In this webinar, Jon Loewen from Perkins & Will, Tom Jones and Lamya Baraam from City of Vaughan provided details on the development, design, and performance of the Carville Community Centre and Library, which is the City of Vaughan’s first net-zero carbon building. The session included detailed insights into energy efficiency, emissions reductions, operational challenges, and lessons learned.
Corporate Energy
Low-Carbon Affordable Housing: Efficiency Meets Equity
Waterloo Region Housing’s 420 Kingscourt Drive is a 73-unit building that provides comfortable and energy-efficient housing for lower-income residents. The building was designed with renewable energy and energy efficiency measures, including ground source heat pumps connected to an open-loop geothermal system and solar PV panels, integrated, and is expected to result in energy savings of approximately $54,000 annually, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and net annual total energy use intensity. In this webinar, Tristan Wilkin, Supervisor, Affordable Housing Development and Brad Pick, Senior Project Manager, at Waterloo Region, presented on 420 Kingscourt Drive from project initiation through to development.
Additional Resources
- Waterloo Region Housing Revitalization Plan (WRHRP)
- Canadian Green Building Council Zero-Carbon Building Design Standard
- TransformWR (Waterloo Region’s Community Climate Action Plan)
- Case study: Sustainable homes, stronger community
- Waterloo Region Housing Revitalization Plan Update (Council Report, 2024)
- 420 Kingscourt – 6 Storey Residential Development (Council Report, 2022, While the primary function is financial, the report repeatedly uses the project’s net-zero and environmental goals as a key justification for the investment)
- Sustainable Affordable Housing GMF funding (now closed).
If you are interested in a copy of the slide deck, please contact cap@cleanairpartnerhsip.org
BEPS CoP Webinar #1: The Important Role of Building Emissions Performance Standards in Net Zero
In this webinar, Natalia Enriquez Goyes and Ekaterina Tzekova from The Atmospheric Fund took participants on a Building Emissions Performance Standards (BEPS) journey. This webinar explored the role of BPS in net zero targets, why they are essential based on research on uptake from voluntary versus mandatory standards, and the progress occurring across North America. The speakers shared lessons learned from ongoing efforts that can inform local leading practices and approaches.
To inform future BEPS CoP efforts, following the presentation, participants engaged in break-out groups to explore municipal BEPS needs, concerns and required support. This webinar was the first in a series that aims to build municipal capacity and capabilities for exploring the role of BEPS in their community net-zero commitments.
Additional Resources
- TAF Resource Hub for Toronto BEPS
- TAF Metric Recommendation for Toronto’s BEPS
- TAF’s Resource on Building Sizes for Toronto’s BEPS
- BEPS Community of Practice Resource Hub
- BEPS Community of Practice Page
- City of Toronto BEPS Webpage
- City of Toronto Building Emissions Performance Standards (BEPS): Design Principles and Development Plan Staff Report
If you would like a copy of the slide deck, please contact us at cap@cleanairpartnership.org
Energy Managers Community of Practice Webinar: Peel Region’s NZE New Construction Standard
As buildings contribute significantly to Peel’s corporate emissions, the Office of Climate Change and Energy Management (OCCEM) at Peel Region has developed a Corporate Net Zero Emission (NZE) Policy and Standard for new construction, ensuring all new corporate buildings do not add to the already strained current GHG inventory. The Standard is instrumental in driving deep carbon reductions in new construction, thus enabling Peel to meet its corporate emissions reduction target of 45% by 2030 as well as the longer-term ambition of achieving net zero emissions by 2050.
Recognized with the CaGBC Government Leadership Award, this Standard provides a comprehensive set of guidelines and requirements designed to ensure that all new regional buildings and facilities achieve Net-Zero carbon emissions. It builds upon the basic principles of the Canada Green Building Council (CAGBC) Zero Carbon Building (ZCB) design certification and incorporates additional measures to elevate environmental and operational standards. Bassem Elosman, Advisor of Climate Change and Energy Management with Peel Region, delivered a presentation on the Standards and how they are being applied to new construction.
If you would like a copy of the slide deck, please contact us at cap@cleanairpartnership.org
Energy Efficiency Retrofit of Ottawa RA Recreation Centre
In this webinar, we heard from Mario Giamberardino, Chief Financial Officer at RA Centre. The RA Centre is a multi-sport and recreation facility in Ottawa that partnered with SOFIAC to access Canada Infrastructure Bank funds to invest in its efficiency plan. Mario shared their experiences advancing their energy efficiency work as well as issues encountered and lessons learned.
If you would like a copy of the slide deck, please contact us at cap@cleanairpartnership.org
City of Mississauga’s Journey of Using an Open-Protocol BAS and Energy Monitoring & Fault Detection Software
In this webinar, staff from the City of Mississauga covered the key aspects of their journey of using an Open-Protocol BAS and Energy Monitoring & Fault Detection Software. They covered the why, what, how, and lessons learned from using BAS, Energy Monitoring and Fault Detection Strategy.
If you would like a copy of the slide deck, please contact us at cap@cleanairpartnership.org
CTAP – Community Technology Assessment Platform
Developed by Natural Resources Canada, CTAP is an easy-to-use tool that helps compile residential building stock energy and greenhouse gas (GHG) use. CTAP enables an analysis of housing archetypes within a community and their associated energy and carbon reduction potential, thereby enabling an analysis of the potential for a community retrofit program.
In this webinar, Charles Mougeot, Project Leader at CE-O—CanmetENERGY-Ottawa, Natural Resources Canada introduced the Community Technology Assessment Platform (CTAP).
If you would like a copy of the slide deck, please email cap@cleanairpartnership.org
CAC Energy Managers COP Meeting: IESO’s CDM and Enbridge’s DSM Programs for Municipalities
In this meeting, IESO and Enbridge highlighted programs applicable to municipal energy efficiency and electrification efforts (for corporate buildings). They discussed potential suggestions for the upcoming Conservation and Demand Management (CDM) and Demand Side Management (DSM) Framework consultations.
- Webinar Recording
- Summary Notes
- Vicki Gagnon, IESO Programs, recording of presentation starts at 3.50
- Shivansh Singh, IESO Energy Performance Program, recording of presentation starts at 15.20
- Andres Serrano, Enbridge Commercial Programs, recording of presentation starts at 29.21
- Mark Wilson, Enbridge Municipal Energy Solution Offerings, recording of presentation starts at 41.00
For a copy of the slide decks, please email cap@cleanairpartnership.org
Energy Managers Community of Practice In Person Meeting
In this meeting, we heard from Bryan Ho-Yan, City of Guelph, on wastewater aeration upgrades, piloting electric buses and charging, Zero Carbon Building Community Centre and Baker Library projects, ISO 50001 Corporate, and BAS master specification development. In the second part, we heard from Duncan MacLellan and Howlan Mullally, City of Toronto, on the new emissions performance reporting by-law and an overview of the net zero carbon plan.
- Summary Notes
- Bryan Ho-Yan, City of Guelph, Energy & Climate Change Updates (Presentation Recording)
- Duncan MacLellan, City of Toronto, Environment and Climate Program and Initiatives (Presentation Recording)
- Howlan Mullally, City of Toronto, Overview of the Net Zero Carbon Plan (Presentation Recording)
Other Resources:
- Corporate Knights Article: Here we go again: Ontario’s reckless nuclear gamble
- TAF’s Future-proofing new homes with Conservation and Demand Management
For a copy of the slide decks, please email cap@cleanairpartnership.org
Bringing in Low Carbon Energy Solutions Right from the Get Go
New development presents an ideal opportunity to get a lower carbon energy system in place right from the beginning, and that is the most cost-effective time to incorporate lower carbon energy considerations. One of the primary barriers faced by lower carbon opportunities is that they can add to upfront capital costs, even if they do cost less over the lifetime of the asset. Utility business models are being used to increase uptake to lower carbon opportunities and are a critical way to address the upfront capital cost barrier.
In this webinar, Tim Weber from the Ontario Geothermal Association and Diverso Energy shared information on the importance and structure of the utility business model, took participants through a sample project costing example, and spoke to the importance of municipal Green Standards to drive carbon considerations in new developments.
For a copy of the slide deck, please email cap@cleanairpartnership.org
Municipal Energy Managers Meeting – Decarbonization & High Efficiency Electrification of Heating Systems
The electrification of heating systems plays a significant role in building decarbonization, and heat pumps are emerging as a solution. In this webinar, Lukas Glaspell from Trane Technologies – a building technology and energy solutions company – talked about the low-carbon mechanical systems available thus far. He presented real-world examples of decarbonization routes/options. We learned about leading practices and the cost-effectiveness of electrifying heating systems.
For a copy of the slide deck, please email cap@cleanairpartnership.org