ACORN’s New Report on Extreme Heat & Climate Justice

☀️Today ACORN released a new report “Extreme Heat and Climate Justice”☀️.

Check out the report here: https://acorncanada.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/National-Extreme-Heat-Report-2023-1.pdf

ACORN conducted a survey nationally to capture the impacts of extreme heat on tenants. The report is based on 445 responses from tenants. Effects of climate change are set to worsen, hence governments need to take urgent measures to protect low- and moderate-income and other vulnerable tenants.

🚩ACORN is demanding the following actions:

• Local:
  Cities must develop and implement a maximum heat bylaw for rental housing. Improvements to the city’s tree canopy especially in low- and moderate-income tenant communities.
  Track heat-related deaths and illnesses.
• All Levels of Government
  Provide free energy efficient air conditioners (Heat/ Cooling pumps) for low income community members, prioritising tenants with utilities outside their rent.
• Federal Government
  • All green infrastructure retrofit partnerships and agreements from the Canada Infratsructure Bank or CMHC must include:
    • Affordability and anti-eviction covenants.
    • Signed agreements from the landlord made transparent to the tenants in the building.
    • Rent controls
    • Formal tenant participation where independent tenant unions existing in the community and building receive resources to support tenants participating.
    • Perform a Benefit Scan so that unique potential local benefits (environmental, labour, community, tenant) are identified and included in the funding agreement.