New Neighbourhood in Markham Will Use Geothermal

Published on December 06, 2018

The City of Markham, Mattamy Homes, and Enwave Energy Corporation recently announced their partnership and plans to build a 300 home neighbourhood in Markham that will have each and every home connected to a geothermal energy system.

Construction of the neighbourhood is set to begin in 2020 at the earliest, and Subhi Alsayed, vice president of sustainable development at Mattamy Homes, says he is very excited about the project.

He explains that the geothermal energy system that the homes will use involve technologies that have been around for years.

The system works by using the Earth’s natural core temperature to favourably modify how hot or cold a home is - warming a home in the winter by drawing energy from the Earth, and cooling a home in the summer by depositing excess heat into the ground.

However there are critics of Geothermal systems, such as Tom Adams, an independent energy and environmental advisor, who says that Canada is not the ideal place for geothermal energy systems due to its lower amounts of geothermal activity, and it is not as effective as it is in places such as Iceland or California.

“There’s been a tremendous amount of research that’s been done on these things because the theoretical potential is there,” Adams said.

However he believes that the technology is too impractical and too difficult to successfully use.

Alsayed says that the project is more about the innovation that it brings to the industry, and that its value also lies in the business model that they are introducing to the market.

“We think this business model is going to enable whatever technologies are going to come down the road,” said Alsayed.

He also adds that since the federal and provincial governments are looking at the possibility of making Net-Zero become the standard for construction by 2030, other communities should watch this project, as it is being built with technologies that may help a home reach Net-Zero levels.

Keeping Comfortable All Year Long with Geothermal

A home that is efficient is also a home that is comfortable, and even though one may look or be different than the next, all efficient homes share a few characteristics. They are: well insulated, well air-sealed, and utilize a combination of energy saving techniques such as: smart thermostats or under-slab spray foam insulation.

If you are an Ontario homeowner who is wondering if it’s worth improving their home’s energy efficiency, you may want to start with a Home Energy Assessment to have an idea what your options are, and what path would be the best fit for your needs. Our Registered Energy Advisors are more than happy to conduct the assessment, and to show you which efficiency improving modifications or retrofits would provide your home with the most improvement per dollar spent.

Quite often, the most effective way a home can become more efficient is through simple and cost-effective modifications, such as improving the level of insulation in the attic, or finding air leaks and sealing them with caulk.

Additionally, a Home Energy Assessment can also help both Enbridge and Union Gas customers qualify for any of the home renovation rebates, such as geothermal energy systems, that they currently offer -making it even easier to see a return on efficiency investments.