Low-carbon building skills cap costing Ontario billions: report
February 5, 2019 | By Jillian Morgan
The skills to build green are in high demand.
In a newly-released report, the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC) unveiled a proposed plan to “close the low-carbon building skills gap” in Ontario–where the council estimates the gap represents $24.3 billion in lost GDP.
Key recommendations include training, incentives and processes geared toward the construction and retrofit of green buildings.
Tradespeople need to be trained on how to construct efficient building envelopes, CaGBC said, including installing mechanical systems and maintaining energy-efficient furnaces, boilers, water heaters, solar panels and geo-exchange systems.
“Training the labour force with the skills necessary for designing, constructing and operating high performing, low carbon buildings is critical in supporting a clean growth economy and meeting Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions targets,” Thomas Mueller, president and CEO of CaGBC, said.
The report explores different delivery modes for training, ranging from full-time in-class courses to short online courses and on the job training. It also proposes a low-carbon building skills certification.
CaGBC has also called on governments to create “supportive public policies and incentivize workforce education and training programs.”
Funded in part by the Government of Ontario, the council said the recommendations can be applied across the country. www.cagbc.org/tradingup
