Over the past few decades, the worlds population has shifted its initiative towards the planet’s wellbeing. Now that concrete studies have been released and we understand the stress we have placed on our planet, we are beginning to act to repair the damages and reduce the effects of climate change. It is timely to think about building and converting existing buildings into green and LEED condos. 

According to Canada’s Green Building Council (CAGBC), “LEED or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is the most widely-used green building rating system in the world, available for virtually all building, community, and home-project types” (CAGBC, 2021). The reason for LEED is to help counteract climate change by constructing buildings that are healthy, efficient, cost-saving, and most importantly green.

Our planet needs LEED certification because according to CAGBC, buildings generate about 30% of all greenhouse gasses (GHG), 35% of landfill waste due to construction processes and demolition activities, and they consume up to 70% of municipal water in and around them (CAGBC, 2021).

The certification process is rated on a four-level point system. The level of certification a building can receive is based on five main categories which include: sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, and indoor environmental quality. The four certification levels, ranked lowest to highest are listed below:

• 40-49 points: LEED Certified
• 50-59 points: Silver Certification
• 60-70 points: Gold Certification
• 80+ points: Platinum Certification

In comparison to the rest of the world, Canada is ranked second for the most certified projects with 4,122 at the end of 2019, and third for gross square meters with 46.81 million as of December 2018. Canada has set a great example by making a substantial effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 

There are cities in Canada, such as Toronto, that are updating their green standard in order to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. If passed by council, the new standard would be in effect starting in May 2022 and would require mid-high rise residential buildings to reduce annual GHG emissions by 25%. New buildings must also increase electric vehicle parking by 5% from 20%, have 25% of the property planted with native flowers, have 80% of rooftops be green, and 50% of the plants they have support pollinators (Beattie, 2021). However, these targets have led to some resistance from developers. They believe it will cost too much to build these sustainable buildings, ultimately increasing the price for consumers in an already expensive real-estate market. 

Whether or not increased standards are implemented, to date Canada has done a phenomenal job. Since 2005 there has been energy savings of 20.7 million eMWh, water savings of over 37 billion litres, a GHG reduction of 4.04 million CO2e tonnes, 390,000 sq. metres of green roofs, and 3.82 million tonnes of recycled construction and demolition waste (CAGBC, 2021).

Advanced Solutions International, I. (2021). LEED: the international mark of excellence. Why LEED? https://www.cagbc.org/CAGBC/LEED/CAGBC/Programs/LEED/_LEED.aspx?hkey=43680f7a-955c-4345-9983-e8cb8683121a.   

Beattie, S. (2021, June 29). All new Toronto buildings could soon face tighter greenhouse gas emissions targets | CBC News. CBCnews. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/new-toronto-buildings-emissions-1.6083123.