Olivier Zuida Le Devoir The ban on installing combustion heating appliances and residential stoves in gas in new constructions in Montreal will come into force on October 1, 2024 for small buildings of up to three floors and with an area of 600 m2, and on April 1, 2025 for large buildings.
The City of Montreal will ban all combustion heating appliances, as well as residential gas stoves, in new constructions. The measure will apply from October 1, 2024 for small buildings of no more than three floors and an area of 600 m2, and from April 1, 2025 for large buildings.
The draft regulation on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from new buildings, presented this Wednesday, stipulates that it will be prohibited to install “a device emitting GHG attributable to combustion for cooking purposes food, drying clothes and heating space and water, including water for accessories such as a swimming pool and spa.”
New large buildings will still be able to install combustion heating appliances, provided that the GHG emissions come from gases from renewable sources. This exemption will reduce electricity demand during peak periods, thus minimizing “the impact on electrical power”, explains the municipality in a technical sheet. The regulation will not apply to industrial buildings.
Certain appliances will not be covered by the draft regulation, in particular outdoor BBQs using a removable cylinder, restaurant cookers, temporary heating appliances used during construction work and emergency generators.
When submitting a building permit application, any person must disclose the energy sources that will be used in the building. The draft regulation provides for penalties of $1,000 per day in the event of an infraction for a natural person and $2,000 per day for a legal entity.
This initiative is part of the City of Montreal's 2020-2030 Climate Plan and the consultation on the Roadmap towards zero-emission buildings by 2040, in order to achieve the provincial government's target of reducing by 50%. GHG emissions attributed to heating of buildings, by 2030.
In addition to the environmental benefits, the City of Montreal estimates that the ban will have positive repercussions for owners and the Montreal population by reducing the risk associated with an increase in the price of carbon in energy bills, creating jobs in the clean energy sector and improving air quality.
The initiative of concordance with the Énergir objective, announced last April, stipulates that “any new connection to its network consumes 100% renewable energy” from 2024, with the exception of industrial buildings. For the moment, gas from renewable sources represents less than 1% of the volumes distributed in Quebec by Énergir. Under Quebec regulations, at least 10% of natural gas distributed in the province must be from renewable sources in 2030.
At the beginning of the month, the town of Prévost became the first municipality in Quebec to announce a ban on the installation of gas systems in new residences, which would include gas from renewable sources, as of December 31, 2023.
Last April, the City of Laval announced that she would work on a draft regulation to prohibit the installation of equipment powered by natural gas in the residential sector, an idea which has been strongly criticized by Hydro-Québec, which fears an increase in pressure on its distribution network.