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DECEMBER 2018 | 21 PHOTOGRAPHY BY EMA PETER/COURTESY MCCALLUMSATHER; RENDERING COURTESY STANTEC Green Building Design Green building design experiences a shift in thinking by NATALIE BRUCKNER T he green building design sector is advancing at such a rapid rate that it can be a little difficult to stay abreast of all the changes. Passive design, net zero, carbon positive – these are just a few terms and standards that now fall under the green building design umbrella. Mark Hutchinson, VP, Green Building Programs at Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC), says that the biggest challenge is indeed keeping up. "New standards and requirements are regularly being introduced, and technologies are evolving. There is also uncertainty about the future price of utilities and the price of carbon beyond 2022, which makes it more challenging to assess lifecycle costs," says Hutchinson. Over the past year, however, Hutchinson has seen growing recognition of the importance and urgency of reducing carbon emissions, and the role of the design community in preparing buildings to operate efficiently, using only low-carbon energy sources. Parametric analysis and an integrated approach to assessing all aspects of design are proving to be very valuable, says Hutchinson, especially when pursu- ing aggressive carbon reduction and energy efficiency goals. "The continuing drop in costs is making solar photovoltaics more interesting, and there are interesting developments in the performance of heat pumps," he adds. With the roll out of new standards and a plethora of green technologies and systems on the market, it can be difficult to figure out the best options. As a result, CaGBC recently formed the Zero Carbon Building steering committee to help guide the program's evolution and requirements as it grows beyond its 20 early-adopters. "We are also increasingly focused on accelerating the growth of the retrofit economy. We are currently piloting the Investor Confidence Project [ICP] as a mean to standardize and accelerate the approval of funding for retrofits," he says. A couple of great examples of green building design are evolv1 and Mohawk College's Joyce Centre, both in Ontario. "evolv1 is a commercial office that high- lights the business case for zero carbon construction, while the Joyce Centre will actually train building designers and operators of the future. Both incorporated innovative strategies to achieve zero carbon outcomes," says Hutchinson. He adds that the City of Calgary's new compost facility is also a showcase project as it is the first new construction project certified under LEED v4. Over on the West Coast in Vancouver, green building design and construction remains the second-largest sector under Vancouver's Green Economy umbrella, driven by progressive, local green building policies, and international demand for local expertise. According to Thomas Hansen, Calgary branch manager and sustainability practice leader at Williams Engineering Canada, the increase in the number of building design standards is giving owners more options to reach their design sustainability goals. From Zero To Hero Joyce Centre for Partnership & Innovation, Mohawk College, Hamilton, ON. evolv1, Waterloo, ON.

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