Greater Vancouver is consistently voted one of the most desirable cities in the world to live in, as the city grows improvements in the quality, cost efficiency and ways to reduce pollution must be considered when choosing or building a home.
This is where the Green building Standard comes in. The Federal Government has created the Canada Green Building Council and B.C. rates high in meeting the demands of the Green Building Standard it has won the accolade of L.E.E.D (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design).
What is a green building?
By removing outdated concepts in energy use, a green building becomes energy and resource efficient, healthy, comfortable, and functional.
Climatic changes, greenhouse gas emission and the realization that the environment is saturated with as much pollution as it can sustain created an awareness of the potential efficiency of a green building. A green building is an environmentally responsible one.
Future Trends in Renovating and Construction.
Major shifts are being made by architects and builders to adapt to Vancouver’s changing demographics by exposing the underlying malaise with the built environment. The concept now is that while building or renovating a home it is crucial not to rob the future of its resources by creating more efficient buildings while reducing their dependability on non-reusable materials.
As energy prices continue to rise and an abundance of toxic components that compromise human and environmental health is discovered, the need to reduce energy consumption and waste has increased over the past thirty years.
Savings and costs of healthy homes
While green buildings feature significantly lower operating costs sometimes they can have higher initial costs. Using the proper building envelope for the walls, floors, ceiling and roof and by installing super windows (double or triple glazing with sealed insulated glass, inert gas such as argon or Krypton in the sealed unit and insulate frames and sashes), can be more costly but by doing so one can save approximately 15% of the total energy bill attributed to heat loss.
Additional long time savings can result from the installation of radiant solar floors, super insulated walls and roof, the proper use of landscaping can reduce heat loading and solar voltaic panels on the roof cool the house naturally without the need of an air conditioner.
The EnerGuide
Whether one is considering building a home, buying and renovating an older home, interested in the restoration of a heritage home or would like to transform his present home into a Green One, the EnerGuide system launched by Ottawa in 1978 has expanded in 1998 to residential structures. Some new-home tract builders offer energy upgrade with an EnerGuide rating. There are also companies that conduct environment audits on homes throughout Canada. An EnerGuide for Houses evaluation costs 300$ to 500$.
Living in Harmony with our Environment
A green home, improves the health and productivity of its occupants, increases building value, compared to conventional buildings the green building has a higher resale price.
It also ensures that buildings have longer lives, they require little maintenance and repair and can be converted rather than demolished, when required.
A Green Home is a tailor made home in harmony with the environment and providing a novel relationship between human beings and their material surrounding.
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