The Conservative government has unveiled a plan to spend $300 million over four years to encourage homeowners, businesses and industry to use energy more efficiently.

"It's time to recognize that the largest untapped source of energy is the energy we waste," said Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn as he announced the ecoEnergy Efficiency Initiative in Toronto on Sunday.

The Conservatives' latest environmental plan, the third in a series of ecoEnergy initiatives announced over the past week, features three different programs:

• A $220-million program that will offer homeowners and smaller businesses support and information needed to retrofit buildings to make them more energy-efficient.
• A $60-million program in the construction industry to encourage the construction and retrofit of more energy-efficient buildings and houses.
• A $20-million program that aims to accelerate energy-saving investments and the exchange of best practices information within Canada's industrial sector.

Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn made Sunday's announcement at the Toronto Home Show.
(CBC)

Under the retrofit program, the government expects homeowners will receive a grant of up to $5,000, depending on the efficiencies that can be realized, Lunn said.

"Not only will homeowners receive this one-time grant, but they will continue to realize the potential of thousands of dollars in savings in their energy costs, year after year."

"There are more than 13 million homes and 380,000 buildings in this country," the minister said. "They use 30 per cent of our energy and are responsible for almost 30 per cent of Canada's greenhouse gas emissions.

"Canada's industries account for 38 per cent of energy demand and are responsible for 34 per cent of our greenhouse gases," he said.

Last week, the Conservatives unveiled two other environment plans. One would invest in projects that generate electricity by wind, solar and other forms of renewable energy. The other would help clean up the production of conventional energy.

Critics say the plans are similar to incentives launched under the former Liberal government that were put on hold after the Conservatives took office last year.

Former Liberal leadership contender Bob Rae has charged that the Harper Conservatives realize "they missed the boat completely" on the environment in general, and on global warming in particular.

In a shot at the environment minister, Rae, who is working on Liberal campaign strategy, said the government is now doing what he calls the "Baird minimum" while trying to look green.

Money for coastal rainforest

Later on Sunday, Federal Environment Minister John Baird said the Harper government would spend $30 million to help preserve the Spirit Bear Rainforest in British Columbia "for generations to come."

It's described as the world's largest coastal temperate rainforest, covering about 20,000 square kilometres.

The region is named after the rare white Spirit Bear, a genetic variation of the black bear.

In 2003, the B.C. government said it would ban logging from several areas of the rainforest, which stretches north to the Alaskan border. 

In total, $120 million is going to help preserve the region — $60 million from private funding and $30 million each from the federal and provincial government.

Officials say the money is an investment and that more cash could be made by taking tourists to see the bears than by logging their home.

"Most people think that you can only make money by cutting down forests, but today you're hearing that we are generating money by protecting forests," said Merran Smith of Forest Ethics.

Although he welcomed Sunday's announcement, Simon Jackson, executive director of the Spirit Bear Youth Coalition, said no new land was set aside.

"Although a lot of the area was protected in the B.C. coast, only two-thirds of the Spirit Bear's last intact habitat was set aside. There's one final third that's critical to the bear's survival," Jackson told CBC News.

Jackson said that area is still being logged.

"There's still more work to be done," he said.