The Ontario Green Energy Act

May 29th, 2009 by andrea in Energy, Energy Conservation, Green Building + Design, Renewable Energy, Solar

Written by Eco3

“Ontario’s Green Energy Act could propel the province past California as the most innovative North American leader in the renewable energy field.”  - Denis Hayes, former director of National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and lead organizer of Earth Day.

On February 23rd, 2009, the Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, George Smitherman introduced Bill 150 - the Green Energy Act (GEA).  The intent of the new bill is “to make Ontario a global leader in the development of renewable energy, clean distributed energy and conservation, creating thousands of jobs, economic prosperity, energy security, and climate protection”.  Although the GEA is in its infant stages, it plans to achieve this goal by focusing on making renewable energy projects, mainly hydroelectric, wind, solar, and biomass more feasible and lucrative for a larger demographic of developers.

In addition to green power generation, the bill will also encourage the development of an improved “smart” grid that will better facilitate the interconnection and transmission of electricity from renewable energy sources.  In contrast to increasing green power production, the GEA also establishes goals to improve overall energy efficiency and conservation by requiring that all buildings, both private and public, to be more energy efficient through a variety of regulations and incentive programs. Read the rest of this entry »

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Save Money on Home Renovations Now!

April 12th, 2009 by andrea in Energy Conservation, Green Homes, Renewable Energy

Minister Raitt Announces Limited-Time Offer for Canadian Homeowners

New Economic Action Plan investment to create jobs; save homeowners money

TORONTO - Canadian homeowners are being urged to act now to take advantage of a new opportunity to save money on home energy retrofits. The Honourable Lisa Raitt, Minister of Natural Resources, announced today that effective today, for a limited time, grants under the ecoENERGY– Retrofit Homes program will increase by 25 percent.

“This is a great chance for Canadians to save money on home renovations that will cut their energy bills for years to come — but I do encourage homeowners to act quickly,” said Minister Raitt. “This special increase in grants is for a maximum of two years only, putting money back in Canadians’ pockets when they need it most.” Read the rest of this entry »

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Alberta Joins the Ranks of Eco-Rebate-Friendly Provinces

April 10th, 2009 by andrea in Energy Conservation, Green Homes

BC may well be the best province to live in when it comes to available federal and provincial support for greening your home.

Sales tax exemptions on Energy Star windows, insulation and more, plus Livesmart BC - a rebate program that matches federal Ecoenergy rebates for BC residents, all make living greener more affordable out West.

On the East coast, even PEI boasts an impressive list of supports from low-interest financing on home energy upgrade costs, to sales tax rebates on upgrade expenses and renewable energy equipment.

In fact, up until this week, every province in the country other than Alberta generously offered financial assistance programs to help home owners reduce the carbon footprints of their homes.

In many ways Alberta was a black hole - a wasteland where little help was to be found for those wanting to save energy. Outdone by every province including the Maritimes, Alberta has now waged a come-back, and an impressive one at that. Read the rest of this entry »

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Attention New Home Buyers: Now it’s Easy to be Green

April 6th, 2009 by andrea in Energy Conservation, Green Homes, Solar

Green living just got easier for people who are looking for an affordable, environmentally friendly and energy efficient home.

Ecological Homes recently launched its new ready-to-assemble green home packages at the Edmonton Home and Garden Show and the Go Green Eco Expo.  The Edmonton-based company wants to put green living within reach of the average home buyer.

According to Ecological’s co-owner Les Hagen, a green home shouldn’t put consumers in the red.  “Ecological Homes wants to place quality green homes within reach of the average home buyer.  This innovative home package will help to meet the increasing consumer demand for affordable green housing.”

The green home package includes various solar energy design features, Read the rest of this entry »

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Energy and the Living Building Vision

March 16th, 2009 by andrea in Blogs - Ann + Gord Eco-Sense, Energy, Energy Conservation, Green Building + Design, Green Building Blogs, Green Homes, Renewable Energy

Gone are the days when the Eco-Sense updates bubbled with visions of our dreams, and anecdotal observations of absurdities in our society. Reality is here; now is when we find out whether all our talk and thoughts amount to much. Reality is always more scary than dreams.

Yes the house is sustainable… it is built with clay, sand, straw and pumice; majority of the wood is recycled; and we are the poster child for pooping in a bucket. But the question that remains unanswered is, “Is our modern high tech. mud home efficient?” Read the rest of this entry »

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DIY Recycled Bottle LED Lamp

January 30th, 2009 by andrea in Energy, Energy Conservation, Projects, Reclaimed + Recycled Materials

If you’ve been putting off disassembling your brilliant Christmas LED light strands like me, I have just the project for you. Now, you can enjoy your efficient little twinklers any time of year!

Green craft blogger Wenona Napolitano and Instructables member Reclaimagination present the DIY Recycled Bottle LED Lamp. It’s a quick and dirty project requiring readily available materials and very few tools.

Why not opt for eco mood lighting for your next date night or theme party? Chance are, retailers in your area are aggressively clearing out their LED Christmas light strands.

Get the full instructions here, and add your own creative flare!

Photo Source Read the rest of this entry »

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