RC109 NovDec 2023 - Magazine - Page 19
HE CONSTRUCTION OF SUSTAINABLE, net-zero buildings will
play a signi昀椀cant role in helping Canada reach its
goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. The use of materials such as mass timber reduces carbon emissions
as well as allows buildings to be constructed faster,
with lower labour costs and less waste. Incorporating new building performance standards such as LEED
and Passive House also ensure new buildings are as energy
e昀케cient as possible.
During a recent ReNew Canada Webinar—with support
from PCL Construction—a panel of experts discussed how
Canada’s educational institutions are leading the charge on
sustainable construction and helping to take some of the
risk out of new building techniques.
T
ReNew Canada: Why are so many educational institutions
leading the way when it comes to the use of sustainable
construction methods and building materials?
PATKAU ARCHITECTS/MJMA
NERYS RAU (GEROGE BROWN COLLEGE): I think educational institutions have di昀昀erent decision-making drivers than many sectors, particularly the
private sector. And this is I think why we’re
uniquely positioned to drive change and be
willing to drive change. With Limberlost Place we really
wanted to be an example of change, demonstrate innovation, and refute the misconceptions about sustainability;
that it’s possibly too expensive, for instance. It is also a
living lab for us and for our students. We’ve also been
extremely open about building in general, having done
more than 125 tours. We’ve opened it to consultants,
architects, engineers, contractors, developers, other public
institutions who have come through the building and we’ve
talked to them about the methodologies, the vision, our
challenges, which are really important to us to drive change
with this building.
ANDREW ARIFUZZAMAN (UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO
SCARBOROUGH CAMPUS): Students are making
choices about where they want to go to school.
They want to go to institutions that re昀氀ect the
values that they’re bringing forward. And so
that’s I think part of it. I think the other reason that the
post-secondary sector has such an opportunity around
driving innovation is because we build probably the most
diverse building stock out there. It’s everything from a
student residence, a high-tech science building, warehouse
buildings, athletic centres, o昀케ce buildings. And there’s not
a lot of other sectors that build that kind of diversity.
And each one of those building types lends itself to
di昀昀erent forms of innovations. It really allows us to push
boundaries in a way that other sectors don’t. And given
that we’re building buildings for the long term, we can take
on some of that risk. We’re bringing expertise, working
with some of the best consultancy groups in the world on
driving this kind of innovation. And then de-risking the
marketplace for future projects.
RENEWCANADA.NET
ReNew Canada: How are building standards and regulations helping to meet the challenges of sustainable
construction?
RYAN GOING (POMERLEAU): I think standards and
regulations play a huge part in driving the
industry forward. LEED, I think, is less
applicable now than when it debuted. For
example, when LEED 昀椀rst started to come out,
no contractors with very few exceptions were separating
their waste, and now it’s standard practice. Today LEED
has been somewhat eclipsed by new standards, such as
Passive House, that are really pushing the boundaries on
the next generation of sustainable buildings. And it’s not
just the industry that needs to understand these new
standards, but also the authorities that are issuing the
building permits as well. It’s a challenge we’ve encountered
on our University of Toronto Academic Tower project,
speci昀椀cally regarding the use of mass timber. There is still a
lot of misunderstanding when it comes to the building
material, thinking that it’s a huge 昀椀re risk. We had to add a
secondary redundant 昀椀re line to the project, which is not a
normal requirement. It’s just one example of where the
permitting regulations haven’t caught up to the industry.
Once completed, the
University of Toronto’s
14-storey Academic
Tower is expected to
be the tallest mass
timber and concrete
hybrid building in
North America.
MARK HENDERSON (PCL CONSTRUCTION): Without codes
in place, all we really have are standards that
are driving us to the next levels. We’re
anticipating an energy code release in 2030, but
between now and then, a lot of time is going to
be spent marching towards the goal of net-zero. And many
of the standards deal with energy e昀케ciency and anytime
we can incorporate these standards to raise awareness of
what we’re doing is important. We all love getting plaques
on our buildings and the accolades that go along and
To watch a replay of the entire discussion, visit:
https://www.crowdcast.io/c/sustainableconstruction.
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2023 – RENEW CANADA 19
