Vancouver Greens on buildings: fossil gas ban in new builds, green roofs, solar
The Green Party of Vancouver would bring back rules that ban fossil gas for heat and hot water in new buildings, require green roofs on larger buildings, make rooftop and plug-in solar easier to permit, and return a standalone Sustainability and Climate Office to City Hall.
SUSTAINABLE GROWTH · PAGE 11
Building Green: what the Platform 2026 says
In a one-page chapter on buildings and energy, the Green Party of Vancouver sets out its climate rules for construction. The commitment with the widest reach is on new construction: the party would re-establish policies that ban fossil gas heating for heat and hot water in new buildings, and bring back standard reporting of emissions and emission targets. The platform was corrected on September 29, 2026 so that this item reads "ban fossil gas heating".
Other items look at the buildings people already live in. The Greens would make permits simpler for rooftop solar panels and for plug-in solar panels sold directly to consumers. They would expand cooling, shade and clean-air spaces so tenants are protected from extreme heat and wildfire smoke, and they would pass a bylaw that requires green roofs, which are roofs covered in plants, on larger new and existing buildings.
At City Hall, the party would return a standalone Sustainability and Climate Office and count the emissions from making building materials, along with the emissions from running a building, in the city's climate reports. Vancouver has its own building bylaw under the Vancouver Charter, so Council can set energy and emissions rules for new buildings that other BC cities cannot.
7 COMMITMENTS
What the party says it would do
Solar ready, plug-in solar ready
The party would expand access to clean, affordable energy by making permits simpler, updating regulations and cutting red tape for rooftop solar and for new direct-to-consumer plug-in solar technology.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council controls the city's own permit process and building rules for solar installations.
- Source
- Platform 2026, page 11
EV charging island modernized curbside infrastructure
The Greens would give priority to partnerships for electric vehicle charging on curbside lampposts and utility poles as part of street infrastructure everywhere. They would focus on places where older street lights are replaced with LED lights that leave spare electric capacity.
- Who has the power
- City, with others The lampposts stand on city streets, which the city owns, but the platform describes this as a partnership, so it would depend on outside partners that the platform does not name.
- Source
- Platform 2026, page 11
Decarbonizing new builds
The party would re-establish policies that ban fossil gas heating for heat and hot water in new construction types, and would return standard emission reporting and targets.
- Who has the power
- City Council Vancouver has its own building bylaw under the Vancouver Charter, so Council can set energy and emissions rules for new buildings.
- Source
- Platform 2026, page 11
Right to cool and clean air
The Greens would protect tenants from extreme heat and wildfire smoke at home by expanding cooling, shade and clean-air infrastructure across Vancouver.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council sets building rules and funds city facilities, shade and trees through the city budget.
- Source
- Platform 2026, page 11
Return a standalone Sustainability and Climate Office to City Hall
The party would bring back a separate city office focused on climate action, clean energy, resilience and care for the environment. It says the office would improve accountability and coordination across departments.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council approves the city budget and the structure of city departments.
- Source
- Platform 2026, page 11
Climate planning includes lifecycle emissions in reporting
The Greens would expand the city's emissions reporting to include embodied and lifecycle emissions, meaning the emissions from making materials and from a building's whole life, so the city can make better decisions about long-term climate impacts.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council decides what the city measures and reports in its own climate plans.
- Source
- Platform 2026, page 11
Green roofs
The party would pass a bylaw that requires green roofs on larger new and existing buildings to reduce urban heat, manage stormwater, support biodiversity and make the city greener and more resilient.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council passes city bylaws and sets building rules through Vancouver's own building bylaw.
- Source
- Platform 2026, page 11
WHO WOULD HAVE TO ACT
Where the power sits for this chapter
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Questions about building green
Does the Green Party of Vancouver want to ban gas heating in new buildings?
Yes. The Green Party of Vancouver would re-establish policies that ban fossil gas heating for heat and hot water in new construction, and bring back standard emission reporting and targets. The platform was corrected on September 29, 2026 to read "ban fossil gas heating" (platform, page 11).
Would Vancouver's Greens require green roofs?
The Greens would pass a bylaw requiring green roofs on larger new and existing buildings. The party says they would reduce urban heat, manage stormwater and support biodiversity (platform, page 11).
What is the Green Party of Vancouver's plan for plug-in solar?
The party would make permits simpler and update regulations for rooftop solar and for direct-to-consumer plug-in solar. The platform frames this as expanding access to clean, affordable energy (platform, page 11).
What do the Vancouver Greens propose for heat waves and wildfire smoke?
The Green Party of Vancouver proposes a "right to cool and clean air". It would expand cooling, shade and clean-air infrastructure across the city to protect tenants from extreme heat and wildfire smoke at home (platform, page 11).
Would the Green Party bring back Vancouver's climate office?
Yes. The Greens would return a standalone Sustainability and Climate Office to City Hall, focused on climate action, clean energy, resilience and care for the environment (platform, page 11).
Can Vancouver City Council ban gas heating in new buildings, as the Greens propose?
Vancouver has its own building bylaw under the Vancouver Charter, so Council can set energy and emissions rules for new buildings that other BC cities cannot. The Green Party of Vancouver's plan to re-establish a ban on fossil gas heating in new construction would use that power (platform, page 11).
ON THE BALLOT
The Green Party of Vancouver candidates behind this
Sources
Every commitment on this page comes from the party's own material, marked SAYS SO ITSELF. It proves what the party says it would do. Who holds each power is our own addition, from the sources listed after it.
- Platform 2026, Green Party of Vancouver (72-page PDF, last updated September 29, 2026) SAYS SO ITSELFGreen Party of Vancouver · pages 11 · published · checked