(Quebec) The Legault government will ban the replacement of oil heating systems from 2024, a “breakthrough” gesture, says Environment Minister Benoit Charette.
Quebec will confirm this Wednesday by decree the ban on the installation of an oil heating device in new constructions as of December 31, 2021, as well as the ban on December 31, 2023 of their replacement in existing buildings.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, PRESS ARCHIVES
Benoit Charette, Minister of the Environment
“It is an additional breaking gesture that we do [et] which applies for new constructions from December 31. For replacement or installation in existing homes, we leave a period of two years, ”explains Mr. Charette in an interview with The presse.
Almost 200,000 households are affected by this measure, and they will need help. Fuel oil is “more used by households with an annual income of less than $ 40,000 while the average income of Quebec households was $ 63,900 in 2017”, one can read in a study carried out by the government.
They will be able to take advantage of the Chauffez vert program, which has an envelope of 135 million to support them in this transition, underlines the Minister. There are currently nearly 160,000 oil heating systems in Quebec and there will be only 54,500 left in 2030, according to government forecasts. Without the regulation, there would rather be 80,000. In 2018, the use of light fuel oil in the residential sector was responsible for the emission of 1.05 megatonnes of greenhouse gases (GHGs), the annual equivalent. emissions from nearly 300,000 light vehicles.
Why wait until 2024 to act? The minister explained that he wanted to give people time to “plan” a major expense, namely the change of their heating system. “And we must give the industry time to transform,” he added.
But we tackle the biggest piece by making a gesture of rupture. For new construction, this will no longer be an option.
Benoit Charette, Minister of the Environment
However, it seems that this measure will not change much to the current situation.
According to an analysis by his own ministry, “no household installed an oil-fired heater between 2014 and 2018 in their new residence, and no owner converted their heater to another energy source. to install an oil-fired one ”. “Thus, there is no new consumer of residential heating oil. The installations of oil-fired appliances are therefore only carried out with the current owners of an appliance which is reaching the end of its life ”, we can read in the document.
Already in decline
Demand for fuel oil has also been on the decline for “more than 10 years in Quebec” and is decreasing by an average of 8% per year. The conversion of oil-fired heating systems to electricity will also allow Hydro-Québec to increase its revenues by 367 million between 2021 and 2030. In return, installation and maintenance companies, oil distributors and refineries will lose an equivalent amount over the same period.
“It’s a natural decrease: replacement and repair will no longer be possible in the long term. It is not necessarily advantageous to replace equipment before the end of its useful life, ”explains Mr. Charette.
For the moment, Quebec is only targeting fuel oil with its regulations, and not natural gas. Mr. Charette explains this choice by the effect of fuel oil on air quality. “We are here to guarantee better air quality,” he said.
The Legault government wants to reduce GHG emissions in the heating of buildings by 50% by 2030, “and fuel oil is the big chunk that will allow us to get there,” said the minister.