Federal program targets energy retrofits in affordable housing buildings
The federal government has launched a program aimed at making affordable multi-unit residential buildings more energy efficient.
Announced last month, the Canada Greener Affordable Housing (CGAH) program will provide up to $1.2 billion in low-interest repayable and forgivable loans over the next four years to help affordable housing providers complete deep energy retrofits on residential rental buildings.
"The Canada Greener Affordable Housing program will make significant improvements to affordable housing benefiting residents for decades to come,” said Housing Minister Ahmed Hussen. “By launching the CGAH program, the Government of Canada is taking a significant step towards improving energy efficiency and reducing emissions in residential buildings while making them more sustainable, affordable, and comfortable for future generations.”
The program will offer contributions for completing the pre-retrofit activities needed to plan, prepare, and apply for the retrofit funding and will be administered by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
The funding will allow affordable housing providers to make improvements to aging buildings that will improve energy efficiency and extend their lifespan. In the long-term, this will reduce the operating costs of affordable housing so they can continue to serve low-income households for many years to come.
For residents, this program will improve indoor air quality, comfort, and quality of life through retrofits which may include updates like the installation of heating and cooling systems, and energy-efficient appliances, windows, and doors.
CGAH has two funding opportunities. The first provides contributions for pre-retrofit activities needed to plan, prepare, and apply for retrofit funding. The second provides forgivable and low-interest loans to help finance building retrofit measures and activities needed to meet climate objectives.
Eligible applicants include affordable housing providers (such as social housing organizations, non-profit housing organizations, and rental co-operatives), municipal, provincial, and territorial governments and agencies; and Indigenous governments and organizations (including First Nation Bands, Tribal Councils, and Indigenous housing providers).
CGAH aims to achieve net-zero and climate resilience and contribute to Canada's Emission Reduction Plan and the forthcoming Green Buildings Strategy to help meet net-zero emission by 2050. Specifically, deep-energy retrofits under the CGAH program must target a 70% reduction in energy consumption relative to pre-retrofit performance, an 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions relative to pre-retrofit performance.