Policy Solution

Building waste heat limits

Mandate

Overview:

Summary: Window AC units reject heat to the outside and can increase outdoor temperatures. Evaluating and setting a threshhold for buildings' maximum waste heat can help reduce warming emissions.

Implementation: Establish a maximum allowable building waste heat. For buildings that exceed caps, owners can be required to retrofit the building to improve ventilation or install heat recovery systems.

Considerations for Use: Building owners that do not meet allowable waste heat requirements can be pointed towards resources for retrofitting and other building improvements.

  • Policy Levers:

    MandateMandates are government regulations that require stakeholders to meet standards through building codes, ordinances, zoning policies, or other regulatory tools.
  • Trigger Points:

    City planning processesIncludes city initiatives such as the development of climate action plan, pathway to zero-energy, master plan, transit plan, energy mapping etc.
    Introducing new or updated zoning/codesIncludes codes, zoning requirements or by-laws pertaining to urban planning and building construction activity.
    No-regrets actions (low cost/low effort but substantial benefit)Interventions that are relatively low-cost and low effort (in terms of requisite dependencies) but have substantial environmental and/or social benefits.
  • Intervention Type:
    Buildings and Built Form
  • Sectors:
    Buildings

    Impact:

  • Target Beneficiaries:
    Residents
  • Phase of Impact:
    Risk reduction and mitigation
  • Metrics:
    Energy use by area, building, use, etc.

Implementation:

  • Intervention Scale:
    City
  • Authority and Governance:
    City government
  • Implementation Timeline:
    Medium-term (3-9 Years)
  • Implementation Stakeholders:
    City government, Industry, Private developers, Property owners and managers
  • Funding Sources:
    private investment
  • Capacity to Act:
    High

    Benefits:

  • Cost-Benefit:
    Low
  • Public Good:
    N/A
  • GHG Reduction:
    Medium
  • Co-benefits (Climate/Environmental):
    Reduce greenhouse gas emissions
  • Co-benefits (Social):
    Save on utilities