Our November issue highlighted the increasing number of Canadian buildings which are adopting smart and/or environmental technology. As a timely follow-on to that piece, the Operations Centre at Gulf Islands National Park Reserve in Sidney, B.C., just received Canada’s first-ever Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification. Fewer than 10 buildings in the world have obtained Platinum standing.
LEED is a standard developed by the Canada Green Building Council to accelerate the design and construction of green buildings. Use of the ocean, sunlight and Sidney’s abundant rainfall were incorporated into the Operations Centre’s systems during construction.
The building uses 75 per cent less energy than a comparable standard building and cuts greenhouse gas emissions by 32.3 tons annually. The centre’s features include an ocean-based heat-pump system, coupled with a hot water radiant heat floor system, to provide heating; rainwater storage to flush the building’s low-flow toilets; and a roof-mounted photovoltaic solar system to supply 20 per cent of its energy needs. The building also won the 2006 British Columbia Wood Design Award for High Performance Building for a design that reduces energy, resource use and pollution.
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