Énergir has committed to withdrawing its lawsuit aimed at overturning the by-law on the decarbonization of the Town of Prévost in the Laurentians.
The gas distributor Énergir is of the opinion that the modifications made by the municipality to regulation 831, “particularly regarding equipment operating using renewable natural gas (RNG), make it possible to avoid any ambiguity on the scope of its regulation” and are “satisfactory”.
The mayor of Prévost, Paul Germain, for his part indicated that Énergir’s decision to withdraw its lawsuit “meets our expectations”.
Bylaw 831 of the City of Prévost, adopted in the fall, will prohibit certain uses of gas in new residential and institutional buildings in Prévost, with the exception of gas stoves and BBQs.
The objective is to reduce greenhouse gases.
But Énergir, which distributes 97% of the natural gas consumed in Quebec, filed an initiating application last November which alleged that the regulation of the City of Prévost was “irreconcilable with several laws and regulations” adopted by the government of Quebec .
“By favoring only electricity to the detriment of other renewable energy solutions, such as RNG and dual energy-RNG, both in the new building and the existing one, the City of Prévost not only restricts the customers of Énergir, but its citizens, in the choice of opting for energy solutions that are just as relevant at the environmental level,” affirmed Énergir.
Changes to the regulations
Frédéric Marceau, the director of the environment for the municipality of Prévost, explained to The Canadian Press on Thursday “that there had been a misunderstanding of the regulations” on the part of Énergir.
“Our regulation addressed fossil gas and absolutely did not talk about renewable natural gas (RNG), which, according to our definition, is not a fossil gas,” he said.
He explained that the amended regulation specifies the ban on renewable natural gas (RNG), “except what is permitted”, namely the replacement of heating appliances “operating on dual energy and operating 100% using gas from renewable source”.
Mr. Marceau added that the municipality of Prévost will allow “dual energy to replace the existing one if and only if we are 100% GNR”.
In return, according to Mr. Marceau, Énergir will “set up a pilot project with us to prove the traceability” of renewable natural gas, as it does for industrial customers.
“The conclusion of this agreement is the result of a collaboration that will allow our customers in the City of Prévost to benefit from decarbonization solutions at the best possible cost while significantly reducing their GHG emissions,” indicated Renault Lortie, Vice-President, Customers and Gas Supply, at Énergir.