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(Queen’s Park): “It’s wrong for the Liberal government to waste $450 million per year on inefficient public buildings,” says GPO Leader Mike Schreiner in response to today’s report from the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario.
According to the report, if all public buildings such as schools, universities and hospitals became as efficient as the top performers in their category, we could reduce energy consumption by up to 35 per cent. This would save 1 megatonne of GHG pollution and about $450 million in utility bills every year.
“It’s irresponsible for the Liberal government to waste money, waste energy and contribute to climate change by failing to fix its buildings,” says Schreiner. “Cost is so often a barrier to climate action. It’s a shame the Liberals haven’t seized the opportunity to save money and fight climate change at the same time.”
The GPO is calling on the Liberals to save money and reduce pollution by retrofitting public buildings. The government also must review fossil fuel subsidies that, according to the ECO, exceed $600 million in Ontario.
“The Liberals need to act now. By retrofitting our buildings to conserve energy and reviewing fossil fuel subsidies, we can save $1 billion while reducing carbon pollution,” says Schreiner.