As the builder of one of the first net-zero energy homes in North America, Peter Amerongen of Habitat Studio knows about building green. Peter, an award-winning sustainable home builder, has brought his passion for environmentally responsible construction to the Edmonton market for over 35 years.
“Our homes are some of the greenest and most energy-efficient homes in Canada,” explains Peter. “Our work with net zero energy houses has taught us that to achieve anything even close to carbon neutrality, we need to start with ultra efficient building enclosures. We reduce heating and cooling energy with high levels of insulation and air tightness and top-notch windows and doors. By also reducing lighting, appliance and hot water energy we can get the total energy use low enough that the remainder can be made up with renewable sources like solar electricity and air or ground source heat pumps.”
Similar green design elements will be a part of all the buildings in Blatchford. In additional to the homes in the community, all retail and commercial buildings will be designed to be energy efficient and to reduce water and energy usage.
In order to achieve these high environmental goals, builders selected for the community will need to meet pre-set sustainable building standards.
By living up to these high standards, Peter envisions Blatchford acting as a catalyst to change how buildings are built in Edmonton. “By requiring that builders in Blatchford meet these standards, the community has the potential to create a larger pool of expertise in Edmonton and to increase the number of builders who build sustainably. If you increase the number of green builders, you increase the potential that it will become the way we build all houses in the future.”
Home builders for Blatchford will be selected later this year, with the first residents expected to move into the community in late 2016/2017.
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