This text is part of the special Energies notebook
Experts are looking for avenues to counter the energy poverty of low-income households.
While Quebec and Canada must decarbonize their energy, one in five households in the country does not have access to the energy resources necessary for their everyday needs. A research team from McGill University is looking into this phenomenon in order to propose solutions for more energy efficiency among more vulnerable populations.
Energy poverty occurs when a person is unable to access the essential services needed to maintain comfortable indoor temperatures, explains Mylène Riva, professor in the Department of Geography at McGill University and lead author of a study recently published in THE Canadian Journal of Public Health.
This concept remains unknown in the Canadian context. “We adapt measures that are developed elsewhere. They are reliable, but we perhaps need to think more about what energy poverty is,” adds the woman who also holds the Canada Research Chair in housing, community and health.
Thus, these people struggle to heat their homes, keep them cool in summer, have lighting or use their household appliances when necessary, she explains. And studies have already concluded that this precariousness, with a low temperature inside a residence, was linked to the worsening of certain chronic illnesses, recalls M.me Riva.
Its work aims to quantitatively document energy poverty through analyzes of data published in theCanadian Housing Survey of 2018 made by Statistics Canada. “We are also carrying out various studies to better understand what it is like to experience energy poverty. What is the daily life of these people like,” specifies the researcher.
Rural populations most affected
Rural populations are more affected by energy poverty than those living near urban centers. But the data in large cities would be underestimated, given the large number of apartments where electricity and heating are included in the rent price. “We are therefore very likely underestimating the proportion of people experiencing energy poverty in urban areas,” observes M.me Riva.
While in Quebec, one in six households experiences this situation, it affects one in three in the Atlantic provinces. The elderly, those living alone, single-parent or low-income families, or those living in homes requiring major repairs are more affected. The researcher adds that people living with chronic illnesses, limitations or disabilities are more at risk.
Work is being carried out in the municipality of Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, where approximately 40% of people are in a situation of energy poverty. Experts are now trying to determine the impact of energy efficiency improvements in homes on the well-being of less well-off households.
If government initiatives to improve the energy efficiency of buildings remain few in number to help vulnerable populations make the energy transition, it would be necessary to create more, believes Mme Riva. “There are many solutions that involve housing. Different programs to ensure that people do not live in an energy sieve can be implemented,” she says.
The researcher recalls the presence of measures such as the Canada Loan for Greener Homes. The initiative includes provisions for applicants from indigenous groups and for northern and off-grid communities in rural areas.
She also highlights the existence of the Energize Bridgewater project, which allows certain low-income households in this municipality to improve the heating system and insulation in order to develop their energy efficiency. “We are working with EnviroCentre, in Ottawa, to evaluate how the strengthening of the energy efficiency of a block of a small social housing neighborhood in eastern Ottawa is associated or not with the evolution of the health of the residents of this accommodation,” she adds.
Mme Riva also advocates for the creation of a guaranteed minimum income in order to support people in situations of fuel poverty. “In the interviews we have conducted so far, we see a lot of decisions like “heat or eat”warm up or eat,” she emphasizes.
According to her, it is necessary to take energy efficiency into account when constructing new buildings. “There are different models that exist for designing houses, plexes, social housing, which are affordable and energy efficient,” she observes.
For the moment, the majority of energy efficiency programs target households that are not low-income — by partly financing the installation of a heat pump in particular, which is not within the reach of all budgets. —, but several initiatives aimed at supporting the most vulnerable are likely to see the light of day, anticipates Mme Riva. “It’s changing and it will evolve rapidly over the next few years. »
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