Abstract
Residential energy use represents a considerable fraction of the total energy consumption in a region. Therefore, there is an increasing focus on reducing energy use and related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by improving the energy efficiency of building envelopes and major household appliances. The residential sector can benefit from the application of environmental impact assessment methods like life cycle assessment (LCA), which can be used to evaluate the environmental impacts of building materials, appliances, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) units. Results of such assessments can identify and target important areas for improvement, to achieve optimal benefits. In this chapter, two residential HVAC systems in Canada are compared using the ReCiPe method. The systems are evaluated against a number of important environmental impact indicators. The results show that heat pumps present a good option for reducing household energy consumption and GHG emissions. Furthermore, areas for improvement are identified and suggestions are provided which aim at increasing residential energy efficiency and reducing related GHG emissions.
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