Green Building Certifications / Rating Systems
Section 5 of the Green Building Basics Guide
Canadian green builders have a few options to choose from when selecting a green building certification or rating system. Programs have been created to fit certain niches, such as existing or new buildings, commercial or residential buildings and comprehensive or specific assessments.
Following is a complete list of the different green building certification / rating systems operating in Canada, listed alphabetically.
Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) of Canada have developed BOMA BEST (Building Environmental Standards) to assess energy and environmental performance for existing buildings (offices, shopping centres, open air retail plazas, light industrial buildings and multi-unit buildings). They offer a series of programs that are both certifications and building management tools.
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BOMA BEST assesses environmental performance and management over the following ten areas: energy, water, air, comfort, health and wellness, custodial, purchasing, waste, site and stakeholder engagement.
BREEAM is a widely recognized environmental assessment method and rating system for buildings. This international system measures performance against established benchmarks over a number of categories, such as energy, water, health and well-being, pollution, transport, materials, waste, land use, innovation and management processes.
Built Green is a national certification program focused on residential building. This includes single-family homes and high-density buildings as well as renovations and Net Zero+. Communities and restorations programs are in the pilot phase. In their assessments, Built Green accounts for: energy and envelope, materials and methods, indoor air quality, ventilation, waste management, water conservation, and building practices.
Backed by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), EnerGuide applies a rating similar to the kilowatt per hour consumption rating you’d see for appliances but instead as an annual gigajoule rating (GJ/year) for the house as a whole, with a rating of 0 being a net-zero home. EnerGuide measures a home’s energy performance only, so it’s specifically for users wanting to focus on this particular aspect of a home’s construction, or for those considering energy performance in their renovation and upgrade projects. EnerGuide homes have had their plans evaluated by a certified energy advisor. Energuide evaluations provide homeowners with “a government-backed energy efficiency rating and label” for their homes.
ENERGY STAR® for New Homes is also backed by NRCan. The label ensures homes are performance tested, third-party verified and government-backed. ENERGY STAR® homes’ energy-efficiency improvements are mostly hidden—better insulation, high-performance windows, tighter air sealing—but very effective at improving home performance.
ENERGY STAR® qualified homes are built to be 20 percent more energy efficient (in terms of space and water heating) compared to one built to local building codes. Builders are required to meet minimum efficiency standards, but may then choose two “paths” to certification, both of which allow them flexibility in terms of energy upgrades.
Green Globes is an assessment and rating system administered by GB Initiative Canada. It covers new construction as well as renovation projects, and is used on a wide variety of commercial and public building types.
Green Globes is an online, interactive tool with automated reporting that significantly reduces the time and cost of submissions. This is an in-house self-assessment tool, wherein users, in consult with their project managers and design teams, submit answers about construction choices through an online questionnaire. The project is awarded points, but the system also offers practical guidance and strategies. The project input can be changed as often as desired before verification.
Green Key Eco-Rating Program is specifically for hotels and other lodging facilities. The Green Key Eco-Rating Program is recognized by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council. It provides environmental audits and recommendations for decreasing emissions, waste and energy use.
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is an internationally recognized third-party certification program for buildings and homes. It’s administered in Canada by the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC). LEED adopts a holistic approach to sustainability, accounting for the following eight categories: location and transportation, sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality, innovation, and regional priority.
Ratings of certified, silver, gold or platinum are awarded according to a comprehensive 110-point rating system. LEED offers a few different rating systems, each of which includes requirements as well as optional credits that can be used towards certification. LEED-certified buildings and homes result in healthier environments, lower operating costs and a reduced impact on the environment.
Living Building Challenge – Living Building Challenge is equal parts philosophy, advocacy platform and certification program. The intent is to define priorities not just on a technical level, but as a set of core values to direct the building industry towards truly understanding how to solve problems rather than just shifting them.
This performance-based standard promotes regional solutions that respond to different variables rather than being a checklist of best practices. The challenge covers seven areas: place, water, energy, health and happiness, materials, equity and beauty.
Net Zero Home Labelling Program – a Canadian Home Builders’ Association initiative, the Net Zero Labelling Program both sets out technical requirements for and recognizes 2 tiers of homes (new or retrofitted, including low-rise Multi-Unit Residential Buildings (MURBs) that reach stringent energy performance standards.
The second-tier label, Net Zero Ready, is applied to homes that have energy performance levels between 50 and 80% better than homes built to the applicable standard building code. The first tier of labels, Net Zero, is reserved for homes that are 100% more energy efficient than ones built to the applicable code. Homes produce as much energy as they consume and feature filtered fresh air systems and water-saving technology.
Novoclimat is an initiative of Transition énergétique Québec designed for new buildings to improve energy efficiency. Single-family homes, semi-detached and row housing, small multi-unit buildings and large multi-unit buildings are eligible.
Novoclimat includes training and certification of contractors and building specialists as well as the certification of homes that meet the required standards. Financial assistance is also available under this program. Homes built according to this standard realize improved energy performance of a minimum of 20 percent compared to those built to local codes.
Passive House focuses on optimizing a building’s envelope to maintain heat through: super-insulation, air tightness, high-performance windows, efficient heat recovery ventilation and by minimizing thermal bridges.
With this focus on optimizing the building envelope, Passive House has a high standard in terms of lowering heating energy consumption: Passive House buildings “consume up to 90 percent less heating and cooling energy than conventional buildings.” It’s a good choice for builders targeting passive design and wanting strong heating energy efficiency.
R-2000 is another standard administered by NRCan. R-2000 measures energy efficiency, indoor air tightness quality and environmental responsibility in home construction, promising energy savings, reduced environmental impact, improved home health and comfort.
SITES is a rating system offered by the Sustainable SITES Initiative that focuses on sustainable land and water use and evaluates the building site rather than the building. It works on a points system, where GBCI (Green Business Certification Inc.) measures projects against performance criteria and awards points that will determine the project’s level of certification.
Performance criteria include air quality, wildlife habitat, energy consumption, water use and human health. Applications can be submitted either in full or as a split review, where applications are submitted and reviewed at the end of the design phase and at the end of building.
TRUE Zero Waste is a GBCI program focusing on waste output, this certification is about changing values as well as practices. It’s geared towards existing public buildings and encourages owners and management teams to adopt zero-waste cultures.
Facilities work towards certification by meeting program requirements and earning points. Program requirements include diverting a minimum of 90% of solid, non-hazardous wastes from landfills for a period of 12 consecutive months. Points categories include zero-waste purchasing, composting, reuse, leadership, innovation and many more.
Zero Carbon Building Standard evaluates new and existing buildings by carbon emissions, with the goal of buildings reaching a zero carbon balance. Homes and small multi-family residential buildings are not eligible.
New builds can earn Zero Carbon Building – Design certification by meeting thresholds for factors including onsite renewable energy, energy efficiency and thermal energy demand performance. Energy consumption and emissions from structural materials must also be assessed.
Existing buildings can earn Zero Carbon Building – Performance certification after successfully meeting requirements for energy use and greenhouse gas emissions over a 12-month period. Continued certification depends on annual performance reviews.
The International Living Future Institute’s (ILFI) Zero Energy Certification (ZEB) recognizes buildings whose energy needs are met entirely through on-site renewable energy. The program works by assessing the building’s energy performance itself. Independent, third-party audits measure a building’s performance data over 12 consecutive months. ILFI works with several organizations that offer subsidies and rebates for renewable energy.
Projects can obtain a Reveal label that’s posted on the website and that can be mounted on the building itself. The label verifies and states the project’s energy use intensity, zero energy performance index and reduction in energy use (when compared to baseline). There’s no minimum requirements for energy efficiency – the label simply gives the building’s energy performance data according to the above metrics.
Thanks, understanding green building certifications is essential for sustainable construction. Which certification do you think has the most rigorous standards?
Living Building Challenge is considered to have the most rigorous standards and is the hardest certification to obtain since it’s focused not just on minimizing harm, but creating a positive impact. One example of that in terms of energy is that buildings have to supply 105% of all its needs through renewable energy.
I firmly believe that teaming up with the right people and companies we can build green homes for a better environment and for the health of the people.