Community Energy and Emissions Plan Research - General Summary of Findings

Authors: Community Energy Association

Publication Date: August, 2013

Link to External Website: http://communityenergy.bc.ca/download/327/

Abstract

Community Energy and Emission Planning is a relatively recent activity by local governments in Canada, with most known plans having been initiated since 2008. The Community Energy Association (CEA) took the initiative to analyze and compare a significant proportion (30) of the Community Energy and Emissions Plans ( CEEPs) that have been completed in Canada; using this information to better understand the critical attributes of these plans, and to inform policies and actions being contemplated by current and future CEEP processes and help ensure their successful implementation.

The project was conducted in two phases:

• Phase 1 – A review of 30 CEEPs representing a broad range of communities across Canada, and in both official languages. The CEEPs reviewed include plans for urban, rural, First Nations, cities, towns and villages. The age of the CEEPs reviewed is biased towards the most recent, 50% were completed since 2009, but the range extends back to 2004.
• Phase 2 – Interviews with as many of the 30 communities as possible were conducted. Ultimately key representatives from 23 of these communities were interviewed with 18 questions, in interviews that were sometimes over an hour long.

The general summary of research findings provides an overview of the state of CEEPs across Canada as of 2013. Emerging CEEP trends are documented. Correlations with success are noted and recommendations made for communities wishing to improve their CEEPs and the degree to which actions are implemented. An appendix describes the CEEPs reviewed, questions posed to and observations made by community energy planners during interviews and summary tables of insights from each analysis section (community performance, relationship with being a BC community, community size, urban and rural communities).

This report will be of interest to municipalities completing or implementing Community Energy and Emissions Plans and any organizations in the private, public or academic sectors supporting municipalities in the same. This report was supported in part through funding from the Program of Energy Research and Development.