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A major obstacle in the transition to producing more renewable energy and emitting less carbon, is the inability (or unwillingness) to count. Claims of 'net-zero' rarely provide numbers for validation, and this encourages the growth of greenwashing. There is an easy answer. First, follow the Rule of 3C to the maximum extent possible. Then, count. Federal data show that the thermal applications of space heating, water heating & space cooling in 15.3 million households across Canada in 2022 consumed 327 billion kWh of secondary energy, and emitted 34 billion kg of carbon from the combustion of fossil fuels. This means the average household consumed 21,307 kWh for these thermal end uses (13 kWh per ft2) each year, and emitted 3,148 kg of carbon (2 kg per ft2) as a result. Lights & appliances consumed another 5,095 kWh (3.2 kWh per ft2) and emitted 479 kg (0.3 kg per ft2). The implication: 81% of household energy is consumed for thermal applications, which are the cause of 87% of the dwelling's annual carbon footprint. If heating & cooling in commercial buildings is included, the national 2022 consumption of thermal energy was 547 billion kWh (21% of ALL energy in the country) which was the source of 71 billion kg of carbon emissions (16% of Canada's total). Numbers can overwhelm & confuse, but they are required to verify claims. A house must produce 1 kWh of renewable energy for every 1 kWh consumed of conventional energy, before it can claim to be net-zero. Companies are reluctant to divulge their energy data because it may provide an advantage to their competitors, but all numbers must be counted & verified. To produce renewable energy, many homes install solar panels which do not work well at night, so lithium batteries are needed. Wind turbines are another common option. Another option is a ground source heat pump (GSHP) which produces thermal renewable energy from the earth on a fully dispatchable (no batteries required) basis. To produce 21,307 kWh from the ground, a GSHP system would need 5,918 kWh (much less if installed beyond minimum code requirements) to operate its mechanical components, which means the household produces far more renewable energy than it consumes of conventional grid electricity. That dwelling would also lower annual carbon emissions by 3,148 kg ... more if the utility supplies 'green' power. It would allow a PTC (Production Thermal Credit) to incent on-going operational efficiency, and the cost is much lower if installed during building construction when workers are on site and before landscaping is done. GSHP technology offers many other benefits to the building owner, our economy and our environment ... ... and it can be verified as netzeroPLUS.
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