Canada

Energy Efficiency Act (S.C. 1992, c. 36)

Legislative

Law

Passed in 1992

The Act aims to establish minimum energy efficiency standards for a broad range of products and equipment in order to decrease overall Canadian energy consumption. It gives the government of Canada the authority to make and enforce standards for the performance of energy-consuming products that are imported into Canada, or that are manufactured in Canada and shipped across provincial or territorial borders. The Act also gives the federal government the authority to set labelling requirements for these products so consumers can compare the energy efficiency of various models of the same product.

The Energy Efficiency Regulations 2016 came into effect on 28 June 2017 and repealed and replaced the existing Energy Efficiency Regulations made under the Energy Efficiency Act.

There are several monitoring arrangements that govern the Act. A database will be used to identify the amount of energy that can be saved for specific products. It will also help in compiling statistics on energy consumption as well as develop alternative energy sources

Importing into Canada, or trading between provinces, products that do not meet such energy efficiency standards, or tampering with an energy efficiency label, is a criminal offence. Failure to comply with regulations will result in the possibility of prosecution, fines and secondary offences.