The BC Energy Step Code is a compliance path (optional) in the BC Building Code that The City of Kamloops and many other municipalities are implementing to require a level of energy efficiency in new construction that is at a higher level than that required by the BC Building Code. This compliance requirement increases a market for a career in energy modelling, which is a plan and inspection process to ensure buildings are being built to the high standards laid out in the Energy Step Code. The goal over a number of years is to require Net Zero Energy buildings to be the only ones built. This is a huge and multi-layered step forward toward environmental sustainability. Buildings can be built to significantly reduce their carbon footprint, compared to decades past.
TCC Mechanical Systems Tour
I went on a tour of the pool renovations and improvements at the TCC here in Kamloops, BC, while those renovations were still underway. There were several pieces of this project that related specifically to environmental sustainability. Part of the renovation was replacing the complete building envelope (roof and walls). This was important because of the deterioration of the roof in particular that was causing toxins to leak into the pool area as well as being inefficient regarding heat loss and heat gain. The mechanical, electrical, heating, ventilation, air conditioning and HVAC systems were all replaced with more efficient systems. The boilers were also replaced with energy efficient options. It can be tricky to figure out when the best time to replace existing systems in an older building are. When does the financial and environmental cost of recycling old machinery and replacing it with new make sense? Given that all the machinery and systems were just about 30 years old, I think replacing them with newer, more efficient systems made sense from an environmental sustainability stand point.