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Daniels builds fossil fuel-free Field House in Toronto

4 years ago

A $21-million, fossil fuel-free community is being built in downtown Toronto’s Regent Park neighbourhood as part of a sustainable launch by Daniels Corporation. The community features 24 three-storey, three-bedroom townhomes with all-electric building systems.

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A federal government $5.1-million investment in London Hydro to develop and deploy a smart microgrid in the West 5 net-zero energy community in London, Ontario will help the community achieve its net-zero targets.

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Royal Bank of Canada will buy solar power from BluEarth Renewables Inc. under a renewable-energy contract that’s a first of its kind for a Canadian financial firm. Canada’s largest bank and partner Bullfrog Power will each purchase 31,500 megawatt-hours per year.

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Construction at the mixed-use Bayside Toronto development is about to accelerate once again, with Hines hosting the official groundbreaking for the T3 Bayside office and retail complex on July 23.

Building Lasting Change

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Now for some serious fun. I had the opportunity to facilitate an online conversation with Terreform ONE, a New York nonprofit architecture and urban design research group aiming “to combat the extinction of planetary species through pioneering acts of design.”

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Ontario Place’s next life comes at a critical time for parks in Toronto, and across Canada. Park People, an advocacy organization for parkland in Canadian cities, just released a report looking at the “trends, challenges and leading practices” in 27 cities.

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Imagine being able to ride a bicycle, wheel a mobility aid or walk from Langley to Lions Bay on an uninterrupted greenway that traverses parks, skirts waterways, and weaves through every Metro Vancouver municipality. That vision could become a reality.

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It’s difficult to remember that below shopping malls and high-rises, there is soil. For decades cities have favoured cement over greenery, but now, some city dwellers are returning to their grassroots by “depaving”, removing asphalt and parking lots.

Energy Profiles

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Growing up in Westminster Township, Thom McClenaghan played in all sorts of places. The wrecking yard by a large ravine was a regular Sunday retreat — “providing they had the dogs on chains,” says McClenaghan, now 83.

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Northern Climate Pathways Inc. has been commissioned by Arcana Restoration Ltd, a Toronto based heritage masonry restoration company, to show that reclaimed bricks used on its projects have a production carbon footprint 79 times smaller than newly fabricated bricks.

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The world’s biggest automakers are ramping up their carbon commitments even as they struggle to build back in the wake of the pandemic.  This week, Germany’s BMW set a goal to reduce per-car carbon emissions by at least one-third by 2030.

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Google has achieved Alliance for Water Stewardship certification at its Mountain View, California, and Dublin, Ireland campuses under the AWS Standard. AWS certification for commercial offices demonstrates a commitment to understanding the complex issues and opportunities within watersheds.

ICS Facilities Services

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Roughly half the industries in our economy face significant water risks including dwindling water sources, pollution, climate change, and increasing competition. That is the startling insight revealed by Ceres analysis of the sectors in the four main U.S. stock indices.

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It is the three-month anniversary of a federal government program designed to help large Canadian companies withstand COVID-19’s economic shocks. The Large Employer Emergency Financing Facility (LEEFF) program had some notable strings attached to access $60 million or more in loans.

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As Canada transitions to a low-carbon future, construction will be at the forefront. It represents over seven per cent of Canada’s GDP and almost 30 per cent of Canada’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions when building operations, construction, and materials are included.

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A new coalition, Workforce 2030, was recently launched to accelerate the development of the workforce needed to build a low-carbon Ontario. Supported by The Atmospheric Fund and CaGBC, it’s a coalition of employers, educators and building sector workers.

Smart Density

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Facebook has broken ground on a data centre northeast of Nashville that will cost more than $800 million and run entirely on renewable energy. The 982,000-square-foot project in Gallatin is the second data centre Facebook has unveiled this year.

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To meet social distancing requirements brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, cities across the U.S. are moving permitting services, including solar, online. International Code Council recently found 65 per cent of local code permitting officials have moved to remote work.

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Isaias’ punch to the U.S. East Coast resembled that of Superstorm Sandy, which eight years ago launched a drive for microgrids to ward off power outages. Isaias shut down power to 6.4 million homes and businesses, remarkably close to Sandy’s 8.1 million.

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As the death toll mounts from a disease caused by human incursions into once intact ecosystems, we’re observing another death — the demise of fossil fuels. Royal Dutch Shell announced its intent to become a net-zero carbon company by 2050.

Industry Events