Sorry but that trade-off of savings, for increased costs, won’t add up no matter how many years someone continues to live in an Energy Step Code Home

Alan Forseth ~~ Kamloops, BC ~~ April 16^th, 2019

More local governments stepped up in March, to the BC Energy Step Code, according to the Vancouver Regional Construction Association (VRCA).

Just over 40 local governments have now notified the province that they are consulting with industry on a BC Energy Step Code strategy, with the most recent communities being Bowen Island ... the District of Lake Country ... and the Regional District of East Kootenay.  All of these communities submitted their paperwork last month (March 2019).

 

According to the VCRA they are just completing the finishing touches on a publicly accessible spreadsheet that will allow anyone to see, at a glance, which local governments have referenced the BC Energy Step Code their building bylaws, plan to do so, and how.

Here in Kamloops, City Councillor Arjun Singh informed me that our community is, “... part of the 40+ communities list.”

Said Singh, “We notified the Energy Step code council of our work on the step code in July of 2018: https://energystepcode.ca/implementation_updates/”

According to government sources the BC Energy Step Code is an optional compliance path in the BC Building Code that local governments may use, if they choose to do so, to incentivize or require a level of energy efficiency in new construction that goes above and beyond the requirements of the BC Building Code.

Currently builders may voluntarily use the BC Energy Step Code as a new compliance path for meeting the energy-efficiency requirements of the BC Building Code

Again, in speaking with Kamloops Councillor Arjun Singh he indicated that:

“Council and staff are working with the home-building community, and with the community at large to engage them on the issues and opportunities here. We are still very much in an engagement phase”.

The benefits to the energy step code?  There are actually a number of them, beginning with health and comfort. High-performance homes are more comfortable and healthier, because they effectively manage temperature and fresh air throughout the building.

According to the BC government, the BC Energy Step Code will put our province on a path to meet the province’s target that all new buildings must be “net-zero energy ready” by 2032.  Additionally, we could see benefits to jobs and the economy, as the code could open up new opportunities for BC firms in the growing global market for energy efficiency education, technology, and services.

When I spoke with Rose Choy, Central Interior Executive Director of the Canadian Home Builders Association, she indicated that while it is not currently ‘implemented’ in the Kamloops area, builders are already building energy efficient homes, including this “Y” Dream Home.

“Energy efficiency is a community wide issue, and it’s one that concerns all of us”, stated Choy who continued.

“The Energy Step Code, as it currently exists, is impacting just new home stock, which accounts for just 1% of builds, and that stock is already built with high energy efficiency.”

Again, looking to comments from Councillor Singh, he remarked;

“We started first hearing about the step code in early 2017, I believe. And through council's sustainability advisory committee last term, we started looking at how to implement it”.

“It is slated to be mandatory province wide to reach "step 3" by 2022, I believe, and then to "step 5" near passive house standard by 2032.” 

That could be a costly implementation however, one that many may question the return on investment that new homeowners are going to be expected to pick up.

Looking at my area of the city of Kamloops, a 4,000 square foot home, priced at $520,00, is definitely going to see its cost increase substantially.   

Taking it to Step One will add just over $16,000 in extra costs, and at Step 2 of the code, the added cost would be over $67,000.

As Councillor Singh stated, reaching Step 3 is expected by 2022, at which time the added cost will then be just over $93,000.

STEP NUMBER 5, to be attained by 2032 will add over $100,000 to that average family home in Kamloops.   

That, in my opinion is a financial cost that WILL NOT be covered through energy efficiency.  If they stay in that home for say 25 years, it will have cost them $4,000 during that period.

Still the BC government states that, “The BC Energy Step Code improves energy efficiency and lowers energy bills compared to homes and buildings with similar systems designed under the BC Building Code”.

Another thing they state is that the code gives builders a welcome level of consistency on energy efficiency between local governments.  That however seems more like an enforced program, with high additional costs, imposed only on new home builds. 

So, what then about older homes in every community across the province?  According to the BC Energy Step Code website, they state that:

“The standard is intended for new construction. Because the standard evaluates the building as a system, it is impractical to apply it to most renovations where existing portions of the building are not being upgraded”

But that said, the government has stated that the code provides flexibility to pursue innovative, creative, cost-effective solutions ... and allows them to incorporate leading-edge technologies as they come available.  Could these then not be implemented into renovation work as well then?

Now don’t get me wrong ... I don’t wish to see homeowners saddled with any unnecessary costs that would keep them out of owning their own home ... and after all, as the spokesperson for the Central Interior region of the Canadian Home Builders Association has already indicated, new home builders are currently building energy efficient projects.

New home builders are going to be at an extremely difficult position once Step 3 is reached, and a cost of $100,000 is being added to a new home build.  

I know if it was me, rather than a new build, I’d put that one-hundred-grand into renovating a home that’s only several years old instead. NO NEW BUILD FOR ME!

While the standard sets out a consistent path for future updates to the BC Building Code—giving builders a sense of what lies ahead on energy efficiency, what lies ahead could be disaster for some of the top home builders as all of a sudden new construction drops greatly due to added costs.

The benefits to us, as outlined by the BC government, of higher energy-efficiency standards include:

... improved comfort through better temperature management ... improved health through better managing fresh air ... reduced noise because of better insulation and air-tightness ... and lower their energy bills.

Sorry but that trade-off of savings, for increased costs, won’t add up no matter how many years someone continues to live in an Energy Step Code Home.

Owning a family home is already a faraway dream for many ... I believe this can only make it worse.

FOR MORE INFORMATION you can DOWNLOAD the Consumer Guide to High Performance Homes

You can also find the information on the Step Code on the website for the Canadian Home Builders Association – Central Interior at:  https://www.chbaci.ca/education_stepcode.htm