When it comes to construction, green acres can turn into greener buildings.

Although the green-building trend is still in its early stages in Canada, a new study shows that green buildings - structures that reduce the impact on the environmental and social systems that surround them - consume fewer non-renewable resources, produce less waste and air emissions, and cause fewer disturbances to site ecology than other buildings.

Further, green buildings can command higher rents and prices, attract tenants more quickly, cut tenant turnover, and cost less to operate and maintain, says Michael Brooks, executive director of the Real Property Association of Canada (RealPac), which co-sponsored the Green Value study in conjunction with nine government and private-sector organizations in Canada and the U.K.

"From my association's point of view, I am trying to enlighten our members that you can make money off of green buildings," says Brooks. "I'm trying to dispel the notion that green buildings cost more but don't rent for more."

Photo courtesy Mountain Equipment Co-op
Winnipeg's Mountain Equipment Co-op store was constructed in part with materials from its demolished predecessor.

Toronto-based RealPac aims to bring together Canada's real property investment leaders to collectively influence public policy. RealPac members own in excess of $100 billion in real estate assets located in the major centres across Canada.

But while Brooks says it's still too early to expect results - the study was released at the end of October - he notes that education is the primary objective for the moment. However, he expects increased tenant demand for green buildings in Canada, in part due to Kyoto compliance concerns, "and as pedigree that buildings will increasingly need to have."

Canadian governments are seen as a key early mover into green buildings, and Fortune 500-type companies are also likely to be early adopters, he adds.

In B.C., the government is working hard to maintain its leadership role in the sector, says provincial Environment Minister Barry Penner.

Through the Green Buildings BC program, the province is working to reduce the environmental impact of provincial buildings by increasing energy and water efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

"I say that we're a leader in Canada because about 43 per cent of the green buildings (in Canada) are located in B.C.," says Penner. "B.C. had the first LEED-rated building in Canada, the Vancouver Island Technology Park located just outside of Victoria, and that project achieved a gold-level certification with LEED."

LEED, otherwise known as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is designed to accelerate the development and implementation of green-building practices. A rating system and certification program for new and major retrofits of commercial, institutional and high-rise residential buildings, it was developed by the U.S. Green Building Council.

"The interest is huge," says Thomas Mueller, president of the Canada Green Building Council, which developed the LEED Canada program.

"There was interest before we came in. People just registered with the U.S. Green Building Council (for LEED certification). Since we registered LEED Canada (in December 2004), we have 160 buildings registered with us, which is the first step toward certification."

At the Vancouver Island Technology Park, some of the green practices include parking lots developed with carpooling spaces, plug-ins for hybrid vehicles and a grass/gravel system to reduce runoff and vehicle-related site contaminants that might harm fish - the site includes a salmon spawning creek.

Meanwhile, Penner points to the 2010 Winter Olympics as "the world's first sustainable Winter Olympics, and most or all of the Olympic venues will be designed with green technology."

Green building, though, is not just limited to B.C. "We're finding uptake in all locations," says Kevin Hydes, chairman of the U.S. Green Building Council and formerly president of Keen Engineering Co. Ltd. of Vancouver, one of the leading sustainable building systems design firms in North America.

When he was at the helm of Keen, Hydes steered the 45-year-old firm, which traces its roots back to Regina, toward more sustainable building practices. He says federal, provincial and state governments in North America are interested in green buildings "because the population everywhere is asking for it."

About a year ago, the City of Calgary leapfrogged to the front of the line with its own green-building policy, he notes.

Other examples of interest include Ontario and Alberta. "In Ontario, we had three conferences last month alone on green buildings," says Hydes.

"Last month, Alberta had its eighth annual Sustainable Building Symposium."

Hydes is now vice-president of building engineering, and practice leader for sustainability under Stantec Inc., following that company's acquisition of Keen in October.

Keen, with 275 employees and 12 offices - 10 offices in Canada and two in the U.S. - was a logical acquisition for the Edmonton-based Stantec, says Stantec president and CEO Tony Franceschini.

"We always thought that green building is the future and the only question is the rate at which it's going to be adopted," says Franceschini, who adds that Stantec itself is turning more in that direction.

"It's really something that is starting to become a little more mainstream, but still is in the minority. Our own feeling is that in the next five or 10 years it will become more mainstream. We see that the industry is changing, albeit perhaps a little more slowly than we had expected, but having a very strong position in that field would be good for us in the long term."

Stantec's move to take control of Keen puts the company into the top three or four North American green-building players, says Franceschini. It now has 280 LEED-accredited professionals - 130 at Stantec and 150 more from Keen.

Though turning green still isn't on everyone's radar screen, retail player Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC) has been an advocate of green buildings for some time.

"We're not just doing it because it's a business advantage," says MEC communications manager Tim Southam. "We believe it's the right thing to do."

MEC is Canada's largest retail co-operative, which includes stores in Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver and Winnipeg. It provides outdoor recreation products and services, and says it is committed to reducing the environmental impact of its operations.

Its Winnipeg operation earned a LEED Gold certification from the U.S. accrediting body earlier this year.

"The building that was formerly on the site was dismantled and a lot of the material was reused. That's one of the key elements in achieving a LEED Gold certificate, reusing existing building materials. It definitely is a showcase building for us," says Southam.

MEC has also installed a green roof for its Toronto store. "The Toronto store roof is planted with a variety of indigenous grasses, flowers and shrubs and the effect of that is to lower the roof temperature in the summer to reduce energy consumption," says Southam. "It also reduces stormwater runoff. Rather than going into the storm sewers, it's retained on the roof. Another benefit is that it also provides habitat for birds right in the heart of Canada's largest urban environment."

MEC will open store No. 11 next spring in Victoria, in the old Vogue Building downtown on the edge of Old Town.

"For very small cost increases you can have a better-performing building on the energy side, which will save you money," says LEED Canada's Mueller.

Overall, Canada is doing fairly well in the green-building movement, notes Mueller.

"We're starting to recognize the benefits of green buildings," he says. "I think Canada is kind of on track, but compared to Europe we're behind. Europe, with higher energy prices and higher utility costs, has more of an awareness about the environment. In Canada, we're a resource-rich country and that (going green) wasn't really our concern. But now this is changing quite rapidly."

(Laura Severs can be reached at laura@businessedge.ca)