Renters have a human right to AC says Ontario commission as heat waves grip Mississauga, Brampton and Hamilton

The Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) has declared air conditioning and method of cooling down a human right as Climate Change continues to exacerbate heat waves across the south of the province.

In a statement released March 19, the OHRC said many Ontarians do not have legally protected access to air conditioning. The Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (RTA) includes provisions to protect tenant access to heat, water, hot and cold water, electricity and fuel (i.e. natural gas).

Even if the tenant hasn’t paid up the rent, the landlord must ensure these services remain connected. However, no such protection exists for air conditioning.

“Only housing that has central air conditioning may be required by the municipality to maintain a maximum temperature of not more than 26°C between June and September,” said the OHRC, “This leaves many Ontario tenants without protections against extreme heat.”

“The Ontario Human Rights Commission calls on the Government of Ontario to include air conditioning as a vital service, like the provision of heat, under RTA regulations and to establish a provincial maximum temperature to make sure that vulnerable Code-protected tenants are protected against threats of eviction for using safely installed air conditioning units,” they continued.

The Greater Toronto Hamilton Area (GTHA) has endured record temperatures over the last few years due in large part to climate change, as well as the very way the cities are designed.

Toronto itself set a 168-year heat record on July 19 marking the highest temperatures since 1854. By the time July ended the city set a record for the most days above 35 Celsius of any year on record.

These heat waves are only expected to worsen in the coming years as climate change continues. A University of Waterloo study found numerous medical, economic, natural and infrastructure impacts of climate change.

Best case scenario regardless of Greenhouse gas emissions reductions the study found the GTA will still experience ever more days over 30 degrees in a year. Worst case scenario, that number could reach 55 days over 30 degrees in a calandar year by 2050. These heat waves could double in length to eight days.

When looking at the health impacts from extreme heat, “When indoor or outdoor temperatures are very hot, people are more likely to suffer from heat exhaustion and heat stroke, which may be fatal.”

The affects the study found frequently impact more disadvantaged communities. Neighbourhoods made up of people of colour, or people of lower incomes tend to have less tree coverage for example which sends temperatures higher.

The study stressed that, “Not all Canadians will be effected the same way and those most vulnerable will require  additional supports.”

Hamilton housing advocates ACORN agree saying a $70 or more per year fee to install a air conditioner costs too much for many, including seniors on a fixed income, particularly as rents continue to rise.

In addition to cost impacts, health effects are hardly equal either. Human Rights Watch a recent extreme heat wave in British Columbia, was exacerbated because a “lack of access to cooling and targeted support for at-risk populations contributed to unnecessary suffering and possibly deaths. ”

Children under four years old, seniors and people with disabilities are the most at risk of heat-related health effects.

This led the OHRC to call, “on the Government of Ontario to include air conditioning as a vital service” and “to establish a provincial maximum temperature to make sure that vulnerable Code-protected tenants are protected against threats of eviction for using safely installed air conditioning units.”