BLAME COAL AND THE COLD

City homes ranked worst for emissions

VANCOUVER Homeowners in Edmonton generate, on average, almost four times the amount of greenhouse gas emissions as their counterparts in Montreal, says a study released Wednesday by the University of British Columbia.

The study from the university’s faculty of land and food systems estimated average household emissions in major cities across Canada between 1997 and 2009, based on factors such as weather, population density and the type of energy used for home heating and electricity.

Montreal homes were ranked the greenest — at 5.4 tonnes per year — largely because of the use of clean hydroelectric power. The city’s dense population also means motorists spend less time commuting and burning gasoline.

“If you live in Montreal, you can walk to your grocery store, you can walk your kids to school. You don’t have to be driving everywhere, whereas in Edmonton, unfortunately, you do,” said Prof. Sumeet Gulati, one of the report’s authors.

Edmonton, followed closely by Calgary, was at the bottom at 20.7 tonnes per year, partly because of the use of coal-fired home electricity and a spreadout population. The colder weather in the Alberta cities also means more energy is needed to heat homes.

Vancouver, despite its very mild climate, ranked second behind Montreal because of the city’s use of natural gas in residential utilities. Natural gas is available in Montreal, but it is more expensive than hydro.

Winnipeg ranked thirdlowest for emissions, ahead of fourth-place Toronto.

Despite its bone-chilling winters, Winnipeg scored well because of its use of hydro power.

“The implications from our analysis are fairly straightforward,” the report reads. “If we encourage high-density development or encourage development of low-carbon energy, households lower their greenhouse gas emissions.”

The report found that in all cities greenhouse gas emissions per household dropped by about 16 per cent over the 12-year study period as people, governments and utilities became more energy conscious.