In Vancouver, residents who want to install air-conditioning systems in single-family or two-dwelling homes are now required to adopt a more climate-friendly form of cooling — and experts say other cities should follow suit. #HeatPump
“Heat pumps are more efficient because they are able to move heat rather than burning fuel and converting that energy into heat ,” said Betsy Agar, director of thebuildings program. “Unlike natural gas and oil heating, heat pumps move heat from one space to another, just like refrigerators. So, in the winter they capture heat from outside air and move it to the inside, and in the summer, they move heat out of the home to the outside.
Heat pumps are especially ideal for larger cities, where there are increasing risks of brownouts on the hottest summer days due to high electricity demand for air conditioning, experts say. And with climate change putting more hotter days on the horizon, these low-emission devices can help homeowners cut back on the greenhouse gas pollution that causes global heating and creates a greater need for air conditioning in the first place.
“The net effect is that heat pumps can reduce carbon pollution in homes across the country, and in regions with low-carbon electricity like British Columbia, that reduction can be well over 90 per cent,” said Mark Hutchinson, vice-president of green building programs and innovation at the