Course Description

As the BC Building Code continues on its path to require NetZero Energy-Ready homes by 2032, Metro Vancouver home builders need to expand their knowledge of construction and available technologies to meet these advancing standards.  This month's Builders' Breakfast Series seminar will take a deeper look at NetZero homes and performance pathways to build a home that leads by today's standards but will soon become the industry norm.
 
New energy-efficient standards bring opportunities for more efficient building solutions, including green infrastructure.  The second-half of the seminar will be dedicated to examining existing and emerging opportunities and requirements for green infrastructure in Metro Vancouver. After an overview of green roof performance for coastal BC, other forms of green infrastructure will be introduced and how their integration can produce zero-discharge, low impact developments.
 
This is an exciting session to get immersed in building to higher performance levels and learning about new green strategies in residential construction.

Key learning objectives of presentation:

  • Why NetZero: benefits, how it differs from other performance pathways to achieve Energy Step Code
  • Understanding the process (prescriptive vs performance) and potential roadblocks to achieve Net Zero
  • Net Zero as a performance pathway from a builder’s perspective
  • Green infrastructure function and performance, building benefits, and municipal-level implementation
  • What is zero discharge development (i.e., pervious, water sensitive landscapes and buildings) and its application to residential construction

Approved for 1.0 CPD Credits: 0.5 in Construction Technology and 0.5 in Relevant Enactments

Note: If you have already taken this course in person, repeating it online will not qualify for additional CPD points.

Course curriculum

  • 1

    Chapter 1

    • Before You Get Started

    • Agreement to HAVAN Academic Integrity Policy

    • Part 1
  • 2

    Chapter 2

    • Part 2
  • 3

    Chapter 3

    • Part 3

    • Feedback

    • Declaration of Completed Work Assignment

Alexandre Hebert, BCIT and Christine Thuring, BSc, MSc, PhD, Faculty, Centre for Architectural Ecology

Alexandre Hebert: Alex is a professional engineer with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering (Sherbrooke University). He completed a MBA with a focus in sustainability (UBC). Alex also studied at the School of Economics and Management at the Tsinghua University in Beijing and completed a certificate in Sustainable Energy Management at the BC Institute of Technology (BCIT).  At BCIT, Alex is leading the development and operations of the Zero Energy Buildings Learning Centre (ZEBLC).  Created in 2017, the ZEBLC’s main objective is to build capacity in the construction industry to accelerate the transition to the new Energy Step Code (BC) and City of Vancouver Zero Emissions Buildings by-law. ??Alex is also an energy management part-time instructor at BCIT and at the Canadian Institute for Energy Training. Finally, Alex is an official trainer for the BC Housing “Building Smart with the BC Energy Step Code” seminars.Christine Thuring, BSc, MSc, PhD, Faculty, Centre for Architectural EcologyWith a background in environmental science and ecology, Christine’s work portfolio weaves together an appetite for ecological understanding with an ambition to make the world a better place ecologically and socially. While her career began in applied plant ecology, for the last 20 years Christine has worked predominantly in the urban context, often in inter-disciplinary collaborations relating to living architecture and other forms of multi-functional ecological landscape design.  As a collaborative ecologist, Christine’s interests are manifest through design, education, research, and communication. She has designed and installed green roofs and habitat gardens in North America, central Europe and the UK. As co-founder of Green Roof Safari, she has led several study trips of green infrastructure in Germany and Switzerland. Christine has been a contributing editor to Greenroofs.com since 2004, and is a regular contributor to The Nature of Cities. Christine has spoken widely about her research and continues to. Her recent research granted unprecedented insights into the development of vegetation and soils on extensive green roofs more than 20-30 years after installation.