October 9, 2009—Following extensive research and consultation, the Real Property Association of Canada (REALpac) recently announced the 20 by ’15 national energy consumption target for office buildings. 20 by ’15 is one of the most aggressive office building energy performance targets in the world and, if achieved, would make the commercial office building sector in Canada a leader in conservation efforts, says REALpac.
The goal of REALpac’s 20 by ’15 initiative is to achieve the target of 20 equivalent kilowatt hours of total energy use per square foot of rentable area per year (20 ekWh/ft(2)/year), in office buildings, by the year 2015. The target is intended as an essential first step in demonstrating substantial, sector-wide emissions reductions and operating cost savings, while taking full advantage of incentives and getting in front of potential regulations.
The 20 by ’15 target was developed based on an analysis of the results of energy consumption data as part of the Canada Green Building Council’s (CaGBC) LEED pilot project conducted under Green Up: Canada’s Building Performance Program in 2008. Achieving the target would lower median energy use for commercial office and government office buildings by 49 percent and 31 percent respectively.
The CaGBC’s “GREEN UP” program is a new way for office building owners to assess potential energy and CO2 savings, and enables them to make performance improvements. Green Up complements LEED Canada for Existing Building Operation & Maintenance (LEED EB:OM), a comprehensive building rating tool, which provides owners with opportunities to improve performance in a number of areas including energy, water, waste and indoor air quality.
