During the past several years the RAIC has built a strong relationship with Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) regarding support for alternative and renewable sources of energy.
RAIC Corner
President,
Royal Architectural Institute of Canada
The following is part of a series of columns that demonstrate how the RAIC intends to advocate for more sustainable buildings and communities.
During the past several years the RAIC has built a strong relationship with Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) regarding support for alternative and renewable sources of energy. In fact, NRCan awarded an Energy Efficiency Recognition Award in 2003 to the RAIC for its efforts in professional development and encouraging green building design. The RAIC with NRCan support and funding developed some of the courses in the Sustainable Design for Canadian Buildings series. For example, together RAIC and NRCan delivered a series of workshops across Canada on renewable energy. The result for the profession is facilitated access to new incentive programs for building designs that incorporate renewable energy technologies.
Through contribution agreements with NRCan, the RAIC administers a component of the Renewable Energy Deployment Initiative (REDI) grants for designs incorporating renewable energy. Grants of up to $10,000 are available to architects through the RAIC to offset additional design and research fees during the schematic design phase. To date, all requests received by RAIC that met the criteria listed in the Design Incentive program have received grants. Grants have been awarded to:
A Library in Windsor, N.S., featuring four ground source heat pumps;
A school in Cape Breton, N.S., with photovoltaics, wind turbine and geothermal heat pumps; and
A condominium in Vancouver, using building integrated photovoltaics.
To comply with criteria each project filed a written description including the design intent, the type and function of the renewable energy technology, the integration of the system into the building and a report from an engineer detailing overall energy savings. Full details of the requirements are available on the RAIC website.
The RAIC grants are just a small part of NRCan’s REDI, a nine-year, $51-million program designed to stimulate the demand for renewable energy systems for water heating and space heating and cooling. These systems include:
Active solar water heating systems;
Active solar air heating systems; or
High efficiency/low emission biomass combustion systems of 75KW total capacity or greater.
While the RAIC Design Incentive program supports the architectural profession’s commitment to green building, it is important to keep in mind that all government programs are subject to political decisions and the funding limitations of the federal budget. That is why the RAIC works to ensure the continuation of these programs by lobbying the government, senior bureaucrats and politicians to remind them of their importance and successes, and in turn encourages its members to do the same.
Architects are encouraged to incorporate alternative sources of energy into building designs in an effort to advocate for the expansion of research and development into new energy sources (such as hydrogen, wind and solar power).
Harnessing wind and solar power and using the latest technology to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels is not only good business, it is yet another way to achieve Canada’s Kyoto commitment. It also supports the architectural profession’s commitment to view projects using a triple bottom line — the three Ps: planet, people and prosperity.
Introducing an RAIC Affiliate category
On another note readers may be interested in learning the RAIC is now offering a new membership category for affiliates. The category is open to all those without architectural training who want to support the architectural profession and be informed and involved in the activities of the RAIC. Each affiliate receives the RAIC monthly bulletin, a listing in the RAIC electronic Membership Directory, discounts on publications and much, much more. For more details and to join the RAIC, please visit www.raic.org.
Next month: green labeling systems for building products.
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