SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - In response to NWT's ranking as one of the worst in terms of energy efficiency by a national advocacy group, Environment Minister Michael Miltenberger said it doesn't matter what southerners think of our energy efficiency efforts.

Environment Minister Michael Miltenberger says it doesn't matter what southerners think of our energy efficiency efforts.

The NWT is ranked as one of the worst jurisdictions in Canada with regards to energy efficiency, according to the Canadian Energy Efficiency Alliance's report card. The report card evaluates federal, provincial, and territorial governments on their energy efficiency performance every two years. This year's grade, which was released on Aug. 19, reflects activities occurring between January 2008 and December 2009.

The NWT's energy efficiency grade dropped to a C, down from a B+ in 2007.

"The issue for us is are we doing the right things when it comes to energy, greenhouse gases, reducing our carbon footprint, reliance on diesel and I would say that what we're doing could be held as equal or better to any other jurisdiction that I know of," said Miltenberger, who spoke with Yellowknifer from Inuvik on Wednesday.

"Chasing a grade from a southern institution is not what motivates us. It's looking at the cost of living, doing the right things as I indicated with our greenhouse gases, energy efficiencies and all those things we've invested time and money into."

According to the report, the main reason why the NWT scored low was because the territory follows the national building code of Canada instead of having a territorial building code.

"(The territory) has been doing good things," said Ken Elsey, president and CEO of the alliance. "It's only because the bar has been raised that they have slipped a bit.

"The real issue is the class average has gone up and what were seeing is the basic requirement have shifted. It's getting much more difficult to meet the expectations and requirements that the alliance brings to the table."

He said Ontario scored a A+ mainly because of the province's Green Energy Act. The act, which was introduced in the Ontario legislature in 2009, is intended to expand renewable energy production, encourage energy conservation and create green jobs.

Miltenberger said the GNWT will continue to support and maintain a range of energy efficiency programs and initiatives which he considers successful.

Effective in January, new homes built in Yellowknife will be required to have an EnerGuide rating of 80. The rating relates to how well a home can retain heat.

The city also requires that all commercial, institutional and industrial buildings comply with a minimum energy efficiency building standard that is 25 per cent higher than the minimum requirements of the national building code.

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