☀️ Renewable anger

Together with

Good morning!  👀 It’s alive! Researchers have successfully grown bacterial cells in sand-based construction materials. Scientists say this could signal a milestone in efforts to incorporate living organisms into building materials as a means of making architecture more sustainable.

In this issue:

• ☀️ Alberta’s pause on renewable energy

• 🚚 Greening your vehicle fleet

• 🌲 A treehouse-inspired school

• 🛠️ Construction Innovation Summit in B.C.

MARKETS

*Stock data as of last market close; currency, oil and crypto data as of 11:10PM ET August 21st, 2023.

Economy: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is planning a three-day meeting with his cabinet as pressure mounts over economic conditions. Recent polling shows three in 10 Canadians blame government spending over other factors for high consumer prices. Another 22% say businesses are to blame for price hikes, while 10% say Bank of Canada is at fault.

THE BIG STORY

Green energy gets red light in Alberta

Just when it seemed like Alberta was in the midst of a renewable energy boom, the province announced it would halt approvals for new large green energy projects after complaints that they were proceeding too rapidly.

The fallout:

• Wind and solar were on pace to become 30% of the grid’s capacity far sooner than previously expected. Since 2019, almost $5 billion has been invested in renewable energy projects.

• The pause has reportedly heightened tension between Premier Danielle Smith and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government, which is currently drafting regulations for provinces cut out greenhouse gas emissions from their grids on a net basis by 2035.

• According to the Pembina Institute, the pause puts 91 projects in their early stages and $25 billion of investments at risk and directly affects 15 projects currently in the approvals queue.

What’s being said:

“Without certainty as to what the outcome of this pause will be, we will prioritize investment into other jurisdictions,” - Grant Arnold, CEO BluEarth Renewables.

"You're asking people to put a pause on their lives. You're asking people not to work." - Luisa Da Silva, director of Iron and Earth.

“Alberta’s renewable energy industry is a significant part of the Alberta energy sector and should not be unnecessarily halted at a time when Alberta urgently needs the lowest cost electricity generation that wind and solar projects provide.” - Binnu Jeyakumar, Electricity Director, Pembina Institute.

What’s next: Approvals are paused until Feb. 29, 2024. In that time, the Alberta Utilities Commission plans to conduct an inquiry into the use of agricultural land and public land for projects, land reclamation and the role of municipal governments in land selection. The result of this inquiry is anyone’s guess.

NEED TO KNOW

The week's headlines

🔥 Wildfires raging across Canada have burned dozens of homes and thousands remain on evacuation orders. B.C. has declared a state of emergency and more than 50 homes in West Kelowna were destroyed. The hamlet of Enterprise, N.W.T was almost completely destroyed.

🏠 Montreal developers would rather break bylaws and pay fines than build affordable housing. Two years after passing a bylaw to force developers to include social, family and affordable housing units in new projects or pay a fine, every single impacted project has opted to pay the fine.

☀️ Increasingly hot summers have prompted upcoming changes to B.C.’s Building Code that would require all new homes to have at least one temperature-controlled room. This room would be designed not to exceed a temperature of 26 C, through either passive cooling measures, such as shading, or a cooling appliance.

🚨 Four are dead in Quebec after a scissor lift accident. Two men and two women were in the lift working on a new house in St-Léandre. The lift tipped over and the occupants fell several metres. One died at the scene and the others succumbed to their injuries after reaching the hospital.

TOGETHER WITH EVOLVE FLEET

Start your fleet greening journey today

Looking to upgrade your company’s fleet of vehicles to something more environmentally friendly? Evolve Fleet wants to use its data-driven approach to help you do it the smart way.

They provide turnkey solutions to help you build and manage your electric vehicle fleet. From recommendations based on real-time fleet data to tailored programs to suit your operational needs, Evolve allows businesses within a wide range of industries to confidently step towards a more sustainable future.

PROJECT SPOTLIGHT

A tree fort built by big kids

The design of the South Langford Elementary School is drawing inspiration from tree houses in its journey to be more sustainable. The 4,178 sq m four-storey building is oriented east to west to take advantage of natural lighting and maximize useable space on a smaller-than-average sloping site. Thinkspace Architecture says the school was imagined as a tree house embedded into the rugged terrain. The façade is an articulation of the light that filters through the vertical gaps between the trees in a forest. The project features mass timber, increased insulation in wall assemblies, heat pumps, heat recovery systems and photovoltaic cells.

YOU’RE INVITED

ICBA Innovation Summit

If you are passionate about pushing the industry forward, don’t miss one the biggest construction events of the year, the ICBA Construction Innovation Summit. Hosted by the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association, the event will feature two days of panels, keynote speakers, innovation exhibitors and networking geared towards construction leaders and management teams.

PROJECT UPDATES

Crews break ground on long-term care facility in Essex County

Ontario plans two-way, all-day GO rail service to York Region

Waste Management plans $50-million expansion at Twin Creeks Landfill

Science world eyes $110-million upgrade to aging facilities

Federal government funds small modular reactor developments

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

READ: 🐱 PCL crew finds kittens new home after Hurricane Ian

PHOTOS: 🪵 The world's first doubly-curved cross-laminated timber spiral staircase

READ: 🏠 Chinese property giant Evergrande has filed for bankruptcy

VIDEO: 🍼 It’s a girl! Couple reveals baby gender with excavator

READ: 🖥️ Is artificial intelligence construction’s next big thing?

HOT JOBS

🔥 Check out the best roles up for grabs in construction right now:

• Director of Development - Montreal, Que. - Devmont

• Director Technical Product Management - Vancouver, B.C. - Generac

• Director, Procurement - Montreal, Que. - American Iron and Metal

• Vice President, Field Operations - Vancouver, B.C. - O2E Brands

• Vice President, Forestry & Integration - Toronto, Ont. - Hydro One

• Chief Engineer - Vancouver, B.C. - West Coast Reduction

• Chief Engineer, Maintenance - Saskatoon, Sask. - Cameco

• Senior Engineer, Utilities Interface - Vancouver, B.C. - TI Corp.

• Construction Estimator, Mining and Metals - Vancouver, B.C. - BBA Consultants

• Senior Estimator - Remote (B.C.) - STO Building Group

Check out all roles at SiteNews Jobs or put your job post in front of tens of thousands of construction professionals here. . Hurry up before our free trial ends!

Struggling to fill a role? send us an email at [email protected] to connect with one of our specialized recruitment experts.

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Here’s to a great rest of the week!