From the Blog

Repairs begin on 32 schools in TDSB solar rooftop plan

Posted on September 23, 2013 //

by CBS News, September 19, 2013

A plan to install solar panels on the rooftops of Toronto schools will get underway this fall, as crews begin repairs on 32 buildings across the city.

The Toronto District School Board is working in partnership with energy firm Potentia Solar Inc. to install solar panels on 311 school rooftops over the next three years.

Once installed, the panels will generate enough energy to power 4,500 homes each year. Revenue generated from the project will be used to fund much-needed repairs and replacement on school rooftops across the city.

“We’re very proud that our students will be part of the conversation in terms of environmental education, part of the conversation to see how the roofs will be impacted,” said Donna Quan, director of education at the TDSB.

The plan was first announced in 2011. Most of the project costs will come from private solar energy companies with some provincial funding.

It’s one of the largest capital projects of any school board in North America, and the largest in Canada.

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Cool tool for a hot subject

Posted on September 23, 2013 //

by RONDA KAYSEN, Habitat, June 2012, p. 22-25

A year ago this month, New York City released an interactive map showing every solar power installation in the city. It’s not a robust picture. There are fewer than 500 solar installations citywide.

NYCSolarMap.com could change that. By providing property owners with detailed information about tax incentives, solar potential, and the payback period for an individual rooftop, NYCSolarMap could, if you’ll pardon the pun, lead to sunny skies for solar. In all, two-thirds of the city’s roofs could harness enough of the sun’s energy to make it worth the investment.

The City University of New York (CUNY) is leading local solar efforts and developed the map in partnership with the city and the federal Department of Energy. The site has had about 200,000 hits since it launched and gets about 60 visitors a day. “You’re always going to get the early adopters. However, to trigger mainstream adoption you need to make the case for solar by using data,” says Tria Case, director of sustainability for CUNY and the map’s lead developer. The map cost $660,000 to build and gives users the tools to make an informed decision about their own property. The map, created from photographs taken by airplane using a laser system called Lidar, also tracks solar thermal projects and eventually could become an energy map for the entire city.

Map Barriers

But there are barriers to installing solar. The city permitting process can be cumbersome. And not all buildings are good candidates. A property must have a large roof that’s in good condition. Above all, it needs ample sun. A building with too much shade will not get enough sunlight to generate energy. For that reason, buildings in boroughs other than Manhattan tend to be better candidates.

Then there are the financials. If a building is structured as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, it won’t benefit from some of the tax incentives. And since most of the financial incentives come in the form of a rebate, a building’s owners need to either have enough cash to pay for the project up front or be able to qualify for a loan. [...]

Read the full story

NYC Solar Map

Sustainable SUNY

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Tamil Nadu government pushes green thumb rule

Posted on September 23, 2013 //

by JULIE MARIAPPAN, Times News Network, September 23, 2013

CHENNAI: The soaring price of vegetables has caused much heartburn, but people in the state may soon get their greens for free.

If the state government has its way, residents could soon be plucking fresh vegetables from their own rooftop gardens. As part of the plan to soften the blow of food inflation, the government will distribute do-it-yourself rooftop garden kits to residents.

Encouraged by a few individuals who have responded to rising prices by growing vegetables on their balconies, the government plans to introduce the scheme in Chennai and Coimbatore to begin with.

“The opportunity to beat rising prices by growing vegetables at home has led to people trying their luck with gardening. The government wants to chip in with support,” a horticulture officer said. The horticulture department will roll out the scheme with support from Tamil Nadu Agriculture University.

People interested can apply online and the government will supply them with 20 UV stabilised 200 micron thickness polythene bags, 15kg of coir pith and manure, seeds for vegetables and greens, besides instruments, organic fertiliser and a 20sqm polythene sheet. It will make 20 bags available for each person at a subsidised price. Indian Overseas Bank offers loans to individuals for rooftop gardening.

[Read more...]

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Lufa Farms launches second rooftop greenhouse

Posted on September 23, 2013 //

Press release via Reuters

43,000-square-foot greenhouse represents scalable approach for feeding cities

MONTREAL, QUEBEC–(Marketwired – Sept. 23, 2013) – Lufa Farms, which built the world’s first commercial rooftop greenhouse in early 2011, today unveiled its second greenhouse atop a newly constructed office building in the Montreal metropolitan area.

The greenhouse, located in Laval, will provide fresh produce to more than 6,000 people year round – about two times the yield of Lufa Farms’ first greenhouse in the Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough of Montreal. The company’s greenhouse system is scalable and can be replicated on new rooftops in any city.

“This greenhouse puts high-yield, rooftop agriculture within the reach of any new building development, in any city, on spaces public or private, anyplace in the world,” said Mohamed Hage, founder and president of Lufa Farms. “After almost five years of focus on the main issues of urban rooftop agriculture, we have solved how to cost-effectively grow food, distribute it, integrate it with local farming efforts, and do it all in an environmentally conscious, sustainable way. This doesn’t just change how food is grown, it changes how cities eat.”

Construction of the 43,000 square-foot greenhouse, visible from the 440 highway atop a new mixed-use commercial building, was the result of a collaboration between Lufa Farms, Le Groupe Montoni Division Construction, Inc. of Laval, and the Dutch company KUBO, a world-renowned greenhouse designer and manufacturer. The structure uses an innovative venting system to control pests and temperature and to optimize vital sunlight. The greenhouse also has a recirculating irrigation system for water and surface condensation.

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Nantes accueille le gotha mondial de la végétalisation des bâtiments

Posted on September 23, 2013 //

par JEAN-PHILIPPE DEFAWE, LeMoniteur.fr, 5 septembre 2013

Après Toronto, Mexico et avant Sydney en 2014, le Congrès mondial de la végétalisation du bâtiment (World Green Infrastructure Congress) se tiendra du 9 au 13 septembre à Nantes, capitale verte de l’Europe.

Avec quelque 1,5 millions de m2 de surfaces végétalisées, la France est le second marché mondial. Il était donc logique que ce congrès, où sont attendus quelques 600 experts du monde entier, se tienne en France. Logique encore que la ville d’accueil soit Nantes, première ville française élue « capitale verte de l’Europe » par la Commission européenne. « Par ailleurs, à Nantes, nous sommes sur un terreau propice à la vegétalisation des bâtiments avec, sur le territoire, le pôle de compétitivité du végétal, Vegépolys, et le cluster de l’éco-construction, Novabuild » justifie François Lassalle, directeur R&D de Sopranature (Soprema) et président de l’Association des toitures et des façades végétales (Adivet), organisateur du congrès.

Marché porteur mais à encadrer

Dans un marché du bâtiment plutôt morose, la végétalisation représente une niche porteuse même si, selon François Lassalle, « le rythme n’est plus aussi soutenu depuis deux-trois ans ». Comme tout marché nouveau, il est encore à encadrer. « Historiquement, les étancheurs sont présents sur ce marché et ils sont rejoints par les entreprises du paysage. Ce croisement entre bâtiment et végétal nécessite le respect d’une réglementation spécifique. Aujourd’hui, il existe des Règles professionnelles conjointes qui doivent être appliquées par tous les acteurs » précise François Lassalle.

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« Dans l’avenir, il n’y aura plus d’immeubles tertiaires sans une réflexion préalable spécifique sur la végétalisation »

Posted on September 23, 2013 //

propos recueillis par ADRIEN POUTHIER, LeMoniteur.fr, 9 septembre 2013

Le mur pignon végétalisé de l'immeuble Anthos Photo: Jean-Lionel Dias Source: www.lemoniteur.fr

Le mur pignon végétalisé de l’immeuble Anthos
Photo: Jean-Lionel Dias
Source: www.lemoniteur.fr

Alors que se tient à Nantes jusqu’au 13 septembre le Congrès mondial de la végétalisation du bâtiment (World Green Infrastructure Congress), LeMoniteur.fr a interrogé Stéphane Carpier, Directeur technique Développement durable et innovation de Gecina. La foncière a fait depuis quelques années de la végétalisation un élément incontournable de ses projets immobiliers.

Qui est le premier prescripteur de végétalisation sur les projets de Gecina ?

Stéphane Carpier : Gecina s’est lancée dans la végétalisation depuis quelques années déjà. Et tous les cas de figure existent.

A Boulogne-Billancourt par exemple, l’aménageur, la SAEM Val de Seine Aménagement avait expressément requis des toitures végétalisées. On a donc réalisé les premières toitures pour les immeubles Khapa (Foster+Partners, Ateliers 234) et l’Angle (Jean-Paul Viguier) (2008-2009). L’aménageur voulait pour ces bâtiments une sorte de « cinquième façade ». Sur ces toitures, nous avons opté pour une végétalisation « extensive ».

Pour l’immeuble Anthos (Naud et Poux), le végétal est entré dans la conception du bâtiment : la toiture se retourne en façade (mur pignon) et devient un mur végétalisé. La demande de l’aménageur est devenue une idée architecturale. Dans ce cas précis, Gecina a accompagné le projet, à l’époque le plus grand mur végétalisé d’Europe pour un immeuble de bureaux.

[Read more...]

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