Build to Zero

Build to Zero, a project of the Community Energy Association, aims to accelerate local government adoption of policy, planning and regulatory measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from new and existing buildings, community-wide.  The current initiative is being piloted in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia.

Please click here for workshop information, the White Paper, proceedings, and presentations from the December 9 2009 Build to Zero workshop.  

Please click here for the Build to Zero Local Government Survey report.

Please click here for information on Build to Zero Working Groups.

Please click here for Modelling High-Impact Local Government Measures to Reduce Energy Use and GHG Emissions for New and Existing Buildings in BC’s Lower Mainland

Please click here for presentations from the October 12, 2010 Build to Zero Webinar

Please click here for presentations from the March 30, 2011 Build to Zero Webinar

The Community Energy Association is grateful to the following organizations for providing generous financial and in-kind support for the overall Build to Zero initiative: 

  • Environment Canada
  • Vancity
  • Real Estate Foundation of British Columbia
  • Natural Resources Canada
  • Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
  • Cascadia Region Green Building Council
  • BC Hydro PowerSmart
  • Terasen
  • Province of British Columbia
  • Union of BC Municipalities
  • Metro Vancouver
  • District of Maple Ridge
  • District of North Vancouver
  • City of North Vancouver
  • City of Surrey

Build to Zero Local Government Survey Report

Please see below for the Build to Zero Local Government Survey Report, presented at the December 2009 Build to Zero Workshop.

Build to Zero October 12 Webinar Presentations

Retrofitting Single Family and Multi-family Homes for High Energy Efficiency

The Community Energy Association's (CEA) Build to Zero initiative is helping local governments in BC's Lower Mainland mitigate climate change by implementing high-impact bylaws and policies that encourage the development of new and existing low-energy buildings.

Funding to support Build to Zero is provided by Environment Canada, Natural Resources Canada, CMHC, Vancity, Real Estate Foundation of British Columbia, BC Hydro Power Smart and Terasen.

Click on the links below to download the presentations from the October 12 2010 webinar.

Build to Zero Webinar: Opportunities to Encourage District Energy Ready Buildings and Solar Ready Homes.

BC Local Government Opportunities to Reduce Emissions from New Buildings

A Community Energy Association Build to Zero Webinar for BC Local Governments and others who have an interest in reducing emissions from new construction. The webinar focused on opportunities to encourage district energy ready buildings and solar ready homes.

Speaker presentations are available below.

Speakers: Peter Robinson & Pat Bell, Community Energy Association - Policy Options for District Energy Ready Buildings 

Jun’ichi Jensen & Teegan Meuser, Province of BC - Current Status Of Provincial Work on Solar Ready Homes

Build to Zero Working Groups

Build to Zero working groups have been established to work on initiatives of shared interest and move towards implementation.

A Working Group meeting was held on May 12, 2010. Notes from that meeting can be found below.

New Report:Modelling High-Impact Local Government Measures to Reduce Energy Use and GHG Emissions for New and Existing Buildings

CEA has completed a report for CanmetENERGY (Natural Resources Canada) entitled Modelling High-Impact Local Government Measures to Reduce Energy Use and GHG Emissions for New and Existing Buildings in BC's Lower Mainland.

This study describes key policy measures and analytical approaches, such as emission inventories and modelling, which can help BC local governments estimate the impact of proposed GHG reduction actions from the Build to Zero initiative.