CASE STUDY

By Charlie Angelo

Jean Canfield broke new ground by becoming the first ever woman elected to the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island (P.E.I.), Canada, in 1970. Decades later, even after her death, Canfield inspired innovation in the form of the most sustainable building ever constructed by the Canadian government. The Jean Canfield Government of Canada Building, located in Charlottetown, P.E.I., was designed to serve as a technologically advanced example of sustainability, a hub of progress in the Canadian government, and a reminder of Jean Canfield’s dedication to innovation.

The 17,500-square-meter, four-story building operates in conjunction with its environment, no matter the weather. A photovoltaic (PV) array utilizes the sun’s power. When the solar panels are temporarily incapacitated during a storm, the building captures, stores and treats rain water for future use. The Canfield building benefits from the wind as well, purchasing a portion of its power from Provincial wind turbines, which yield virtually zero emissions.

According to Fat Spaniel Technologies (fatspaniel.com), which provides live statistics online for solar systems, the Jean Canfield Building’s 111.5-kilowatt PV system has generated over 250,000 kilowatt-hours of energy and displaced over 120,000 kilograms of carbon dioxide since its installation in February of 2008.

The Jean Canfield Building also uses passive solar design to conserve energy. Natural light fills much of the work space of the building, and shade is also used to moderate the indoor temperatures. The roof and walls of the building are reflective to reduce heat absorption.

“The Jean Canfield Government of Canada Building was designed as a multi-department, environmentally friendly building that will lead the way in the greening of government operations for many years to come,” Michael M. Fortier, minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) said in a news release.

The aim in construction the Jean Canfield Government of Canada Building was to achieve a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification from the Canadian Green Building Council (CaGBC). “We are in the middle of our LEED application and are hoping to see a result by December,” said Ron St. Onge, Project Manager for PWGSC.

• Located on a Brownfield Site in downtown Charlottetown, the building's environmental footprint is reduced.

• Local recycled and renewable material was used in the building's construction resulting in less construction and operating waste.

• Annual consumption of water is reduced using water efficient fixtures, as well as capture, storage and treatment of rainwater for building operations.

• The building uses radiant chilled/heated slabs, rather than cooling or heating the ventilation air only.

• The building's design incorporates a raised access floor, providing for highly flexible and serviceable building services and eliminating the need for ventilation ductwork.

• The building's layout is flexible to accommodate future relocations without the need of costly mechanical renovations.

• Operable windows and the use of atrium exhaust allow the building to be naturally ventilated.

• Energy loss through exhausted air is recovered and reused to assist in cooling and heating new incoming air.

• The use of Charlottetown's District Heating System eliminates the need for fuel-fired boilers.

• Natural and reflective lighting levels, with individual user controls reduce energy consumption while providing a more productive work environment.

• Daylight harvesting allows for more use of natural light, and occupancy sensors activate lighting only when it is needed.

• Office bays offer daylight and views on both sides and cross-ventilation for maximum productivity and energy savings.

• Shared boardrooms, business centers, computer centers, training rooms, mailroom and a learning center reduce the building's environmental footprint and operational cost per tenant.

----------
Performance data for the Jean Canfield Building is not available at this time. We apologize for the inconvenience.

----------
About the author: Charlie Angelo is SOLAR TODAY’s intern. He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Colorado at Boulder. ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )