HomeMy WebLinkAboutMarch 18, 2008
Cillf o~ Minutes I Meeting Summary
Sustainable Pickering Advisory Committee
March 18,2008
10:00 am
Main Committee Room
Attendees: Doug Dickerson, City Councillor, Ward 2 (Chair)
Jennifer O'Connell, City Councillor, Ward 1 (Vice-Chair)
Bonnie Littley, Regional Councillor, Ward 1
Tom Melymuk, Director, Office of Sustainability
Neil Carroll, Director, Planning & Development
Shawna Mutton, Coordinator, Community Sustainability
Lynda Taylor, Manager, Development Review
Tim Moore, Chief Building Official
Ross Pym, Principal Planner - Development Review
Tyler Barnet, Senior Planner - Site Planning
Hena Kabir, Planner II - Site Planning
Jack McGinnis - Durham Sustain Ability
Marla Shim, Executive Assistant, Council (Recording Secretary)
Guests: Craig Cassarino - Leonardo Technologies Inc.
Ron Engelman - Leonardo Technologies Inc.
Chris Gates, Manager, Sustainable Energy - Enbridge Gas (Pickering resident)
Peter Ostrowski, Section Manager Civil Design & Analysis - OPG (Pickering resident)
Jiri Skopek, Director - ECD Energy and Environment
Stephen Fagyas - Commercial Focus Advisory Services Inc.
Absent: David Pickles, City Councillor, Ward 3
Item I Details & Discussion & Conclusion Action Items I Status
Ref # (summary of discussion) (include deadline as
appropriate)
1. Welcome
Councillor Dickerson welcomed everyone to the meeting and
gave regrets for the Mayor who was unable to attend due to a
conflicting meeting.
2. Sustainable Pickering Challenge
. Tom gave a detailed background of the Sustainable
Pickering program and explained that it started with a
Council resolution, which has since developed into three
phases:
1. Building Local Understanding and Capacity
2. Developing a Solid Foundation and Framework
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3. Creating the Sustainable City
· Currently in phase three of the journey
· Three calculators: idling, energy and water are being
developed by an outside agency to be displayed on
sustainablepickering.com. These calculators will give
residents the opportunity to see, first hand, the effects of
their consumption.
· Behavioral and educational awareness is crucial
· Transportation should be a biq focus for Durham
3. Green Globes
Jiri gave a detailed description of the Green Globes program:
- online assessment protocol, rating system and
guidance for green building design, operation and
management
- 500 buildings have been 100 certified
- report prepared with documented data
- if new buildings are not managed in a green way, they
will not stay green
- need continuity for design and maintenance in order to
stay green
- studies being done on green buildings in Toronto
- currently working with Lisa King of the City of
Toronto's Planning Department
- online report being generated and verification being
done by reviewing preliminary drawings and
specifications
- review of environmental impacts can be tied to project
delivery and development process
- move right into existing building process and engage
in the continuing improvement by having a regular
review program
- more information can be obtained by visiting
www.greenglobes.com
. Question raised as to how much authority the City has to
require internal assessments for new development
. Neil advised that under policies, we do not have the
authority, but that there is new authority provided to the
City through Bill 51 to address sustainable elements
. Building code recently changed, but has not leaped into
major energy conservation initiatives
. It was noted that until the City develops policies, we do
not have authority and are currently in the transition
phase, but are open to exploring other standards
. Staff need to get more education and experience in these
conservation techniques and in the interim would need
consulting assistance to bring this expertise to the City
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. Question raised as to what the difference is between
Green Globes and LEED
. Jiri advised that LEED certification requires a lot more
administration / paperwork and takes a long time,
whereas the emphasis of Green Globes is to have a more
efficient and less bureaucratic process that does not
produce a great deal of paperwork
. The proof is not in fancy designs, but in building
operations
. Need appropriate education for architects and engineers
and less green consultants
. Developers could take the Sustainable Pickering
Challenge by using a tool such as Green Globes and
partnering with the City - the City could offer incentives
(fast tracking etc.)
. When the challenge idea was established, they were
looking for simplicity and LEED is very complicated
. If user friendly, people are more apt to get on board and
do not need a great deal of information
. Peter explained that the process of building code
development is very lengthy and that in order to see
results, we would need to be ten years ahead. If
implemented today, we will not see results until 2015
. Would need educational code to drive the process
. Blair Feltmate is the new OPG Director of Sustainability
. OPG holding a conference next Friday for industry to Tom M. to attend OPG
share ideas and look at the bottom line conference
. We cannot afford to price ourselves out of the market
. Research shows that clients are willing to pay a premium
for green upgrades in their new home
. Link to bottom line and best bang for buck is educating
the public and paying consultants for reports that are user
friendly
. Our biggest challenge is finding what is needed in
Pickering, as opposed to Toronto
. Tremendous opportunities for building R2000 standard
homes
. Retrofitting is more expensive, but can be a major
challenge, unless individuals know how to do it properly
. Need to have a central"green" database in Canada that
the average person can easily access
4. Measuring Sustainability - Plenary Session
. Jack reported that the plenary session were successful:
- The five working groups came up with 230 indicators
- Really good discussion which resulted with feedback
on 30 to 35 priority items
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- Look at developing a "dashboard" approach to
organizing and promoting the indicators
- Town Hall meetings will be held in the beginning of Shawna to coordinate
May
. OPG has a process where they use red, yellow and green
as a way to report on progress each quarter
5. Other Business
. Councillor O'Connell advised that as a Library Board Shawna will action
member, she would like to look into the Library having a
linkage opportunity with Sustainable Pickering
. Look at how they can improve library services and provide
information to residents that will assist in achieving our
goal in sustainability
. It was suggested that the CEO of the Library or a
designated senior staff member attend a future meeting
. Councillor O'Connell advised that volunteers are needed
for the Great Waterfront Trail Adventure Ride on July 6th
. Councillor Dickerson suggested that perhaps Enbridge
and OPG can look into ways that their companies can fit Marla will circulate
into our sustainable program
. It was suggested that if attendees would like to be on the agendas and minutes
agenda for future meetings, they should contact Shawna to committee
attendees in future
6. Next Meeting
To be determined.
Meeting Adjourned: 12:00 pm.
Copy: All Members
Chief Administrative Officer
Directors
City Clerk
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