This article by Runa Das, Royal Roads University and Mari Martiskainen, University of Sussex originally appeared on the Conversation and is published here with permission.
Extreme weather events, like the 2021 heat dome in Western Canada, are expected to increase in frequency in the future and will amplify the need for these critical energy services. A household’s high energy burden could be a risk to the lives of everyone in that home. Energy poverty usually results from the combination of low income, high energy prices and low energy efficiency. Poorly insulated homes and inefficient appliances increase the cost of energy use, particularly affecting those who have low incomes.
With increasing summer temperatures and extreme weather, the use of air conditioning and fans will likely rise — along with energy costs. Toronto, for example, is projected to experience nearly 40 very hot days by 2050 under a climate scenario where greenhouse gas emissions decline rapidly after 2050. Windsor, Ont., could face up to 80 very hot days by 2050 under a high-carbon scenario, four times as many as it did on average between 1976 and 2008.
It’s essential for people to be able to have access to energy services like heating or cooling, but they must be affordable. Energy burdens need to be considered as a key factor in Canadian energy policy, given it could be a matter of life and death.