Toronto’s Home Energy Loan Program (HELP) could support at least 1,000 homeowners with heat-pump installations over the next four years, but climate justice advocates say in order to expand the program further, they need other levels of government to come in with more financing.
According to a yearly report from The Atmospheric Fund that tracks Toronto’s greenhouse gas emissions, the city has gone backwards on its climate progress with emissions in 2024 increasing by 1.2 per cent, the highest since 2016. The city’s TransformTO Net Strategy was adopted by council in 2021 and includes a goal of net zero emissions by 2040. Emissions need to start going down by 8 per cent to meet Toronto’s 2030 target.
How-Sen Chong, Toronto Environmental Alliance’s climate campaigner, told Met Radio decarbonization programs like HELP are a step forward, but without intergovernmental collaboration in climate initiatives, the city is relatively limited in its ability to reach climate targets.
The heat pump assistance program, which launched in 2025, has supported eligible residents with 40 installations so far through $1.1 million in financing.
In this audio story, we talk to heat pump owners Katheryne Schultz and Tony Contardi, energy advisor Michelle Hjort at Energy Neighbour and climate justice advocate How-Sen Chong.