provided more benefits and would be a more acceptable addition for potential buyers for when, in the future, I decide to sell this house.

- Mike Baker, Brentwood Bay, EV Committee Member

Transitioning to an Electric Light-Duty Fleet and Equipment

The District is committed to leading by example to reduce emissions generated by its own transportation and maintenance operations.

In the last year, the District conducted a review of the municipal fleet and right-sized the light-duty vehicles so that they are appropriately sized to the jobs they are used for. Since conducting the review, the District introduced three new fully electric Kia Souls to the fleet and retired the fossil fuel vehicles they replaced. This summer, the District purchased an electric bicycle for Public Works staff to use as a healthy and environmentally-friendly transportation method for road and sidewalk inspections as well as for water metering. The District has also investigated a number of low carbon maintenance technologies and has purchased an electric chainsaw, hedge trimmer, and leaf blower after a successful trial of this equipment last summer.

Did you know? The new electric vehicles have already mitigated over three tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions (over 1250 litres of gasoline fuel) since they hit the road last November!

One Year Anniversary of Solar Install on Fire Station 1

We are celebrating the one year anniversary of installing 360 solar panels on the roof of Central Saanich’s Fire Station 1! The station is now a shining example of cost-effective renewable energy and has generated enough electricity in its one year of operation to power 12 households! Check out our project video!

Due to the current pandemic, some Climate Action events have had to be postponed in to keep the community safe through physical distancing, including our community celebration for the 50^th anniversary of Earth Day. See here for suggestions on how you can celebrate earth day at home.

Despite these changes, all climate action projects that can be accomplished from a distance are moving forwards. Staff are also leveraging this opportunity as much as possible to ensure any projects that require physical contact are ‘shovel ready’ for when it is safe for regular operations to resume.

Climate projects underway include:

Electric Vehicle (EV) and Electric Bike (E-Bike) Strategy

Applications to be a part of the EV and E-Bike Strategy Committee have now closed. Council will be selecting committee members and considering options for committee meetings that will comply with the recommendations of the Provincial Health Officer.

Corporate Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reporting

Staff have completed a 2019 inventory of greenhouse gas emissions from corporate municipal operations. This CARIP report for the province outlines our actions taken in 2019 to reduce both corporate and community-wide emissions. The report is posted here.

Saanichton Bike and Ride

Thanks to the efforts of the Saanichton Village Association, construction of a Bike and Ride facility on municipal property at 1945 Mt Newton Cross Road, east of the Fresh Cup Roastery Café parking lot, will begin this summer. This facility will provide a place for residents to park their bikes before riding transit or visiting Saanichton village and will include benches, bike shelters, bike parking spaces, secure lockers, a repair station, and more. Saanichton Village Association is the leader and fundraiser on this project; the District has partnered to make this great initiative a reality.

Transitions 2050

We are collaborating with other municipalities to accelerate home energy efficiency upgrades. The Transitions 2050 Program brings Central Saanich staff together with other Capital Regional District municipalities and partners to develop a pilot project that will supply homeowners with personalized recommendations and resources for home energy efficiency projects at low or no cost. In light of the pandemic, staff are collaborating on options to ensure this program is in compliance with current safety measures.

The pandemic has brought our community closer and shown us that collective action is possible. For Earth Day 2020, today, we ask you to think about a change you could make for the long term, like riding your bike or growing more fruits and vegetables at home.

Staff are developing an EV and E-Bike Strategy for the District of Central Saanich. The strategy will lay out an action plan to meet the District’s target of seeing 4,800 electric vehicles (EVs) in Central Saanich within the next 10 years. A committee of well-informed community members and external stakeholders from the EV industry will provide recommendations on the draft EV and E-bike Strategy before it is presented to Council and the community later this year. The strategy will map out a path for Central Saanich to reach its recently adopted new climate action targets, which includes a 45% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 (compared to 2007); these targets are consistent with the recommendations of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

The work will look at building requirements for charging and public charging infrastructure.

Currently, all development applications that are approved by Council are required to install electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

The District of Central Saanich congratulates the 118 local students who recently completed the Cool It! Climate Leadership Training Program. The students committed to many energy saving actions over the program’s four-week period, and their actions at home result in a projected annual savings of 32 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

The Cool it! challenge was offered to grade 4-7 classes in Central Saanich this fall to help educate, inspire and create eco-friendly habits. It was sponsored by the District of Central Saanich and delivered by the BC Sustainable Energy Association. Five classes took part, and the 118 students (and their families) were encouraged to take action in every area in their life, from their food choices, to their transport, home heating behaviours, consumption and waste.

Our community is working hard to tackle climate change, and we are stepping up our efforts in light of the climate emergency. On December 16^th, Council approved ambitious and accelerated community climate targets that align with the UN’s recommendation to limit global temperature increase to 1.5°C.

These targets provide us an opportunity to help lead the transition away from fossil fuels by shifting to renewable energy and adopting other low carbon solutions. It will be a challenge, but by accelerating climate action, we can tap into new opportunities to enhance and preserve the quality of life in Central Saanich.

Our accelerated climate targets:

• reduce community emissions by 45% by 2030, and
• become a carbon neutral community by 2050;

Did you miss the presentations for Energy Efficient Homes and Rebates or Go Electric: E-electric Vehicles and E-bikes?

You can view the presentations here:

Energy Efficient Homes and Rebates - Presented by CityGreen

Go Electric: E-electric Vehicles and E-bikes

Go Electric: E-vehicles and E-bikes

Saturday, October 5, 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Central Saanich Cultural Centre, 1209 Clarke Rd

Can’t make it? The sessions will be posted on our website later this fall.