City of Vancouver

The City of Vancouver, under the auspices of One Day, has shown its leadership in energy efficiency by signing up to be a pilot community in the provincial Community Action on Energy Efficiency (CAEE) initiative. Through MEMPR’s CAEE program, pilot communities are focusing on advancing energy efficiency through municipal policies and bylaws - read the Local Government Policy Instruments Initiative program for more details.

Vancouver joined CAEE in March 2006 as part of Phase 2 of the initiative. In March 2007 the City was invited to take part in Phase 4 - CAEE Gold.

Targets Endorsed for Private Buildings - CAEE Gold

Building Sector Energy Efficiency Target
New multi-unit residential buildings Achieve energy performance of 25% better than Model National Energy Code for Building by 2010, reducing average energy consumption by 37%.
New industrial, commercial and institutional buildings Achieve energy performance 25% better than Model National Energy Code for Building by 2010 and reduce the average energy consumption by 20%.

Key Policy Measures Proposed - CAEE Gold

  • Pursue regulatory changes to the Vancouver Building Bylaw to exceed the referenced standard by a further 12%-15% to bring the energy performance to the Provincial target


As part of CAEE Phase 2, Vancouver:

  • Investigated the use of Local Improvement Charges to finance energy efficiency upgrades in existing MF buildings.


During the ESP incentive pilot that was conducted March 2006 - March 2007, community members had access to provincial grants for energy efficient retrofits to single and row housing, multi-unit residential buildings, affordable housing and small commercial buildings.

In the News: Vancouver and Salt Spring Island Recognized for Energy Efficiency Leadership