Ontario will Invest $5.4 bln to Cut Carbon Footprint

The government of the Canadian province of Ontario plans to spend more than C$7 billion ($5.41 billion) over four years from 2017 in a bid to cut the province's carbon footprint, the Globe and Mail reported on Monday.

The province will begin to phase out natural gas for heating, provide incentives to retrofit buildings and give rebates to buyers of electric vehicles, according to a Climate Change Action Plan reviewed by the newspaper.

The government plans to spend C$3.8 billion on grants, rebates and other subsidies to retrofit buildings, and move them off natural gas and on to geothermal, solar or other forms of electric heat, the Globe reported. (http://bit.ly/1YuLey1)

Another C$1.2 billion will go to help factories and other industrial businesses cut emissions, such as by buying more energy-efficient machines, the Globe said.

The plan requires gasoline sold in the province to contain less carbon, lays out building code rules requiring all new homes by 2030 to be heated with electricity or geothermal systems and sets a target for 12 percent of all new vehicle sales to be electric by 2025.

The office of Ontario's Ministry of Finance did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Reporting by Sruthi Shankar