GCG Releases Comprehensive Report on GHG Emission Reductions

Study confirms the recurring environmental advantages of geoexchange systems

HALIFAX, April 27 /CNW Telbec/ - The Canadian GeoExchange Coalition (CGC), Canada's national industry association for ground source heat pump technology, is pleased to announce the release of a research report entitled "Comparative analysis of greenhouse gas emissions of various residential heating systems in the Canadian provinces". The document is being officially released during the 5th Annual Renewable Energy Conference 2010 "Powering Investments" held in Halifax, Nova Scotia on April 27th and 28th. This document is available on the CGC website at www.geoexchange.ca.

The research document, the first of its kind, presents a comprehensive analysis of the specific and strategic role of geoexchange technology (ground source heat pumps) for the reduction of GHG emissions. The study's results demonstrate that geoexchange system installations are advantageous in every province, especially when they replace electric baseboard heaters or oil furnaces.

"This report demonstrates that geoexchange systems offer an interesting solution and have a significant GHG reduction potential everywhere in Canada" said Denis Tanguay, CGC President & CEO. The results of the study confirm the recurring advantages in GHG reductions arising from the conversion of a conventional heating system to a geoexchange system. If only 2% of Canadian single-family homes installed a geoexchange system for their heating and cooling needs, a potential country-wide reduction of 376 000 tons eq. of CO2 would be possible. This emissions reduction is the equivalent of removing nearly 112,000 automobiles from our roads.

Five years ago, the CGC developed and deployed the CGC Global GeoExchange(TM) Quality Program(R), a comprehensive national market transformation initiative. One of the goals of this program is to build homeowners' awareness and understanding about the advantages of leveraging ground source heat pumps as a cost-effective, energy efficient and eco friendly approach to heating and cooling, while enhancing technical standards within the industry. Over the past three years, the CGC has certified over 11,000 residential installations as part of the ecoENERGY Retrofit - Homes program.

As of March 31, 2010, no new grant applications are accepted under this program. "This unexpected announcement was a shock to the industry and homeowners alike, particularly so early in the construction season and right in the middle of the Canadian home show season" said Mr. Tanguay. "Thanks to the CGC-led market transformation initiative, the industry is more structured than ever. However, a market transformation of this magnitude requires additional efforts in order to keep its current momentum and consolidate what has been accomplished to date. The untimely disengagement of the federal government couldn't have come at a worse time" he added.

The CGC will continue to raise the awareness of home owners and governments about the environmental and economic benefits of geoexchange technology. In mid-May, the CGC will release a full state of the industry report including system characteristics, installation figures and market structure. Preliminary findings are also being presented in Halifax at the conference.

The Canadian GeoExchange(TM) Coalition acts as the industry catalyst to unite private and public sector stakeholders, and to expand the market for geoexchange(TM) technology in Canada. As the nexus of information, training, certification, industry standards and public awareness, our mandate is to work with stakeholders to build the necessary infrastructure to foster the growth of the Canadian geoexchange(TM) industry. For more information, visit www.geoexchange.ca

For further information: Denis Tanguay, [phone], extension 24