Older apartment building retrofits reducing GHGs: FortisBC

BIZ  Energy, Real Estate  •  Apartments  •  National, British Columbia

More than 847 older B.C. apartment buildings have received simple, energy-saving upgrades since the Rental Apartment Program (RAP) was launched by FortisBC in 2015, a number that “goes up everyday” according to program manager Jim Kobialko.

ZCB Standard celebrates first 10 certifications

Real Estate  •  Canada Green Building Council

Canada Green Building Council is helping to eliminate carbon emissions with 10 projects certifying under its Zero Carbon Building Standard. Projects include new and existing offices, schools and warehouses, demonstrating that all types of buildings can achieve zero carbon.

WorldGBC digital library features sustainable buildings

Real Estate  •  Facility Executive  •  World GBC Digital Library

The World Green Building Council launched a new digital case study library showcasing examples of the world’s most cutting-edge sustainable buildings. Each case study demonstrates enhanced performance in relation to health benefits or achieves net-zero operational carbon.

Landform Design Institute to boost reclamation standards

Real Estate  •  Daily Commercial News

A new organization, the Landform Design Institute, was launched in September by veteran geotechnical engineer Gord McKenna to improve land-reclamation practices in resource extraction worldwide. He is the principal of 30-year-old Delta, B.C.-based McKenna Geotechnical Inc.

96.5% recycling rate for Windsor city hall demolition

Real Estate  •  Windsor Star

When the City of Windsor first decided on this green demolition policy officials were hoping for a recycling rate of 80 to 85 per cent, not including hazardous waste. But the actual waste diversion rate ended up at 96.5 per cent.

Sobeys paves parking lot with post-consumer plastic

Real Estate  •  Canada Newswire

Sobeys opened a store in Nova Scotia with Canada’s first parking lots paved using post-consumer plastics diverted from local landfills. The amount of recycled plastics used in the mixture is the equivalent of more than 6 million plastic checkout bags.

Vancouver to ban plastic bags on January 2021

Real Estate  •  Business In Vancouver  •  CBC

Interface, twenty-five years green

Real Estate  •  TreeHugger

One of the very first posts on TreeHugger, when the posts were short and pictures were tiny, was titled Interface, Ten Years Green. The un-named writer noted, “Anderson wants not just to be an example, but a leader, influencing others.”

Hydro One, IESO invest $580M in Essex electrical system

Energy  •  Canada Newswire

Hydro One and the Independent Electricity System Operator announced a multi-stage investment of approximately $580 million in new and previously announced projects in Essex County expected to provide enough electricity by 2026 to supply a city the size of Ottawa.

Garbage could power Quebec City’s new super hospital

Real Estate  •  CBC

Quebec City wants to power its new super hospital partly from the steam generated from the municipal incinerator but says it needs nearly $30 million from the federal and provincial governments to make the innovative project a reality.

Hyperloop ‘makes a lot of sense’ for Toronto

Real Estate  •  Financial Post

The entrepreneur attempting to make a reality of Elon Musk’s Hyperloop dream, an efficient, green replacement to high-speed rail in the form of a capsule barrelling at the speed of sound through a vacuum-sealed tube, foresees a Toronto Hyperloop connection.

CDPQ invests in Australia’s driverless metro system

Energy, Real Estate  •  Canada Newswire

Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) announced the acquisition of a 24.9% stake in the public-private partnership (PPP) contract for the Sydney Metro, Australia’s biggest public transport project. The total value of the transaction is CAD 150 million.

Database consolidates provincial ZEV programs

Energy  •  Electric Autonomy

A new provincial energy efficiency scorecard tracks a spectrum of policies, including those on personal transportation, EV and PHEV financial incentives and “EV Ready” building codes as Canada and the provinces develop policies and strategies to accelerate the low-carbon economy.

World first CCS technology captures 3MT of carbon

Real Estate  •  Canada Newswire

SaskPower’s Boundary Dam 3 CCS Facility recently surpassed three million tonnes of captured carbon dioxide. As a first-mover in carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology it continues to achieve, improve and make a steady impact in reducing and storing CO2.

Excitement builds about renewable energy in Alberta

Real Estate  •  Pembina Institute  •  Globe and Mail

The day before the first Business Renewables Centre Canada event in Calgary last month, Renewable Energy Systems and BHE Canada announced the $200-million Rattlesnake Ridge wind energy project. Alberta has some of the best wind and solar potential in Canada.

Alberta coal phase-out a lesson in energy transitioning

Real Estate  •  Edmonton Journal

A report titled Alberta’s Coal Phase-Out: A Just Transition uses Parkland County as a case study to argue Alberta’s accelerated phase-out of coal-fired electricity can be a blueprint for jurisdictions around the world seeking to transition to cleaner energy sources.

Report predicts strong growth for modular building

Real Estate  •  Construct Connect

A global uptick in construction activities, significant cost, labour and time savings in offsite construction are key factors driving market revenues for modular buildings toward $285 billion by 2025 according to Frost & Sullivan’s Global Modular and Prefabricated Buildings Market, Forecast to 2025.

S&P Global to acquire RobecoSAM’s ESG ratings business

Real Estate  •  GreenBiz

S&P Global has announced plans to acquire the environmental social governance (ESG) business of RobecoSAM for an undisclosed sum, in a move aimed at strengthening the credit ratings giant’s expertise in evaluating the sustainability credentials of companies around the world.

When to PR your CSR initiatives: Are you overdoing it?

Real Estate  •  Marketing Interactive

CSR activities are a great way for companies to advocate for a cause that is close to their brands’, employees’ values and gives back to society.  Doing it for the right reason, not just as a publicity stunt is crucial.

Barack Obama on climate, equity and overconsumption

Real Estate  •  GreenBiz

Whether you loved or hated former president Barack Obama, you can’t deny his style of leadership and approach to environmental sustainability differed from his successor. You may be wondering what Obama thinks about the climate crisis and other sustainability issues.