October 6, 2008

Sustainable Building Practices

Battle brews over green-rating systems for high-rise residential buildings

RICHARD GILBERT

staff writer

The promotion of two different environmental certification systems for the construction of high-rise residential buildings is stimulating debate and new competition in the B.C. and Alberta markets.

The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for New Construction rating system was designed by the U.S. Green Building Council to facilitate high-performance commercial and institutional projects, including high-rise residential structures.

The Built Green Society of Canada launched the Built Green Multi-Storey and Residential Tower pilot program in 2006.

With the recent completion of several buildings using the Built Green system, the program is no longer in the pilot stage.

The merits of implementing either system is a matter open to debate in B.C. and Alberta.

“We are providing the case that Built Green is equal to or better than the LEED standard, because the building is rated when construction ends,” said Jennifer Shaw, program director for Built Green BC.

“The developer can get the building certified when construction is complete, rather than waiting for tenants to occupy and complete their own construction work.”

Shaw doesn’t try to compare the two systems.

“We have not made direct comparisons ourselves because the program is so new and we don’t have the statistics for the completed buildings yet,” she said.

However, Shaw said she does believe that Built Green is easier to learn, attain and work into projects than LEED.

She also said the program is not as administratively cumbersome as LEED and the fee and registration structure is lower.

In contrast, the Canada Green Building Council, the governing body overseeing LEED in the country, has done a comparison between the LEED and the Built Green Alberta systems.

“Built Green is a regional system, but what is needed is a national system that recognizes regional differences,” said Thomas Mueller, president and CEO of the Canada Green Building Council.

“I think LEED is a very rigorous system that serves the market well. Any new system coming in should be as rigorous as possible. I am not sure that Built Green for high-rise residential provides that type of rigor.”

According to Mueller, it is important at this point in time, with environmental and climate change, for builders to support the highest level of performance.

Despite his criticism, Mueller said that the entry of Built Green into this market is good, because it is stimulating competition in the high-rise residential market.

During a meeting of the Canadian Construction Association (CCA) Environment Committee at their fall board meeting, committee chair Murray Aiken said the CCA has agreed to let the marketplace determine which system is best.

The CCA is avoiding endorsing any one system.

Jay Westman from Jayman MasterBUILT began the development of the Built Green building program in June 2002, as president of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA).

Built Green is an energy efficiency and sustainability program for residential housing, which launched in Calgary in 2003 and spread to the rest of Alberta and B.C. in 2005.

The program requires residential buildings to be evaluated according to energy efficiency, indoor air quality, resource use and overall environmental impact.

“We tried single family first, because the program was originally designed for that,” said Shaw. “The CHBA is about residential construction and there is a large demand for a program of this type for high-rise and low-rise buildings. It was a natural evolution for the program.”

The EnerGuide system is used to model the whole building, meet targets and get certification.

The process starts with a plan evaluation, performed by a Certified Energy Advisor.

The consultation process outlines a list of energy efficiency upgrade options that are required to meet the desired energy efficiency level.

The advisor visits the building after construction and performs an inspection and an ‘air test’ to determine the home’s actual performance. Afterwards an EnerGuide house label is put on the electrical panel of their home.

LEED for New Construction is a performance-oriented rating system, where building projects earn points for satisfying criteria designed to address specific environmental impacts inherent in design, construction, operations and management.

The LEED for New Construction Rating System can be applied to commercial, institutional and high-rise residential projects, with a focus on office buildings.

It grew from one standard for new construction to a comprehensive system of six interrelated standards.

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