Building for the future: Saskatoon’s Low Emissions Community Plan aims to slow global warming

Last updated: February 27, 2023

Residential buildings made up one-quarter of Saskatoon’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2018 — that’s 913,000 tonnes of CO2. So when the City began to draft its Low Emissions Community Plan in 2019, residential buildings were one of the sectors that could be improved to reduce emissions and slow the effects of global warming. 

Big Block is committed to working with the cities in which we operate, so we consulted the City of Saskatoon for the National Affordable Housing Corporation Willowview Heights project, which features the first Net Zero Ready multi-unit residential building in Saskatchewan, and the first of its kind labeled in Canada.

True to their own commitment to sustainability, Saskatoon has shown  an incredible level of cooperation to ensure the success of the projects we’ve built in the city. They have created collaborative working relationships, and this has been truly commendable. In fact, other cities could learn a lot from the way Saskatoon has gone about working with us. Their efforts have been nothing short of exemplary, and they have certainly set an example for other cities to follow when working with Net Zero Qualified home builders for a low-emissions and carbon-resilient future.

Saskatoon’s Low Emissions Community Plan is a 30-year roadmap to achieving emissions targets for 2023 and 2050 and while the plan covers six sectors that need action across both the community and corporate sectors, one of the more significant sectors is buildings and energy-efficient infrastructure. 

Could Net Zero Ready be mandated?

Hilary Carlson, greenhouse gas controls specialist for the City of Saskatoon and former project manager of the Low Emissions Community Plan, explained that this Net Zero Ready project is especially important not only because it will bring the City closer to emissions targets but also because of expected building code changes.

“Looking federally, there is speculation the National Building Code could mandate Net Zero Ready construction by 2030 and so projects like this are really important because they’re not just single-use homes, they are multi-unit homes, which are going to become critical as our city looks to densify and not just expand outward but also grow up,” Carlson said. 

'Comfortable homes with low energy bills'

Carlson also explained that building Net Zero Ready now rather than waiting until it’s mandated is important for staying ahead of the curve and enabling the local economy to diversify and grow its knowledge base of low carbon buildings.

“This project helps build aptitude within our city and within our local economy so that when the National Building Code gradually makes the move towards Net Zero, we’ve already got the expertise, enabling our local contractors to implement these projects. 

“Even if the National Building Code is not mandating Net Zero construction by 2030, I think it's really important that we educate and build the skill set in our community now. Why wait to build higher quality, healthier and more comfortable homes with low energy bills?”

The City of Saskatoon is a partner on the Willowview Heights project. We're so grateful for all the amazing partners who are helping to make this first-of-its-kind project a success.

Read more about Willowview Heights:

• Efficient, strong, and time-saving: Adapting modular construction to Net Zero standards
• Using Net Zero tech to build better multi-unit residential buildings
• Designing the future of construction: How we used the LEEP process to design a Net Zero multi-unit residential building
• Laying the foundation for a Net Zero multi-unit residential building

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