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On July 23, Vancouver city council voted 6-5 to reverse the ban on natural gas heating in new homes — a policy that’s been in effect since January 2022.
Opposing councillors to the amendment, proposed by Vancouver councillor Brian Montague, called the decision a step backwards on Vancouver’s commitment to climate targets, while Montague cited the importance of a diverse energy mix and the prioritization of affordability as the driving forces behind the amendment.
“This was an ineffective and failing electrification-only policy that was chasing unattainable goals,” Montague told CBC. “We need to look at this not through just a single lens. We need to look at this through a lens of choice, energy resiliency and of course the lens of housing and affordability.”
With this statement, Montague is speaking directly to the priorities of engaged women when it comes to sound energy policy in Canada and its effect on their daily lives.
Our research shows that taking a pragmatic approach to the energy transformation without further sacrificing affordability is important to engaged women, 45 per cent of whom don’t believe that current energy policies effectively balance cost of living and support for the environment.
When it comes to the role of municipalities in the energy transformation, a willingness to re-evaluate and adjust priorities based on the needs of its constituents is critical to our overall prosperity as a nation.
“We have to have a different conversation,” Montague continued in his interview. “If what we’ve been doing for the last two years isn’t working, let’s try something different.”
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