EarthRenew creates green fertilizer, power from manure

BIZ  Energy, Waste  •  Industrial, Land  •  Calgary, International

EarthRenew likes to say that it helps turn “waste into wonder.” The Calgary-area company’s patented thermal processing technology transforms livestock manure into a powerful, all-natural organic fertilizer that promotes plant growth and restores soil health. It also creates green electricity.

Paving roads with plastic could dent waste problem

Real Estate  •  Yale 360

A road running through Accra, Ghana’s capital, looks like any other blacktop. Yet what most drivers don’t realize is that the asphalt under them contains a slurry of used consumer-grade plastics that otherwise were destined for a landfill.

Circular Fashion Partnership begins in Bangladesh

Waste  •  Sustainable Brands

Circular Fashion Partnership aims to achieve a transition to a circular fashion system beginning in the heart of fast-fashion production, Bangladesh. It brings together apparel brands, tracking platform Reverse Resources, P4G a global nonprofit and the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers Association.

Brookfield pursues $7.5B fund for ‘net-zero’ shift

Real Estate  •  Bloomberg

Canadian investment firm, Brookfield Asset Management Inc. plans to raise about $7.5 billion for a new climate-focused fund, as it builds out an ESG business led by Mark Carney that will focus on renewables and investments that will reduce carbon emissions.

Allied closes $600-million green bond offering

Real Estate  •  Globe Newswire  •  Sustainable Biz Canada

Allied Properties REIT (AP-UN-T) has closed its previously announced offering of $600 million aggregate principal amount of series H senior unsecured debentures that bear interest at a rate of 1.726 per cent per annum and mature on Feb. 12, 2026.

Top 10 U.S. states for LEED green building in 2020

Real Estate  •  PR Newswire

The U.S. Green Building Council released its annual list of the top 10 states for LEED green building with Massachusetts ranking first. The top states in 2020 certified a remarkable 1,171 projects with more than 60 per cent representing offices, education and healthcare facilities.

Canada Green Building Council › Carbon and climate to take centre stage in 2021

Mark Hutchinson: Vice President, Green Building Programs and Innovation, Canada Green Building Council

Condos driving geothermal growth in Ontario

Real Estate  •  CBC  •  Sustainable Biz Canada  •  Sustainable Biz Canada

Many condominiums being designed and built now in Canada are greener than their predecessors — not just from the ground up but also deep down. Many are turning to fossil fuel-free geothermal or geoexchange technology for their heating and cooling.

Oakville completes intensive climate action pilot

Real Estate  •  Oakville News

The Town of Oakville is one of only 25 municipalities across Canada that successfully completed an intensive pilot focusing on local climate action. By participating in this pilot, the town has been recognized as a leader on local climate action both nationally and internationally.

Richmond considers incentives to build ‘passive houses’

Real Estate  •  Business In Vancouver

The City of Richmond is considering lowering permit fees and allowing more density for home builders who construct energy-efficient houses. This is in anticipation of new building rules required by the province that all homes are built to high energy-efficient standards by 2025.

Alberta cold snap no match for net-zero home

Real Estate  •  CBC  •  CBC

A polar vortex brought bitterly cold temperatures to Alberta this week but thanks to sunny weather, Darryl Zubot was cosy and warm inside his home that has been designed to be net-zero without needing to fire up a furnace.

What is rammed earth construction?

Real Estate  •  TreeHugger

Rammed earth is the descendant of ancient construction techniques like adobe or cob building that can be used to build walls for many kinds of buildings. It’s made of earth, placed into formwork and then compressed into a solid wall.

Demand for sustainable fuels clean tech IPO wave

Real Estate  •  Globe and Mail

Developers of clean energy, emission-free transportation and other climate-friendly technologies are tapping capital markets in what financial players see as a new wave of initial public offerings driven by surging investor demand for sustainable assets.

KLM’s first regular flight with sustainable synthetic fuel

Real Estate  •  Toronto Star

Air France-KLM’s Dutch arm operated a passenger flight from Amsterdam to Madrid the carrier says was the first in the world to use sustainably derived synthetic aviation fuel. The Boeing 737-800 narrow-body plane carried 500 litres of the fuel.

Hydrogen Valleys – A European idea going global

Energy  •  H2 View

Hydrogen Valleys have recently become a global phenomenon. The Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU) coined the concept of “hydrogen valley” as a way to designate geographical areas where several hydrogen applications come together into an integrated hydrogen ecosystem.

Bubble in hydrogen power stocks building

Energy  •  Globe and Mail

The long-term outlook for the hydrogen molecule as a near-bottomless source of green energy is promising but cost-competitive hydrogen energy is at least five years away. Yet investors are pouring money into companies that won’t have revenue for years.

Alberta waste heat-to-power pilot facility, a first

Energy  •  Environmental Leader

Siemens Energy has agreed with Canada-based TC Energy Corporation to commission a waste heat-to-power pilot installation in Alberta. The facility will capture waste heat from a gas-fired turbine operating at a pipeline compression station and convert it into emissions-free power.

Gov’ts commit $400M to oil and gas well cleanup

Real Estate  •  CBC  •  Globe and Mail  •  Toronto Star

Provincial and federal governments announced the next round of project funding to kick-start the program to clean up Alberta’s abandoned and orphaned oil and gas sites. The $400-million funding commitment is part of Ottawa’s $1.7-billion reclamation and remediation plan.

Alberta, First Nation reach land preservation deal

Real Estate  •  Globe and Mail  •  CBC

A Northern Alberta land protection plan two decades in the making is finally done, limiting oil sands development in a pocket of what Chief Mel Grandjamb of Fort McKay First Nation calls “God’s country.”

Alberta to expand massive Kitaskino Nuwenëné Wildland

Real Estate  •  CBC  •  Globe and Mail

The Alberta government plans to create the largest contiguous protected boreal forest area in the world by expanding the Kitaskino Nuwenëné Wildland in the northeast part of the province. Under the plan, the wildland area would be expanded by 143,800 hectares.