City of North Vancouver steps up to task of building betterRe: CNV Raises Building Standards in Bid to Raze GHGs, Oct. 13 news story

Op-ed - Nov. 6, 2017 - By Karen Tam Wu

Published in North Shore News (November 3, 2017)

Congratulations to the City of North Vancouver. The B.C. Energy Step Code represents a modern, affordable, and technically achievable approach to new construction — and a blueprint for other jurisdictions. It will predictably and consistently improve health and comfort, and reduce carbon emissions from our homes and buildings.

The Step Code will give consumers a consistent and easy-to-understand rating system, and has been developed in collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders, including the building and development industry. Local governments will find the Step Code a powerful tool for delivering quality and affordability, meeting climate targets and giving home builders and developers a predictable pathway towards better performance.

As we start transitioning to net-zero ready building codes in this province and across Canada, municipalities in B.C. have an important opportunity to choose the pace and scale of ambition that makes sense for them, rather than playing catch-up when regulations change.

Karen Tam Wu
Acting B.C. director, Pembina Institute, Vancouver

The North Shore News published this letter to the editor on page A9 of its November 3, 2017, issue.

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Karen Tam Wu
Karen Tam Wu

Karen Tam Wu was the regional director of B.C. at the Pembina Institute until 2022.


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