Vancouver’s VanDusen Botanical Garden Visitor Centre will be the first building in Canada to have a living building certification when completed. Buildings need to use zero net energy and water for one year, in addition to satisfying many other requirements, to qualify for the living building certification.
Also built to LEED Platinum standards, the Busby Perkins + Will designed 24,000sq.ft (2,230sq.m), CAN$19.4 million (€14.6million) facility has a rammed earth base, an extensive green roof, a solar chimney (for hot air release), rainwater catchment plus blackwater and stormwater recycling.
Energy to power Vancouver’s greenest building will be provided by an extensive solar photovoltaic system mounted on the grass-covered roof and via a biomass boiler running on deadfall and other debris from the grounds.
The center’s new facility will also include classroom space, a restaurant and gift shop. The VanDusen Botanical Garden Visitor Centre is scheduled for completion in March 2011.
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