Earth Day Special! Interview with Jed Goldberg, President of Earth Day Canada

In the upcoming Green Living issue of Viva, we followed Earth Day Canada president Jed Goldberg through the process of retrofitting his home. We’ve got an added follow-up Q&A to give you a head start on your very own home eco-reno!

By Paul Aguirre

What’s the first step to retrofitting your home?
The first step is to take a look at your current living situation and what opportunities you have to save energy, water and other resources. Do you live in an apartment? Single dwelling household? Semi-detached? Condominium? The retrofit projects you choose will be influenced by what you can reasonably do with your living space. What doesn’t change is that many retrofits offer positive benefits to the environment and save money too.

 

Give some examples of retrofit projects that you have implemented in your home?
We’ve done a lot of big and small projects at our house. The big include the installation of solar panels and solar hot water heaters; the smaller include adding insulation, replacing single-paned windows with double-paned and using low-flow toilets to cut down water consumption.

What less-conventional retrofit projects have you undertaken?
In a community where many take a lot of pride in their lawn, we don’t have one. We’ve removed all of our grass, opting for native plants, shrubs and flower species. We’ve also enclosed our gardens with a fence made of scrap wood from a sawmill—it’s quite a unique installation.

 

What are some of the benefits you’ve realized through retrofitting your home?
I’ve cut back on utility costs substantially. Plus, I can say that I have generated 11 kWh of solar energy today, so I’m adding green power to our electrical grid — a big difference for the environment.

 

What are some other ways that you live an eco-friendly lifestyle?
As part of my day, I think about how my actions impact the environment and how I can change them for the better. For example, I support local food options over vertical farming options, I take public transit or drive my hybrid, but only when I need to, and I am a stickler for turning off lights when they’re not in use. 

 

Have your retrofit projects saved enough energy to pay for the initial costs of your retrofits?
I’ve definitely saved enough to offset a lot of the initial costs. It’s pretty rare that I ever have to pay for an electric bill and my solar hot water heater cuts my gas costs by 25-to-30 per cent.

 

Are there any downsides to implementing retrofits in the home?
It can become a bit addictive. I take a great sense of pride from every retrofit I make and that propels me to do more. It’s very rewarding to know that I am doing everything I can to reduce my impact and support a healthier environment.