Nexii creates 1st sustainable restaurant in BC

BIZ  Real Estate, ESG  •  Retail  •  National

Nexii Building Solutions Inc. and Popeyes have partnered to create Canada’s first sustainably constructed restaurant in Abbotsford, B.C. The green construction company’s technology curtailed onsite construction waste to near zero and will result in a 30 per cent reduction in

Lion Electric building battery complex at Mirabel

Commercial, Real Estate  •  Canada Newswire  •  Les Affaires  •  La Presse

The Lion Electric Company, a leading manufacturer of all-electric medium and heavy-duty urban vehicles, announced the company’s $185-million battery manufacturing plant and innovation centre will be located at the YMX International Aerocity of Mirabel, Quebec.

Battery-grade lithium secures chemical conversion site

Energy, Real Estate  •  Globe Newswire  •  La Presse

Nemaska Lithium Inc. has entered into an agreement to purchase a 500,000m² plot of land in Industrial park and port of Bécancour for its chemical conversion facility. The facility will work with Nemaska’s Whabouchi mine to produce battery-grade lithium hydroxide.

Built Green issues 7th sustainability challenge

Real Estate, ESG  •  Canada Newswire  •  SustainableBiz

Complementing National Environment Week, Built Green Canada issues its seventh annual challenge to municipalities, to raise awareness of the importance of sustainable building practices, to challenge municipalities to encourage green building, and to highlight those leading the way.

OAA panellists discuss the value of zero

Energy, Real Estate  •  Daily Commercial News

Progress is being made toward building low- and zero-carbon buildings, but there is still a long way to go. That was one of the key points that emerged in an Ontario Association of Architects-sponsored virtual 2021 panel discussion.

The building itself is now the solar panel

Energy, Real Estate  •  CBC  •  ArchDaily

When you walk through the atrium of the Edmonton Convention Centre or glimpse the sloped roof of the Varennes Library in Montreal, it’s not obvious they are generating power. But both are building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPVs); i.e., made of solar panels.

Calgary-based Delta CleanTech seeks direct listing

Real Estate, Finance  •  Financial Post

The climate change policies from the Canadian and American governments have breathed new life into one of the older companies focused on carbon capture, Delta CleanTech. The Calgary-based firm is looking at a direct listing on the Canadian Securities Exchange.

Nasdaq buys big stake in carbon removal market

Energy, Real Estate, ESG  •  Green Biz

Nasdaq announced it has acquired a majority stake in Puro.earth, an online marketplace that offers carbon removal for leading corporates such as Microsoft and SEB. Nasdaq will help Puro.earth address demand for carbon removal to reach net zero.

Climate looms large for incoming head of OSFI

Real Estate  •  Globe and Mail

OPINION: Canada will have a new top financial watchdog. The federal body regulating big banks, insurers, and pensions funds has consulted with the industry and sketched out plans to calculate the risks of moving the country to net-zero carbon emissions.

Wall Street’s climate solution mired in disagreements

Finance, ESG  •  Bloomberg

Mark Carney, former governor of the Bank of England, and Standard Chartered Chief Executive Bill Winters are organizing the Taskforce on Scaling Voluntary Carbon Markets. They are working with executives and scientists to set up global trade in carbon offsets.

Banks must put capital toward climate solutions

Finance, ESG  •  Corporate Knights

Banks, pension funds, and insurance companies need plans regarding their responses to the climate crisis. We need to ensure that sufficient capital is put toward climate solutions, enabling the retooling required of our energy, industrial, and built environments.

Analysis reveals disparities in emissions intensity

Energy, Real Estate  •  Ceres

An original analysis from Ceres and the Clean Air Task Force provides the data needed to directly compare relative emissions intensity and total reported methane, carbon dioxide, and nitrous oxide emissions for nearly 300 U.S. oil and gas producers.

Farm Boy eliminates single-use plastic grocery bags

Real Estate  •  Canadian Grocer

Empire-owned Farm Boy has eliminated single-use plastic grocery bags from its stores. Customers shopping Farm Boy’s 35-plus Ontario locations can bring their own bags to use at checkout or purchase paper bags for 15 cents.

Retail supports new blue box regulation

Real Estate, ESG  •  Canada Newswire  •  Globe and Mail

The Retail Council of Canada is transitioning to a blue box system wherein management shifts to industry for all residential recycling. As a result, Ontario’s stewards will more than quadruple their annual contribution to recycling, from $135 to $600 million annually.

$25M plastics fund advances recycling in NA

Real Estate, ESG, Waste  •  Sustainable Brands

Three plastics giants—Dow, LyondellBasell, and NOVA Chemicals—established the Closed Loop Circular Plastics Fund to invest in scalable recycling technologies, equipment upgrades, and infrastructure solutions across the U.S. and Canada. The Fund advances the recovery and recycling of plastics.

Sustainable apparel shopping post-pandemic

Real Estate, ESG  •  Textile World

Sustainability is top-of-mind for consumers and it’s not enough for brands and retailers to simply set stewardship goals; there has to be data to prove it. That’s where the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol, the standard for sustainable cotton, comes in.

Electrifying everything: “30 Under 30” voices

Energy  •  Green Biz

Sarah Golden, GreenBiz senior energy analyst, joins as guest host. Golden, one of the VERGE Electrify co-chairs, and Joel Makower discuss the inaugural two-day conference and why now is the perfect time to electrify everything.

Habitable future requires resilient grid

Energy, Real Estate  •  Green Biz

Under normal circumstances, the electric grid performs as it should: Operations run smoothly and technicians resolve power outages without issue. But increasingly, modern infrastructure has had to endure an uptick in extreme weather, wildfires, and other high-impact, low-frequency events.

Heathrow Airport to use renewable jet fuel for 1st time

Real Estate  •  Globe and Mail

Heathrow Airport will use sustainable jet fuel for the first time. The fuel, produced by Finland’s Neste and supplied by oil trader Vitol, is made entirely of renewable and sustainable waste such as cooking oil and animal fat.

1st US offshore wind project Vineyard Wind I approved

Energy, ESG  •  GreenBiz

Federal approval for the first utility-scale offshore wind project in U.S. waters, Vineyard Wind I, is an important milestone. Last month’s Record of Decision (ROD) brings us one step closer to kicking our fossil fuel habit and embracing clean energy.

Insurance provider for Trans Mountain pipeline says it won’t renew policy

Real Estate  •  Winnipeg Free Press

An insurance provider for the Trans Mountain pipeline said it will not renew its policy with the company when it expires in August.

Argo Group International Holdings Ltd., an international underwriter based in Bermuda, said the project no longer fits the company’s risk appetite.

TMX Group releases 2020 ESG Report

Finance, ESG  •  TSXX

TMX Group has released its second annual Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Report. Included is an agreement with IHS Markit to facilitate broader ESG reporting and data distribution for issuers listed on Toronto Stock Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange.