By Jennifer Nantais
Since joining other cities and regions in declaring a state of climate emergency, the City of Windsor is offering home retrofits in an attempt to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% over the next 20 years.
Owners of older homes will save on renovations, the city will save money, and homes will become more energy-efficient. Property owners also have the option of adding the cost of the upgrades to their property taxes and paying off the balance over time.
With only a small percentage of home owners having taken advantage of these special grants so far, this program aims to have 80% of city homes retrofitted by 2041 which would eliminate about 235,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions per year. (Stacey Janzer/CBC)
The retrofit program will be presented to council in March for final approval. Even if approved, Windsor still has a long way to go to reach its emissions targets, but with each new initiative, hopefully residents become used to making changes toward the common goal of fighting climate change.