The first five buildings were connected to the new heating system in 2014. A dryer system was built to dry the biowaste for the heating system. The town installed a backup oil-powered boiler to cover peak demand in cold weather and give the biomass boiler a break for maintenance.

As with many best-laid plans, a couple of snags kept the town on its toes. It soon became clear that the heating requirements of the school and arena, which are located at the far end of the two-kilometre network, did not justify the construction costs to connect them. The pharmacy also underwent major renovations that improved its energy efficiency, reducing the potential impact of connecting it to the system. The town redirected its efforts to where they were most needed, setting up a second system to supply heat to offices, a mechanic shop and a workshop in 2015. 

The town’s flexibility served it well throughout the project. While little information was initially available on implementing such a system and heating with biofuels, the town kept an open mind as new information, techniques and equipment became available, learning and adapting along the way. 

The project has displaced fossil fuels and electricity for 95.1% of the energy used to heat the town’s municipal and institutional buildings. It has dramatically reduced the town’s reliance on these resources and reduced the town’s GHGs by about 133 tonnes per year. 

The project has also increased residents’ awareness of the value of sustainability and sparked pride in the community. Local jobs have also been created, attracting skilled young workers to the area. Saint-Ubalde has become an outstanding example of rural independence and innovation with a project that can easily be replicated in surrounding communities and in other parts of Canada. 

We have a local resource, the raw material, which is biomass. We need to encourage projects that use biomass—it’s money that stays here.”

—Pierre Saint-Germain, Mayor of Saint-Ubalde

Sources

L'érablière Savard et Douville Saint-Ubalde passe du mazout à la biomasse

The concept for a backwash wastewater recovery system was soon developed. First, the wastewater would flow into two sedimentation ponds to reduce its mineral content. The wastewater would then flow through a small stream for further cleaning and end in a filtration pond where it would return to the aquifer. The cleaned wastewater would be used to irrigate sports fields and parkland. 

Although the feasibility study noted the need for further testing and data collection, it also recommended that the work to implement the system proceed. After discussing the project with residents and a wide range of stakeholder groups and receiving significant support, the city put its plans in motion. 

The backwash wastewater recovery system was in place soon after the new water treatment plant opened, with only a few weather-related delays. True to its design, the system helps the city manage stormwater, recharge its groundwater aquifers and reduce the volume of water going into the sewer system. It also provides wildlife habitat and green space for the community. A five-kilometre walking path is popular year-round, and the filtration pond, stocked with rainbow trout, has become a favourite fishing destination among locals and visitors alike. 

The city’s decision to leverage its investment to further increase its environmental impacts is an inspiring example of how municipalities can take opportunities to push for even better results for the communities they serve.  

It was nice surprise to see how many people came out once they realized the walking paths and fish pond were available. It’s a very popular spot."

—Glenda Holmes, Waterworks Manager, City of Yorkton

In the new integrated waste management complex, a transfer centre makes it possible to process waste and recyclable materials separately in the same building.

At the ecocentre, residents separate their household hazardous waste, wood, metal and bulky items, such as furniture and appliances, into containers. Items in good condition, along with other items made from recycled materials, are sold at the reuse store. The warehouse provides storage space for local community organizations.

The RGMRM initially used an electric baler to press waste and recyclables into compact bundles for shipping. The baler was intended to reduce the number of trucks needed to transport them, which in turn would reduce GHG emissions. However, the amount of organic material remaining in the waste made it difficult to bale. The RGMRM reconsidered this component of the project as a result. The use of the press for recyclable materials reduced and optimized transportation costs over eight years, from 2012 to 2019. Ultimately, the drop in global demand for materials recovered through curbside recycling prompted the RGMRM to retire the baler.   

The RGMRM’s unique, one-stop approach to waste management has made the complex a popular destination for area residents. Trips to the eco-centre and reuse store are now a part of residents’ daily lives, instilling a strong sense of pride in the community. The site boasts up to 26,000 visits per year from a population of about 29,000. The welcoming and attractive reuse store, supplied by onsite workshops and local artisans, has been especially well-received. 

The project’s focus on recovery and reuse has significantly reduced the volume of waste sent to landfill. Consolidating waste management services has also reduced collection costs for participating municipalities and created 16 new permanent jobs at the complex. 

The success of this project clearly showcases the benefits of centralized waste management for all municipalities. This one-stop approach to waste management is an inspiring example that can be replicated in any community. 

Before the reuse store opened, I had no choice but to buy just new. It certainly changed the way I shop."

—Linda Girard, resident of Ragueneau

Consultations with residents provided valuable input to designing the most appropriate and cost-effective approach.

To collect the used textiles, the city built attractive, cottage-style smart bins and placed them at city-owned facilities. Each bin is equipped with solar panels to provide lighting for nighttime safety and security, and a sensor to signal when the bin is three-quarters full and ready for pick-up.

The pilot included an extensive campaign to educate residents on the value of diverting clothing and other textiles from landfill. Interest in the project was intense and swift, and the city soon gained additional partners, dramatically increasing its collection capacity. The city had originally aimed to test two bins, but by the end of April 2017, over 80 donation bins had been placed at fire stations, community centres, arenas, commercial developments and multi-residential properties (there are now over 150). Throughout the pilot, the city and its partners collected about 1,360 tonnes of textiles—12 times the original goal of 113.4 tonnes.

The amount of textiles diverted from landfill during the pilot offset 28,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, saved 95.2 million litres of water and avoided 761 tonnes of chemicals compared to the production of “virgin” fabrics.

The project is now a popular permanent program that actively supports local employment and social service charities. For example, the Salvation Army has added two full-time and two part-time employees and dedicated one full-time truck to service Markham’s bins. At no cost to the city, Markham’s charitable partners resell or recycle all the textile donations and track data on how much is diverted from landfill. In return, the partners use the proceeds to support their own programs.

Our family uses the Markham textile recycling bins regularly—with growing children and lots of hand-me-downs, we have no shortage of clothes that are too worn out to live a ‘third life.’ It feels good knowing that the material is being kept out of landfills and repurposed for industrial uses or recycled into new products."

—Ernesta R., Markham resident

To clean up the site, the city removed and remediated contaminated soil and reclaimed and recycled the timber that had collected in the area. The city built underground structures to hold the contaminated groundwater and prevent it from leaching into the Fraser River. Native plants were put in along the shoreline. 

One of the biggest hurdles involved the implementation time frames required by the project’s funders. To overcome this challenge in a sustainable, cost-effective way, the city engaged in a highly collaborative planning process, involving all stakeholders very early on. This approach helped the team make challenging but time- and budget-sensitive decisions, such as the choice to use an independent remediation process.

Westminster Pier Park remains an urban jewel. This unique, award-winning park offers pedestrian and bicycle pathways, programmable open spaces, and natural riverbank habitat for local wildlife. Its 600-metre boardwalk connects with a 2.5-kilometre linear waterfront park offering great views, green space, public art and playgrounds. All the park structures were designed to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Gold certification. 

This initiative has revitalized the neighbourhood and attracted new residential and commercial developments to the downtown area. It has also established a strong connection between the natural environment and the city core, and created a people-oriented recreational space for residents to enjoy. 

This project is an outstanding example of how converting former industrial sites to productive use can drive urban renewal, increase economic return and enhance quality of life. 

We have 10 acres on the water that was a lifeline before for our industry. Now it’s a lifeline for our people."

—Former Mayor Wayne Wright, City of New Westminster, BC

Completed in 2015, the library is a model of sustainable construction. It is built with sustainable materials and heated through a combination of solar panels and geothermal heat pumps. Up to 50,000 megawatts of excess solar energy can be returned to Hydro-Québec, for which the city receives a credit. Expansive windows provide abundant natural light, and some are motorized for natural ventilation. Low-flow toilets and taps have reduced water consumption by at least 27 percent. 

The building has Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Gold certification and is on track to reach net-zero energy by 2021. When it does, it will reduce its energy consumption by 2,975 gigajoules per year and save $80,000 in annual energy costs.  

The two-floor building has a total area of 2,000 square metres and is an accessible environment in which community members can learn and discover. The new library includes an activity room, work spaces, a reading room, a family and breastfeeding area, a computer lab, listening and viewing stations, and a multi-purpose space. Attention was paid to every detail, including heated floors and shelving aligned with the windows for light. 

Armed with a wealth of new knowledge after completing this project, the city takes every opportunity to showcase its lessons learned—regularly sharing data and knowledge to help other communities achieve their own sustainability goals.

The City of Varennes plans to apply similar sustainability standards to future municipal buildings. 

A dream come true! This is the best way to express the feeling of pride the elected officials and citizens of Varennes have about this great achievement. [This project] will change the way public buildings are constructed for the future.”

-Martin Damphousse, Mayor of the City of Varennes

Residents who once kept their windows open in winter to deal with excess heat were given control over the heat in their homes. New heat recovery ventilation systems brought more fresh air to the buildings, and two of the buildings also received welcome cooling in the summer. Replacing inefficient toilets with ultra low-flow models also brought substantial financial savings.

TCH and TAF significantly streamlined the retrofits by grouping the seven buildings into a single initiative and selecting a design-build firm that could handle a project on that scale. TCH, TAF and the design-build firm worked in partnership through all phases of the project, using an integrated project delivery (IPD) approach rather than the more usual linear design and review process. The project partners consider this approach a major part of the project’s success. 

Another big success factor was the project’s innovative financing model. TCH and TAF signed an Energy Savings Performance Agreement™, a form of non-debt financing. 

Under the agreement, TAF would cover the capital costs up front and TCH would repay TAF through the energy savings created by the project until the investment was repaid, plus a small return. The design-build firm was required to guarantee the energy savings for 10 years. 

The partners also worked with Building Up, a non-profit organization that trains people facing employment barriers, to offer opportunities for hands-on learning during the retrofit process. Twelve community members were hired to work on the project for a total of 1,677 hours of employment.

TCH has used its experience to inform retrofits of a number of other buildings and is working with other municipalities to help them do the same.  

Through its retrofits, TAF is showing that climate action can lead to new jobs.”

—Roshaun Singh, Building Up

With the new transit system in place, the number of bus passengers has doubled and GHG emissions have been reduced by about 24 percent. To house the buses, the town built a new storage and maintenance building, which has achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) certification. The buses are anticipated to be in service for about 18 years—three years longer than originally projected.

As with any ambitious initiative, there were bumps along the way. One challenge involved the tight timelines in the six weeks before the official launch of the new transit system: buses were driven from Montreal to Banff and wrapped with wildlife graphics in Calgary, drivers were trained and electronic fareboxes installed, brochures were created and delivered around town, signs at transit stops were updated, and over 1,000 smart cards were initialized. While major efforts by a small team of city staff ensured that timelines were met, the town would allow for more implementation time were it to take on a project of this scope again. 

In the years since the introduction of the hybrid buses, a regional hybrid transit system has been born, connecting Banff to nearby communities, parks and ski resorts. Ridership and fleet growth have been so strong that a new energy-efficient 32-bus storage facility is now under construction. The facility will be home to the town’s first electric buses, which will roll onto the streets of Banff in early 2021. 

Banff’s new hybrid fleet has not only increased community pride and the tourism industry, it has confirmed the Town of Banff as a leader in sustainability.

Being an early adopter of this technology means that not everything will be perfect, but it helps create demand and drive the industry to keep improving."

Karen Sorensen, Councillor for the Town of Banff

Using a heat transfer system, Enwave transfers thermal energy from its district cooling system to the cold drinking water. This re-chills the cooling water that circulates through a network of underground pipes to cool a number of buildings in the downtown core. This new, more passive and sustainable heat exchange technology replaced the energy-intensive cooling plant that was in place before the agreement.

The system has displaced 55 megawatts of energy per year from Toronto’s electricity grid (equivalent to powering eight hospitals) and saved 832 million litres of water per year (the volume of about 350 Olympic-size swimming pools). 

After 15 years of successful operation, Enwave has expanded the deep lake water cooling system. Today, the system provides cooling to over 80 buildings, including critical care facilities, government buildings, data centres, universities, and commercial and residential towers. 

The institutions and businesses tapped into the system enjoy significant savings. For instance, the Toronto General Hospital has freed up 20 to 30 percent of its capital funds, enabling the hospital to channel more resources into patient care, research and lifesaving equipment. 

In early 2020, the City of Toronto and Enwave launched an environmental assessment to study the effects of expanding the capacity of the system to meet the city’s growing demand for cooling.

This investment in a shared infrastructure and distribution system is a clear winning formula that will continue to benefit Toronto’s businesses and residents long into the future.

This novel initiative, providing both drinking water and building cooling capacity to residents, established Toronto as a global leader in innovation, setting the pace to fight climate change and build a more resilient city."

—Jim Baxter, Director, Environment and Energy Division, City of Toronto

Sources

Empowering North America's fastest-growing city

Enwave and Toronto Water tap into innovative energy source

Deep Lake Water Cooling Supply Expansion

The site, abandoned since the 1940s, was contaminated with petrochemicals and required onsite remediation. The city had a pile foundation constructed above ground to allow air to circulate beneath the building, reducing its impact on the permafrost. 

The city plans to install a district energy system in the building to capture and recycle waste heat from the diesel generators that provide the city with electricity. This system, along with the building’s high-performance envelope and other energy-efficiency features, is expected to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by nearly 800 tonnes per year. Compared to traditional swimming facilities, the centre will consume up to 75 percent less heating oil and 10,397 gigajoules less energy per year. 

The city’s new Iqaluit Aquatic Centre opened its doors to residents in 2017. Designed to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Silver certification, the facility features a lap pool, a leisure pool, two saunas, a whirlpool, a multi-purpose room, an elders’ room, a public fitness centre, a fitness studio and a take-out restaurant. The building design reflects both the natural and cultural environment, with paint colours inspired by the surrounding land, sea and ice; the use of sealskin in the seating area in the elders’ room; Inuktitut signage throughout; and elements that reference Inuit culture. The centre employs 13 full-time workers, 25 part-time staff and a number of volunteers. 

The City of Iqaluit has created a unique example of how a community can come together to realize a vision for healthy living in a sustainable way. This welcoming community space stands as an impressive testament to perseverance and possibility. 

The Iqaluit Aquatic Centre has provided opportunities for health and fitness that have changed lives for the better. We are proud that our facility is a model for arctic sustainability and that it has made such an incredible impact on our community.”

— Amy Elgersma, Chief Administrative Officer, City of Iqaluit