Boost for business Energy Bill Relief

Boost for business

Energy Bill Relief

That's why the utility is determined to acknowledge the measures that businesses are taking to shrink their environmental footprint. Each month, as part of its Companies for Conservation program, Hydro Ottawa showcases a company on its website and issues a press release highlighting its story.

Since launching almost two years ago, there has been no difficulty in finding companies, organizations and public agencies doing right by the environment.

Take Canada Post, for example. It has a huge recycling effort under way at its headquarters on Riverside Drive with recycling stations set up throughout the building and collector bins in the basement to capture old batteries. Carpeting throughout the 400,000-square-foot space is made from recycled fibres.

"You'd never know it by driving by," Ms. Bruce says.

You also wouldn't know from cruising past that, after an energy audit in 2008, Canada Post installed motion sensors to ensure lights were off when not in use, incandescent lighting was replaced with compact fluorescents and daylight sensors were installed in the parking garage, saving about 40,000 kilowatts of electricity each year.

Canada Post is not unique.

Across town, another Crown agency, the Royal Canadian Mint, has implemented retrofits worth $8-million at its original home on Sussex Drive, covering everything from heating, ventilation and air conditioning to building envelope improvements such as beefing up insulation and installing energy-efficient windows.

Then there's Industr y Canada's Communications Research Centre campus at Shirleys Bay, which has a homegrown comic strip that is distributed to employees and features Amp Champ.

The comic strip provides information on conservation initiatives and progress at the campus as well as practical ideas for employees to embrace conservation.

The private sector is going green as well. Lowe-Martin Group has been recognized by the printing industry as an environmental leader for its use of earth-friendly inks and paper from sustainable sources. But it didn't stop there. Its state-of-theart building incorporates many innovative measures to maximize conservation efforts. For example, each of the building's meeting rooms and washrooms feature automated sensor lighting, ensuring the lights are off when the rooms are not in use.

The facility's thermo-dynamic windows minimize heat loss, and a kernic waste extraction system recovers conditioned air and directs it back into the facility. The kernic system saved Lowe-Martin about $50,000 on energy bills last winter alone.

Minto Group, an established builder and property manager in Ottawa, has been involved in many green initiatives, including major lighting projects that replaced 35,000 incandescent bulbs with energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs. The Minto Suites Hotel even has its own 28-kilowatt co-generation plant. Minto also built the Inspiration House, an eco home in Manotick, as a part of the Equilibrium initiative of Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. And it is constructing a new building on Kent Street that is targeted for LEED Gold.

In addition to the lighting and building system upgrades that have been performed on the World Exchange Plaza, Bentall LP's grey-water recover y system will see rainwater captured and reused to reduce the building's demand for municipal water to its cooling towers.

Why are all these efforts so important? Dean Karakasis, executive director, Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) Ottawa, offers several reasons.

"It's doing the right thing," he says. "These companies are stepping up to be more efficient and to be better contributors to our planet by polluting less.

But it is also good for business. "Buildings that participate in programs like this are leading by example and open the door for their tenants to engage in new practices themselves," Mr. Karakasis says. "As well, potential tenants are looking to see what buildings are doing on the environmental front."

What's more, an increasing body of evidence suggests that green buildings as an asset go up in value -- so it's a good investment. "There is a [return on investment] for sure," Mr. Karakasis says. "Any property manager that goes into a revamping program or water conservation program is doing an ROI assessment. Hydro Ottawa is good at helping companies understand what their buildings are consuming and then suggesting the ways to make improvements. It also provides financial incentives so that their ROI is realized sooner."

Hydro Ottawa, through its Companies for Conservation campaign, is also spreading the word about conservation and recognizing the efforts of business on this front.

Ms. Bruce says the aim is to dig deep -- and shine a light where it is deserved.

"What you see on the surface often does not reflect all that's going on behind the scenes," she says. "Sharing these success stories demonstrates that conservation is happening, even if you cannot see it.""

Proposed rules aim to double distance boats must stay away from whales

Vancouver Sun, July 31, 2009 7:12 AM, By Judith Lavoie

In a move that has jolted the whale-watching industry, the U.S is proposing new rules that would almost double the distance boats must maintain from killer whales in Puget Sound.

Similar changes to marine-mammal regulations are being considered by Canada.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans is holding meetings with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, since it would not be practical to have different rules on each side of Juan de Fuca Strait, said Larry Paike, DFO conservation and protection supervisor for Victoria.

It's not yet known what form Canadian regulations will take. "It's a little bit premature to say whether it would be the same [as the U.S.]," Paike said. "We are moving forward, but the U.S. is moving forward a little faster."

The U.S. proposals would prohibit boats from getting closer than 200 yards (180 metres) from endangered southern resident killer whales and would also set up a half-mile (0.8 kilometre) no-go zone for most boats along the west side of San Juan Island from May to September.

Under current whale-watching guidelines, which apply in the U.S. and Canada, boats must stay 100 metres away from killer whales. An additional voluntary guideline says boats should not be within 260 metres of the west side of San Juan Island while whales are present.

Barry Thom, acting head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's northwest office, said the idea behind the rule change is to protect the 85 southern resident killer whales from underwater noise.

Lynne Barre, marine mammal specialist with the U.S. agency, said she hopes the two countries will adopt similar rules. "This would be a new tool for enforcement," she said.

The earliest new regulations could be in place is May, said Barre, adding it should be possible to spot whales at 200 yards.

Most whale-watching boats already stay beyond the 100-yard limit, she said.

"Things like binoculars and telephoto lenses can keep it exciting for participants."

However, some whale-watching tour operators are shocked by news of the proposed changes.

Shane Aggargaard, president of the Pacific Whale Watch Association, said the group will not officially respond until Victoria marine zoologist Anna Hall has looked at the science behind the proposals. Aggargaard, owner of Anacortes, Wash.-based Island Adventure Cruises, said the proposed new limit represents a significant change.

"A lot of people are pretty shocked. It doubles the global standard for whale watching. It would be like doubling the speed limit on the freeway or cutting it in half."

The half-mile no-boat zone off San Juan Island would eliminate "six square miles of prime sports fishing and eliminate the kayaking industry," he said.

Hall, also a captain for Victoria-based Prince of Whales whale-watching company, said she plans to study the background documents for the proposed change. If it is based on sound science, the whale watching industry will probably support it, she said.

"But if it's someone's idea of what might work,

I expect some people will oppose it."

Paike said DFO is working with the whale-watching industry, which typically demonstrates "very high compliance" with the current rules.

Most problems involve private recreational boaters, he said.

"It's people who come out for holidays and are completely unaware of the rules of the road. We're working more and more this summer on educating the private boater."

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