Greening the Built Environment

Summary

Carbon Talks engaged five key Canadian municipalities in its efforts to limit greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, including; Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Montreal and Halifax. Recognizing that federal governments have not delivered the necessary decisive action to limit global GHG emissions, Carbon Talks aimed to create dialogue between representatives from business, civil society, and academia in order to develop regionally appropriate, practical solutions to create a carbon neutral economy. This project specifically focused on engaging neighbourhoods, regional politicians, developers and civic groups in order to gain sufficient buy-in concerning buildings and the built environment.

Grant Outputs

Creating and Enabling a Municipal Environment for District Energy – http://www.carbontalks.ca/documents/Dialogue%20reports/CarbonTalksDialogueReport-DistrictEnergy.pdf%C2%A0

This report outlines the potential uses for District Energy, including natural gas, biomass, and waste heat recovery. It outlines barriers to implementation in Calgary and also outlines some projects which are currently being implemented in and around the city. The report suggests that District Energy could be both environmentally beneficial and economically viable.

What Lies Beneath: Incorporating Geoexchange in Building Retrofits – http://www.carbontalks.ca/documents/Dialogue%20reports/TAFDialogueReport.pdf

This report discusses the relevant challenges and opportunities for the use of geoexchange in urban retrofits in Toronto. The report concludes with a list of potential barriers against implementing geoexchange in high density areas, including whats kinds of policy considerations are important to breaking down barriers to geoexchange and whether geoexchange offeres the potential for sufficient GHG reduction to make it worthwhile.

Finding Innovative Financing for the Green Built Environment – http://www.carbontalks.ca/documents/Dialogue%20reports/CarbonTalksDialogueReport-Financing.pdf

This report outlines a dialogue meeting held in Calgary, Alberta. The purpose of the meeting was to produce actionable plans which the City of Calgary and stakeholders in development could implement in order to meet set carbon emission goals. The dialogue concluded with a series of recommendations for the attendant organizations and the City of Calgary, such as creating a tax assessment rate specifically for green buildings and increasing education and awareness around green building and retrofitting ideas.