Category: Energy Efficiency
367. Energy managers help small towns and cities save energy and money
Small towns and cities with neither the money, expertise or capacity to undertake energy efficiency or solar projects. The Municipal Climate Change Action Centre knows this so they helped 26 municipalities hire energy managers who are doing just that.
366. Helping municipalities take action to save energy and money, and reduce emissions
Not many people have heard of the Municipal Climate Change Action Centre in Alberta, but since 2009 they have worked with more than 150 municipalities helping them save $166 million by doing energy efficiency projects, installing solar and EV chargers and implementing climate resilience action plans.
365. Deploy energy storage save $600 million, get to net-zero
Energy storage and all of the technologies we need to get the grid to net-zero already exist to affordably transition the grid; government just needs to allow/facilitate their use through new tariffs and regulations says James Bererton.
360. Red Deer’s Renewable Energy Fair reincarnated as the Energy Innovation Fair
Red Deer’s popular Renewable Energy Fairs put on by ReThink Red Deer was “deep-sixed” by COVID, but the good news is it’s being reincarnated as the Energy Innovation Fair and it’s back live on October 21 at Red Deer Polytechnic.
359. NorQuest College – Build Efficient, Retrofit Smart and Measure Energy Use
Data is king. NorQuest College has complicated systems, old and new buildings and a limited budget, but they are building efficiently, retrofitting smart and measuring energy use to save money, save energy and reduce their emissions. We take a tour of the LEED Gold Singhmar Centre for Learning to explore some of its unique features and the adjacent Civic Employee Legacy Tower which now shares a boiler system with the new building all with the idea of reducing energy use and saving money.
354. Metis Nation climate action helps the environment and creates jobs
The Métis Nation of Alberta is taking climate action, saving money and creating new opportunities by embracing energy efficiency and investing in solar.
347. Michael Eliason – Point Access Blocks – Affordable multifamily housing good to live in
Seattle Architect Michael Eliason believes we can build affordable, family-friendly multifamily #housing that doesn’t suck and can help with the affordable housing and climate crises. They’re called Point Access Blocks.
345. Salvation Army to save $6 million with net-zero-ready Grace Village
The consultants said it wasn’t affordable–it couldn’t be done. But Salvation Army architect Michaela Jones pushed back hard requoting their 175-unit supportive living complex as net-zero-ready at the last minute. Now this amazing solar powered, geothermal heated and cooled, energy-efficient building will save Sally Ann $6 million.
343. EnergieSprong Deep Energy Retrofit transforms 1951 home to net-zero
Jim Sandercock transformed his 1951 home to #netzero by undertaking an EnergieSprong Deep Energy Retrofit, one of the first in Canada. The home was literally reskinned with new walls over the old ones.
340. Net-Zero 101 – Ultimate guide to cold climate homes
So much has changed in the 15 years since net-zero homes came onto the landscape. We now have heat pumps good to -35, streamlined building strategies and it now makes more economic sense than ever to build a net-zero home, eliminate your gas utility bill and produce your own energy.
338. The missing link – Lightspark digital home energy audit recommends retrofits to save you money
Curious about energy retrofits for your home? Canadian software company Lightspark has created a new tool that has generated digital energy audits of nearly every home in Edmonton and Calgary, Alberta. And that’s just the beginning. You can register, add some information and presto it recommends home energy improvements along with cost and benefits.
334. Oslo Climate Budget a First and Hey it’s Working
So many climate plans – so little action. Oslo, Norway is bucking that trend by creating the first Carbon Budget in a City and taking the boots to carbon emissions. We talk to Heidi Sorensen of the Oslo Climate Agency about what they are doing and why it’s working.
325. Green Leagues Are Taking Climate Action to the ‘Hoods
One of the coolest things about Edmonton, Alberta is its community leagues. There are 162 volunteer groups representing every neighbourhood in the city doing everything from running sports, cultural and recreational programs, to operating halls, tennis courts and skating rinks AND as it turns out taking action on Climate Change. Interest in solar, energy efficiency, local food and sustainability was so high the Edmonton Federation started the Green Leagues program – this week we find out what’s happening in the ‘hoods.
320. Are Heat Pumps as Sexy as George Clooney?
Social scientist Mike Fell from the UK thinks people would adopt climate solutions such as heat pumps faster if they thought the solutions were sexier. So he created pumpchic.com and began comparing heat pumps to prominent actors such as George Clooney.
290. Schneider Electric – named the most sustainable company in the world
Schneider Electric was named the most sustainable company in the world by Corporate Knights a Canadian sustainability rating firm. The France-based global company already used 80 per cent renewable energy for its operations and wants to be carbon neutral by 2025.
284. Edmonton’s Energy Transition Plan targets 1.5 degrees – An interview with Mayor Don Iveson
On the same day, Edmonton’s Mayor Don Iveson was awarded a national Clean 50 Award and city council passed its landmark 1.5-degree Energy Transition Plan which seeks to take Edmonton to net-zero by 2050.
282. Solar with Benefits – The Solar-EV Nexus
By using 3,500 kilowatt hours of excess solar electricity from his home solar system Ron Kube is able to power his electric car for 22,000 km and save $2,500/year and reduce the payback on his solar system to just five years.
273. Nukes or no nukes – Nuclear’s role in a low carbon future
Is nuclear power the only way we can reach net-zero emissions or is it a threat to civilization and a distraction from the development of other low carbon sources of energy such as solar and wind? We discuss this with energy experts Ed Whittingham, Dr. David Keith, Dr. Sara Hastings-Simon and former Canadian Green Party leader and current MP Elizabeth May.
264. TerraView builds net-zero ready and only net-zero ready homes
This Canadian home builder now builds only net-zero ready and net-zero homes and the best part is – the homes are selling like crazy!
262. Norman Crowley: Capitalist fights climate change
Norman Crowley was blown away when he discovered businesses waste $1.2 trillion worth of energy per year – so he started Crowley Carbon to make and save millions of dollars. Climate Capitalism Part I
257. HalifACT 2050 – How Halifax got its climate plan and a goal of carbon neutrality
First came evidence-based decision making, then Halifax declared a climate emergency and now HalifACT 2050 is their plan to get to carbon neutrality by 2050.
241. Vivian Manasc – A lifetime of Building it Green
Vivian Manasc is an architect with a passion for building it green. Her company Manasc Isaac is well known for its pioneering work on many green buildings – they also built the first net-zero commercial building in Alberta. We talk to Vivian Manasc about her journey and her work.
240. Carbon Busters – Building net-zero in Blatchford
Carbon Busters is building the first net-zero homes in Blatchford, the largest carbon-neutral community in Canada. Solar-powered and geothermal heated and cooled these homes require 94% less energy for heating.
Green Energy Futures – Four stories that matter from 2019
Climate change may be the Canadian Press story of the year in 2019, but when we cast our eyes back on the year that was we find inspiring stories of people working on solutions to climate change. From the largest carbon-neutral community in the world to the largest solar project in Canadian history it was a year of firsts.
2019–The year of Greta Thunberg
In 2019 Time Magazine named Greta Thunberg “person of the year” and climate change was the news story of the year as chosen by Canadian Press. At Green Energy Futures we documented a number of firsts: the first net-zero church and social housing project, the first passive house car dealership and the inspiring story on students in the EcoVision Club at Lacombe Composite High School who changed their school by taking action.
237. God’s green home is net-zero
The amazing story of a church in crisis that took stock of their assets and wound up building the first solar-powered, net-zero church and social housing project in Canada. They saved the church, saved the school, built 16 new homes for refugee families and created an amazing community of sustainability.
234. Blatchford: Largest Carbon Neutral Community in Canada
Edmontonians have already been recognized as pioneers of net-zero homes, and now they are building the largest carbon-neutral community in the country: Blatchford.
229. Recycling Energy
People in the movies carry disposable cups like people in the ‘60s were portrayed smoking cigarettes as the norm. Has the recycling generation lost it? Some believe we need to recycle recycling to tackle huge waste issues and tackle climate change.
224. Activist David Chernushenko delivers a climate thriller in Burning Souls
Activist and former Ottawa City Councillor David Chernushenko’s new book Burning Souls is a climate thriller–fiction with a firm grasp on the real world and the vexing issue of climate change.
223. Solar Thermal Home still cool after all these years
Ed Ma and Rhonda Blair built their super energy efficient green home 12 years ago using solar thermal modules–it’s still pretty cool after all these years. So much has changed since then and his green home project continues to this day. We talk to the couple about what they’ve done, what they’ve learned and what they would do differently today.
222. Geothermal Revival – Getting to net-zero the easy way
Jacob Komar is shaking up the energy efficient building world by resorting to an age-old technology: geothermal energy. He says you can save lots of money and use much less insulation and get to net-zero for half the price if you use geothermal to heat and cool your home or building.
218. Effect Homes office goes off-grid in the big city
Effect Homes, a local leader in building net-zero, solar-powered homes has built Alberta’s first off-grid solar-cogen-powered and heated office.
216. Waffle cone factory shares its warmth
A German waffle cone factory is using its waste heat to heat the homes in its hometown—an ingenious initiative that could serve as a template for other heat-wasting small-town factories.
215. Energy efficiency essential for the planet, great for the economy
In a scenario where Canada invests 2.5 times more in energy efficiency, Canada would create 118,000 jobs, save $75 billion on energy costs and reduce emissions up to 50 per cent. “And without energy efficiency, there’s no way that we can meet our Paris targets,” says Phillipe Dunksy an international energy efficiency consultant.
214. Saerbeck, Germany – a model “Climate Community of the Future”
Saerbeck, Germany calls itself the “Climate Community of the Future.” Today they produce 400 per cent as much renewable energy as they need.
213. First passive house car dealership in Canada
After visiting the zero-waste Subaru of America plant in Indiana Garrett Scott wanted to do something really special for their new car dealership in Red Deer, Alberta. With floor-to-ceiling windows it is no small task, but they have built the first passive house car dealership in North America.
211. Solar leads a year of firsts in Alberta
Solar played a starring role in every single one of our favorite Green Energy Futures stories from 2018. It’s the leading clean technology in terms of global investment and it’s playing a pivotal role is zero emissions homes, stores, colleges and grids.
209. Passive house runs on sunshine, good to -30
The Symonds Passive House is 90% more energy efficient, solar powered and built out of solid wood (cross-laminated timber) and one of the most beautiful super energy efficient homes we’ve seen at Green Energy Futures.
206. Sleepy small city college with a big solar vision
Red Deer College has surged beyond its own goals for renewable energy by installing a 1.6-megawatt solar system, the largest on any post-secondary institution in Canada. Solar is everywhere and combined with their new 1-megawatt cogeneration system they generate 66% of their own electricity right on campus.
204. NAIT from the cutting edge to leaders of the energy revolution in seven short years
Just seven short years ago NAIT’s Alternative Energy program seemed ahead of its time. Today this innovative 2-year program is training the leaders of the clean energy revolution in Alberta. We talk to program chair Dr. Jim Sandercock about the evolution of the program.
203. Rae-Anne Wadey – A Diesel Truck or a Career in Solar
As a 19-year-old Rae-Anne Wadey had to make a decision – buy a diesel truck or study Alternative Energy. The program was ahead of its time and Rae-Anne had problems finding a job. What happened next is history – she’s a Face of the New Energy Economy.
202. Brandon Sandmaier – Oilsands Mechanic to Solar Company Owner
Brandon Sandmaier is one of the faces of the new energy economy. He left a six-figure job as a heavy duty mechanic in the oil industry to study Alternative Energy at NAIT. Even before graduation, he started a company called Generate Energy.
200. Solar-battery revolution tied to time-of-use pricing in New Zealand
In New Zealand solar with batteries is economic today, and could transform the electricity grid thanks to a simple market-based policy called time-of-use pricing.
194. Home builders embrace net-zero with new labelling program
The Canadian Home Builders Association now has a net-zero labeling program. We talk to Sonja Winkelmann about the program designed to help consumers and builders understand and embrace super energy efficient, solar-powered net-zero homes.
193. Visit 21 Inspiring green buildings on Eco-Solar Home Tour
Ever wondered about going net-zero with your home? Curious about solar, heat pumps or geothermal systems? The 19th Annual Edmonton Eco-Solar Home Tour is your chance to see the latest solar and energy efficiency technologies and talk to the owners who installed them.
192. PACE makes it easy to invest in solar and energy efficiency
It’s called Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing. Alberta introduced a PACE bill and some believe if passed, it could drive a surge of investment in energy efficiency and renewable energy in Alberta homes and businesses.
189. Simons first net-zero store in Canada
La Maison Simons just opened the first net-zero major retail store in Canada. It’s solar powered, geothermal heated and cooled and energy efficient.
187. Truly Green Farms – Growing tomatoes with waste energy
A greenhouse in Ontario is using waste heat from the stack of an ethanol plant to grow tomatoes and that’s only the beginning of this amazing story of industrial symbiosis. Corn comes into the biorefinery and produces ethanol, industrial alcohol and corn oil and virtually all of the waste from the plant is also used as well in this virtuous cycle.
186. Canada’s first net-zero church and social housing project
With very little money in the bank and an old church they could no longer afford to heat, the Westmount Presbyterian Church was on the brink of failure. Then, they hatched a plan to build Canada’s first net-zero church and social housing project.
185. Slow cooking lentil soup with almost no energy
Ron Kube, the Energy Detective, discovers a better way to slow cook lentil soup that is almost five times more energy efficient than a conventional slow cooker!
2017 a banner year for green energy in Alberta
Alberta secured the lowest price for wind energy in Canadian history and built the first utility scale solar farm in Western Canada in 2017 a banner year for Green Energy in Alberta.
183. EnerGuide: How does your home rate?
Learn all about the new EnerGuide for homes label and how an assessment can help you reduce energy use in your home, save money and reduce your carbon footprint.
182. Top 10 Energy Efficiency Tips for the Home
Green Energy Futures presents the Top 10 Energy Efficiency Tips for your home. We tag along with an EnerGuide for homes auditor and together create the ultimate list of things you can do to dramatically reduce energy use in your home.
181. The Energy Detective
When Ron Kube discovered his home was using nearly twice as much energy as the average home the energy detective was born. We can all learn from Ron’s journey that led to him reducing electricity use in his home by more than half–through measures so simple they are clichés.
180. Solar 101 – everything you need to know
Producing your own solar electricity, it’s a cool idea right? But when is the right time to go solar? We talk to Ron Kube, who installed solar on his home and Clifton Lofthaug of Great Canadian Solar about everything you need to know before going solar.
179. Cities are source and may hold solutions to climate change
Edmonton is getting set to host the first international conference on Cities and Climate Change Science. We talk to Seth Schultz from C40 about Edmonton, climate change and the action thats required. Schultz is an organizer and director with a global organization of 90 megacities helping mayors and cities taken action on climate change.
178. Renovating your home to net-zero
SMART HOMES PART 2 – Have you ever dreamed of living in a net-zero home? According to Peter Darlington, that dream may be closer than you think. In fact, you might already be living in your future net-zero home. We present Peter’s four steps to making your home net-zero.
177. Water Heaters 101: Getting yourself in hot water
SMART HOMES PART 1 – Is your water heater kaput? Want to discover the best option for high efficiency water heaters? Look no further! We check out tankless, electric heat pump and power vented conventional high efficiency water heaters. Is one of them right for you? Read on and find out.
176. New Simons has largest solar system in Edmonton
The new Londonderry Simons in Edmonton, Alberta has a 636 kilowatt solar system, the largest in the city and three solar-powered electric vehicle charging stations including one level three charger capable of charging EVs in under 30 minutes.
174. Edmonton Folk Music Festival rocks energy efficiency
It takes more than 2,000 volunteers to run the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, but only one to draeam up an idea of building super energy efficient LED light fixtures that will save 170,000 watts everything they turn on the lights.
172. Sustainival, the world’s first green carnival
Life is a carnival! Sustainival, the world’s first green carnival started in Edmonton, Alberta. It’s a biodiesel powered full scale carnival infused with a message of sustainability.
169. PACE financing created $3.4 billion in energy efficiency projects in U.S.
Brian Scott and Leigh Bond want to see Property Assessed Clean Energy financing come to Alberta. They say PACE has generated $3.4 billion investment in energy efficiency and renewable energy in the U.S. and that little else would do more to spur on a boom in Alberta.
168. Dawning of the age of affordable net-zero homes
Edmonton-based builder Landmark Homes has launched one of the most affordable net-zero homes we’ve seen in Canada.
167. Chevy Bolt: the first low-priced, long-range electric vehicle
Two important things happened in the electric vehicle (EV) world in recent months: Late last year Quebec became the first Canadian province to adopt a requirement for the sales of zero-emission vehicles and then in February General Motors debuted its long awaited Chevy Bolt, a long range, low-priced EV.
165. EnerGuide – The missing ingredient label for an energy efficient home
EnerGuide for homes: You wouldn’t buy a car without knowing how many liters per 100 kilometers it gets. So why buy a home without knowing how much power it uses?
163. Skeena – Canada’s largest passive house
The Heights is an 85-unit apartment complex in Vancouver that is the largest passive house in Canada. The project is leading the way to for a zero emissions building policy in Vancouver.
162. 2016 year in review
From wind-powered cities and schools to net-zero straw-bale homes, Green Energy Futures reflects on our green energy past.
160. Green gift guide 2016
Green Energy Futures takes the stress out of holiday shopping with this cheat sheet of green gift ideas.
157. Straw-bale 101: A tale of two homes
This is a tale of two straw-bale homes: one a standard energy efficient, environmentally friendly straw-bale home built for Nora Bumanis, the harpist for the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra; and second a net-zero, super energy efficient home built by Lance and Wendy Olson at Buffalo Lake, Alberta. See how a straw-bale home is built in our video!
156. Nova Scotia has created the first energy efficiency utility in Canada
We chat with EfficiencyOne’s CEO Stephen MacDonald about how investing in energy efficiency is cheaper than just producing more power.
155. We’re feeling Rand-y about clean tech investment
We check in with Canada’s “Climate Capitalist” about the state of our cleantech startup landscape.
150. Student white paper calls for climate change action in Alberta schools
Alberta students present a white paper on Climate Leadership in Alberta Schools to the ministers of education and environment calling for climate change to be added to the curriculum and schools to become models of sustainability.
142. Alberta students school Premier Rachel Notley on climate change
This past March, students from around Alberta and beyond collaborated on a white paper that seeks to influence the future of climate change education in the province.
139. The first certified passive house in Saskatchewan
We visit what will be the first certified passive house in Saskatchewan, Canada. This is somewhat ironic, because the first concept passive house ever was built in Saskatchewan in the 1970s by passive house pioneer Harold Orr. Meet Harold and see this amazing home!
138. Energy efficiency coming to Alberta, at last!
This week, we visit a conference on energy efficiency that’s looking to to change Alberta’s current lack of program support for energy efficiency initiatives.
137. Carbon neutral laneway home–first of its kind
This carbon neutral home has a solar wall, solar PV on the roof and a unique energy storage system that heats this innovative garage suite when the sun doesn’t shine!
136. Earthship living in a cold Canadian winter
How does a passive solar heated Earthship fare in the long cold Canadian winter. This week we return to a familiar place, the Kinney Family Earthship, to see how it holds up in the middle of a cold Canadian prairie winter.
132. Insulation 101: One builder’s secret blueprint for a net-zero home
The era of net-zero homes is upon us. These super-efficient homes use rooftop solar energy production and smaller, electric powered heating systems such as air source heat pumps to produce as much energy as they consume. But the real secret is insulation. Peter Amerongen shows us Habitat Studio’s unique formula for insulating the heck out of a home.
131. Small town energy efficiency program is simple by design
Carl Lauren, owner of Tyee Custom Homes, wanted to encourage energy efficient design in construction, but the building code hamstrung his efforts. So he helped create a rebate system that gets around the bureaucracy!
128. Vitoria-Gasteiz: Spain’s green capital is made for walking
The European green capital for 2012, Vitoria-Gasteiz is small in size but big in ambition.
123. Mayor Don Iveson on Edmonton’s Energy Transition Strategy
Edmonton, the oil capital of Alberta, passed its energy transition strategy earlier this year. We talk to Mayor Don Iveson about what this northern city is doing to transition to clean energy.
112. Welcome to the Octopod: An off-grid, solar powered shipping container cabin in Bobcaygeon, Ontario
Shipping container architecture has become more and more popular over the years. We check out an off-grid solar powered sea contaner cabin called the Octopod, located near Bobcaygeon, Ontario.
109. Cradle to Cradle: Recycling’s cooler younger brother
Why changing the way we make things could change everything.
106. The $750 billion dollar opportunity in industrial and commercial energy efficiency
A new breed of startups is taking on a $750 billion dollar opportunity in industrial and commercial energy efficiency. We talk to two of them.
99. Craik, Saskatchewan: The little Eco-Village that could
What happens when you sell unserviced lots for a dollar and get people to build green homes on the edge of a small Saskatchewan town? We find out.
91. Green Gift Guide
The best gifts for the green energy or energy efficiency nerd in your life.
90. DIY Solar air heating
Build your own solar air heater. Follow along with Green Energy Futures’ David Dodge as he takes old pop cans, a little bit of wood, and builds a passive solar air heater that actually works. A great project for students!
86. Echohaven: An environmentally friendly, energy efficient suburb
Echohaven is a different kind of suburban development. It preserves natural landscapes, mandates energy efficient homes and guarantees solar access.
85. How to make your smart meter even smarter
Chances are the electricity meter in your home is dumb as a sack of hammers. We head to Medicine Hat, Alberta, to find out what smart meters are, and we talk to the CEO of a company that makes smart meters even smarter.
82. How we built our own Earthship, a radically sustainable, off-grid home on the prairie
This is the story of how the family of Green Energy Futures’ editor Duncan Kinney built an Earthship in southern Alberta this summer.
81. Chasing Net Zero: Go big or go home
Landmark Homes is planning to have all of their homes be net-zero by 2015. Learn how net-zero is transitioning from small custom home builders to large scale companies.
80: Chasing Net Zero: Net-zero evolution
In 10 years net-zero homes have gone from government pilot project to mass production. Shafraaz Kaba’s near net-zero home is an excellent example of how we got there.
79. Chasing Net Zero: Net-zero beautiful
We look at making energy efficient, infill homes that are beautiful and also at how the location of your home can have a dramatic effect on your energy footprint.
78. Chasing Net Zero: Net-zero 101
The first episode of our four-part series Chasing Net-Zero. We dive into the history of net-zero homes and figure out you can build one of these comfortable, beautiful homes that also doubles as a mini-powerplant.
76. An integrated ethanol biorefinery wastes not
Learn how a seriously integrated ethanol plant has become a central hub for half a dozen other businesses using its byproducts of heat, CO2, distillers grains and more!
73. Passive solar greenhouses: Producing more food with less energy
A passive solar greenhouse in Invermere B.C. is making people across the continent sit up and takes notice. It may sound ironic, but most greenhouses are not designed to harvest and retain the sun’s energy.
71. Industrial symbiosis: Growing tomatoes with an ethanol plants waste
We head to Chatham, Ontario to explore a unique example of industrial symbiosis between an ethanol plant and a greenhouse.
69. Vancouver’s laneway homes
Come take a tour of a super energy efficient laneway home in Vancouver and talk to a builder of these tiny, fun homes.
65. Community solar: Meet a small town solar energy Macgyver
Community scale renewable solar is cheap and requires very little maintenance. Learn how two communities in Alberta built successful community solar energy programs.
64. Urban cogeneration
Cogeneration is a simple, effective idea – generate electricity from the waste heat from a boiler. We explore a 370 kilowatt unit powering and heating an office building in downtown Calgary.
63. The power of passive solar and thermal mass
Passive solar energy and its running buddy thermal mass give you the opportunity to get a significant portion of your home’s heat for free from the sun.
62. The massive potential of energy efficiency
Learn how the energy efficiency policy process works and how, if applied in Alberta, Canada’s biggest carbon emitter could save a ton of money and get halfway to its 2020 greenhouse gas emission targets.
61. Learn about Alberta’s $380 million green technology fund
Alberta has a carbon price and it’s collected $380 million worth of cash for carbon reduction technology projects. Learn how they’re spending that money.
60. Phasing out coal in Alberta
We talk to a doctor who knows the true health costs of coal in Alberta as well as Alberta’s new Associate Minister of Renewable Energy and Electricity on what she would replace coal with.
58. The incandescent light bulb phase out is a good thing
The incandescent light bulb phase-out is akin to getting rid of leaded gas, CFCs or the Ford Pinto. It is unequivocally a good news story. Learn why this week at Green Energy Futures.
56. Best stories of 2013
Here are our favourite stories of 2013.
54. The amazing earth tube cools office tower
Earth tubes are a simple, passive geothermal system that takes advantage of the earth’s constant temperature below the frost line. By drawing fresh air for your building through an earth tube you pre-heat or pre-cool your air depending on your needs. This saves you a ton of money, according to architect Tang Lee an earth tube system can save you up to half of your ventilation heating costs. At the Epcor Tower it saves the building $50,000 a year.
47. Rocket stoves and the rocket mass heater
The rocket stove takes our fascination with fire and bends it 90 degrees. It’s a hyper efficient wood stove that uses far less wood to get a far more effective result.
41. Net-zero evolution: From the Star Trek Enterprise to utter simplicity
It took a 45-person team to build Edmonton’s first net-zero home. In six short years since then net-zero builders are constructing cheaper and radically simpler net-zero homes. We Peter Amerongen and Simon Knight, two net-zero pioneers.
40. The grass really is greener at Lawrence Grassi middle school
Sometimes the Grassi really is greener. Lawrence Grassi that it is. It’s a middle school in the Albertan mountain town of Canmore and while not a showy building it’s 70 per cent more efficient than a comparable building and it was built on budget. Learn how they did it this week at Green Energy Futures.
39. Nanaimo: Turning waste into compost, carbon credits and electricity
The Nanaimo Regional District is home to about 145,000 people on the east coast of Vancouver Island. This west-coast municipality is turning its trash into compost, clean energy and carbon credits.
38. T’sou-ke First Nation goes all in on energy conservation and solar
The T’Souke First Nation on Vancouver Island developed and implemented a plan that slashed 75 per cent of their energy use and installed solar PV to provide clean power. It turns out it’s a lot easier to go net-zero when you drastically cut your energy use.
37. Landmark: How to make a more energy efficient home with robots
Landmark Homes builds super energy efficient homes in a factory. Not only is this process more energy efficient – it’s also about 10-12 tonnes of CO2 more efficient. The homes they’re building are understated energy efficiency lions.
35. Reimagine your office building – Servus did it!
When Servus Credit Union acquired an old Dell call centre and decided to turn it into their corporate headquarters it was a bit of a fixer-upper. It was a concrete tip-up building originally designed for the climes of Oklahoma 3,000 km south of Edmonton. Well, they decided to keep the building but go full-out on a creative renovation to make a better building.
34. The Nest: The iPod of programmable thermostats
Most programmable thermostats are poorly designed and beset with confusing instructions and non-intuitive press-and-hold interfaces. Enter Tony Fadell, the chief designer behind the original iPod. He walked away from Apple in 2010 and started a company that makes the Nest, a sleek new entry in the programmable thermostat that’s taking the home energy efficiency world by storm.
29. Canada’s greenest building
This four-story, 60,000 square feet structure is practically a living thing. It’s a $37-million laboratory that aims to achieve LEED Platinum status, but more than that, they’re also pursuing a Living Building Challenge certification. This certification is so hard to get, there are only three certified living buildings in the world.
28. Sewer heat keep homes warm in Vancouver’s False Creek area
We head down into the sewer, not to hang out with Michelangelo and the rest of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, but to explore a unique district heating scheme that’s over 2.7 million square feet in Vancouver. It’s called sewage heat recovery and it’s the only system of its kind in North America.
27. Bike city – What the rest of Canada can learn from Vancouver
This week we examine how Vancouver became “Bike City” and why this is important for cities who want to reduce their carbon emissions and become more energy efficient.
25. Waste to willows
Learn how a small rural Albertan county is treating it’s waste in a more environmentally responsible fashion and growing their own substitute for natural gas. They pump the effluent from a waste lagoon into a densely planted stand of willows. Willows like moist soil, grow fast and grow easily in our climate. That willow is then chopped down every three years and can be used for wood, heat or compost. In Camrose, they’re using it to heat their main county office.
21. The unlikely Walmart sustainability story
When you think of Walmart do a plethora of contradictory thoughts and images come into your brain? Well get ready for it to get even more confusing because the world’s largest retailer and the 19th largest economy in the world have stepped up the plate with one of the best corporate sustainability plans in the world. It’s not just planning either, they’re executing it as well. We went to their Fresh Food Distribution Centre in Balzac to get the story.
18. The power of a home energy audit
When Ted Wolff decided to buy a 55-year-old bungalow in the west end of Edmonton he knew he wanted to renovate. He also knew that his home wasn’t necessarily the most energy efficient, that’s when he brought in C Returns and Godo Stoyke and they called for an energy audit. By getting an audit Wolff will be able to make the best decisions when it comes to allocating money and resources to make his home more energy efficient.
16. Pumpjack powerplants
Canadian Control Works is a small Edmonton based company with a big idea. They’ve figured out how to create green electricity from the downswing of a pumpjack with a device called the Enersaver. We don’t give them much thought but each pump jack is moving 5-10 tons each time it goes up and down. By harvesting that energy oilfield operators save money and stabilize the grid around it.
10. The renewable energy revolution in Ontario
The German style feed-in tariff that Ontario implemented in 2009 has made Ontario a North American leader in renewable energy. Learn how they did and why other provinces need to follow the lead of Ontario.
07. Green lighting 101
This week we speak to Wayne Rogers of Luminessence Lighting as we pit compact fluorescent bulbs against LEDs in the battle for efficient lighting. We also speak to Don Cherwonka of EWEL Electric Wholesalers about the amazing T8 bulb and how a lighting fixture can almost double the light with no extra watts! Bonus – we peak under the hood of one of the Phillips $10 million L-prize LED bulbs to find out how it works.
Medicine Hat’s smart energy revolution (pilot episode)
The award winning Hat Smart program in Medicine Hat, Alberta provides incentives and rebates for renewable energy and energy efficiency and has really captured the imagination of residents of this Southern Alberta City of 61,000 people. In this week’s episode Alderman Ted Clugston explains how success depends on a sexy program, a solar powered dentist shows his stuff and a home builder explains how building an EnerGuide 89 geothermal heated home is helping him build better, greener homes.
