September 2023
In this edition:
- Is B.C. ready for electrification? How BC Hydro is preparing to meet electricity needs of the future
- Education Summit, September 25 to 26
- Takeaways from the Township of Langley's Step 5 Townhome event
- Meet Port Moody's new community energy manager, Arzan Balsara
- StrongerBC Future Skills Grant: Empowering British Columbians to shape their own futures
- Spotlight on Market Transformation team member Toby Lau
Is B.C. ready for electrification? How BC Hydro is preparing to meet electricity needs of the future
A lot of customers ask us how we're preparing for the scale of electrification needed to tackle climate change. They're eager to use clean electricity to switch from fossil fuels such as natural gas, petroleum, diesel, and oil.
Here's a video from our CEO Chris O'Riley sharing our commitment to the electrification journey, and acknowledging the roles we and our partners have to play in it. As a Crown corporation, we have a critical mandate to create a better future for our province. We're here to partner, exchange, and invest to make this transition happen.
For more information and dialogue around electrification, mark your calendars for a free webinar on September 29 presented by the Building to Electrification Coalition (B2E) and BC Hydro. Topics include:
- Is B.C. ready for electrification?
- How will we meet our future electricity needs?
- Does the building industry have a role to play in helping us meet the future electricity demand?
Speakers include:
- Jacqueline Spray, director of customer engagement and sales, BC Hydro
"BC Hydro's vision for energizing the province" - Alex Tu, senior strategic technical specialist, BC Hydro
"An overview of BC Hydro's grid and looking ahead to 2040" - Aaron Ellis, technical strategic principal (regional planning), BC Hydro
"Connecting our customers in an era of large-scale electrification" - Robyn Wark, manager of market transformation, BC Hydro
"Achieving the vision together – working with our partners"
The event will be an opportunity to from professionals in the building industry, with time available for questions. Register now.
Education Summit, September 25 to 26
The Canadian Home Builders' Association of BC (CHBA BC) and the Building Officials' Association of BC (BOABC) are pleased to present a two-day Education Summit for builders, qualified officials, and other partners this fall. BC Hydro is an Education Partner at the summit, which will take place September 25-26, 2023 at the Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre in downtown Vancouver.
This event provides a chance to learn new skills, earn continuing professional development points, and network with other leaders in the industry.
This year's event sets a strong focus on looking at solutions and opportunities to meet the higher steps of the BC Energy Step Code and guides participants on implementing the Zero Carbon Step Code. Presenters include the Building and Safety Standards Branch, BC Hydro's director of distribution design and customer connections, along with Mark Bernhardt of Bernhardt Contracting, Tim Ryce of the City of North Vancouver, Andrew Harmsworth of GHL Consultants, the Canadian Construction Materials Centre (CCMC), and others.
Takeaways from the Township of Langley's Step 5 Townhome event
The Township of Langley, with funding from our implementation offer program, recently held a series of on-site Step 5 (Net Zero) workshops for construction professionals. The workshops aimed to share lessons, best practices, and first-hand knowledge about the design, construction, and permitting of an ambitious townhouse project targeting Step 5, CHBA'S Net Zero Energy Ready standard, and EL-4, a first of its kind in the Township.
The workshops included presentations by project consultants, tours of the home, live blower door tests, and issue identification.
The Township of Langley's workshops fill a critical gap in construction industry training during a time when B.C.'s Building Code is shifting towards requiring low-carbon, high-performance construction. Workshop organizers found that there is still a wide spectrum of high-performance design understanding among construction professionals. Even builders with significant experience in designing and constructing high-performance homes are indicating they need on-going support to address emerging and more complex problems and scenarios.
For more information or to learn about future events, visit the Township of Langley's website.
Learn more about BC Hydro's funding programs for local governments.
Meet Port Moody's new Community Energy Manager, Arzan Balsara
Join us in welcoming Arzan Balsara, the City of Port Moody's new community energy manager and one of the newest members of our community energy manager (CEM) network.
Prior to his role as CEM, Arzan worked as the City of Port Moody's sustainability and energy coordinator. His previous experience also includes sustainability and energy work with Northern Health BC, Vancouver Coastal Health, and BC Housing.
Although Port Moody is the smallest community in the CEM network with just 33,535 residents, it's a key member of the CEM community. According to Arzan, "what differentiates Port Moody from some of the other municipalities in the Lower Mainland is that it's a smaller municipality, but we still have a lot of the same projects, initiatives, and policies that we're trying to implement."
Port Moody is part of Metro Vancouver's Tri-Cities. According to Arzan, "Port Moody's really lucky that we get to collaborate with the other Tri-Cities communities. Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam both have great staff and are very friendly and collaborative. We've already got some projects that we collaborate on like heat pump webinars and top-ups and communications that we send out into the public regarding extreme weather." Arzan adds that, "having a long-term horizon in terms of planning larger projects like we did with the Tri-Cities Zero Emissions Mobility Strategy," has been key to successfully initiating projects with neighbouring communities.
As a member of BC Hydro's CEM network, Arzan says, "I think there's such a wealth of experience within the CEM group and there are people who come from so many different backgrounds. One person can't know it all, and being in a small municipality, the ability to use the collective knowledge of the group really helps move these projects along and helps us come out with policies that align with other municipalities within the Lower Mainland, and B.C."
Our Community Energy Manager program provides funding for local governments to hire sustainability professionals and advance their clean energy initiatives. Learn more.
StrongerBC Future Skills Grant: Empowering British Columbians to shape their own futures
The StrongerBC future skills grant empowers British Columbians to shape their own futures with short-term skills training to upgrade skills and further careers. The grant covers up to $3,500 for eligible short-term skills training at public post-secondary institutions.
Many of the grant-eligible programs include opportunities to acquire essential skills and earn certificates that can help workers upskill and prepare for the Upper Steps of the BC Energy Step Code and Zero Carbon Step Code. One of them is BCIT's Zero Energy/Emissions Buildings Learning Center, which we've been supporting over the years to bring code-relevant, industry-customized training and education to partners and students interested in delivering high-performance buildings.
This funding, which is part of B.C.'s Future Ready Action Plan, will play an important role in helping transition B.C.'s existing construction professionals into high-performance zero-carbon experts.
Learn more and see all programs eligible for the StrongerBC future skills grant.
Spotlight on Market Transformation team member Toby Lau
Join us in congratulating BC Hydro codes and standards principal Toby Lau for winning three awards.
Toby was recently recognized with CSA Group's prestigious John Jenkins award [PDF]. According to CSA Group, "during his three decades of service as a CSA Group member, Toby Lau has been a tireless advocate for standards-based solutions. Toby's ongoing efforts and exceptional leadership across various levels of the standards development system and with community stakeholders have contributed to the development of key standards and supported the use and reference of CSA standards in voluntary and regulatory programs, both nationally and internationally."
Toby was also honoured with two separate Fellowship Awards from both Engineers & Geoscientists B.C. and from the Canadian Society of Senior Engineers (CSSE). A CSSE representative said that, "Toby Lau is a notable national leader in advancing energy-efficiency policy, codes, standards, and programs across the industrial and buildings sectors over his 43-year career. Toby's steady hand and collaboration with governments, industry, standards development organizations, and utilities supported market transformation efforts for lighting, industrial motors, and consumer electronics."