Efficiency NB energy rebate program set to expire Sept. 30

Efficiency NBs residential energy rebate program is set to end Sept. 30, but many people are hoping the program gets extended.

Joe Godbout is the owner of EnerCheck Solutions, an energy consulting firm. He says studies show that for every $1the government spends on the program, it receives $2 back in revenue.

So, it's actually reducing deficit from the government, creating jobs, people are saving money on their energy bills in which the savings go back in the economy. It's reducing greenhouse gas emissions as well. It's just a big wheel that goes round and round, he said.

Once work is done on a house to make it more energy efficient, homeowners receive rebates of up to $6,000 for the improvements made.

Homeowner Daniel Landry is a fan of the program. Without the financial incentives, he says he probably wouldn't have installed a geothermal heat pump. He estimates he is saving 70 per cent on the cost of heating his home.

Energy auditor Rick Bourque works for EnerCheck Solutions and thinks the program is a win-win for all parties involved.

It helps the environment, helps the economy, helps me, I get a job too, he said.

The Liberals made a campaign promise to "reinstate home energy efficiency retrofit programs."

Bourque hopes they do just that.

There's a lot of us that may end up on EI or go chasing jobs elsewhere and obviously we don't want to do that, I'm a family man, I want to stick around, he said.