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CSCE & ISI Partner to Accelerate the use of Envision® in Canada

7-December-2021

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CSCE & ISI Partner to Accelerate the use of the Envision® Sustainable Infrastructure Framework in Canada

Washington, D.C., December  7, 2021 – Communities across Canada are looking for ways to improve the sustainability and resiliency of the built environment, address infrastructure deficits, spur economic recovery, and meet climate change commitments. Recognizing the importance of these crucial goals, the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE) and the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (ISI) are pleased to announce their partnership to accelerate the use of the Envision® sustainable infrastructure framework more broadly in Canada.

View the entire announcement in English & French.

La Société canadienne de génie civil et l’ISI s’associent pour accélérer l’utilisation du cadre Envision® pour les infrastructures durables au Canada

Les collectivités de partout au Canada cherchent des moyens d’améliorer la durabilité et la résilience de l’environnement bâti, de combler les lacunes en matière d’infrastructure, de stimuler la reprise économique et de respecter les engagements en matière de lutte contre le changement climatique. Consciente de l’importance de ces objectifs cruciaux, la Société canadienne de génie civil (SCGC) et l’Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (ISI) sont heureux d’annoncer leur partenariat visant à accélérer l’utilisation du cadre Envision® pour les infrastructures durables à plus grande échelle au Canada.

View the entire announcement in English and French.

Envision Packet

29-November-2021

Are you looking for a way to showcase Envision® sustainability and help others fully comprehend exactly what it can do? The 14-page Envision packet may be precisely what you need.

You can download the packet on our Resources page.

 

Northeast False Creek Earns Envision Platinum from ISI

21-October-2021

Consisting of an area of approximately 58 hectares, Northeast False Creek is the largest remaining underdeveloped waterfront area in the city of Vancouver. Northeast False Creek has a long and vibrant history; it was an important area for fishing, harvesting, and hunting by the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations, on whose unceded traditional homelands the city of Vancouver is situated. It was an active center in Vancouver’s industrial past, with rail yards, lumber mills, and shipbuilding activities dominating its shores in the early 20th century. Later, Northeast False Creek welcomed the world to Vancouver as the site of the Expo ’86 World’s Fair. Since then, the land has remained largely vacant, hosting temporary events and serving as an event-staging area for two nearby entertainment arenas.

The existing Georgia and Dunsmuir viaducts were completed in the early 1970s as part of a plan for a larger freeway system that was never constructed.  The viaducts, one of the only elements of the freeway plan to be finished, continue to act as main thoroughfares to and from Vancouver’s downtown core.

In 2015, Vancouver City Council chose to move forward with planning initiatives to replace the Georgia and Dunsmuir viaducts with a reconfigured ground-level road network. Replacing these viaducts unlocks many opportunities and benefits, including:

– adding public spaces, facilities and amenities;
– replacing seismically vulnerable infrastructure with safe, reliable, and resilient infrastructure networks that enhance the City’s emergency preparedness and remain adaptable to meet future challenges; and
– improving the transportation and utility networks to support increased mixed-use commercial and residential development in Northeast False Creek.

The Vancouver City Council approved the Northeast False Creek Plan, of which the viaduct replacement project is a foundational part, in 2018. The Plan presents a self-funding model for achieving public benefits through development potential and provides Vancouver a significant opportunity to embrace the rich history and culture of the area. The plan makes the most of existing local assets and the area’s proximity to the water and establishes a new community that better connects Vancouver’s east and west sides.

View the full announcement in our projects directory.

Academic Committee folks

3-February-2021

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Training and Credentialing Committee

3-February-2021

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Burnaby’s Willingdon Linear Park Earns Envision Silver

25-June-2019

The Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (ISI) announced today that the Willingdon Linear Park located in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada is the recent recipient of the Envision® Silver award for sustainable infrastructure.

The project consists of approximately 1.17 kilometres of park and trail development, spanning thirteen city blocks. The road rehabilitation and construction of the park included milling of existing asphalt, asphalt replacement, construction of a new multi-use pathway, extensive landscaping, retaining walls, and other features.

The Willingdon Linear Park accomplishes several goals and meets the needs of the community by:

  • incorporating multi-use pathways;
  • offering safe pedestrian and cyclist road and laneway crossings;
  • integrating rest areas and pocket parks;
  • enhancing user comfort through park furnishings, lighting, trees, and other features; and
  • establishing character and distinction to the area.

The City of Burnaby worked closely with Eurovia British Columbia and ISL Engineering to deliver this award-winning sustainable project.

Learn more about the project by visiting the PROJECT PAGE.

Events

8-May-2019

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Envision Review Board

30-April-2019

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New Champlain Bridge Corridor Project Earns Envision Platinum Award

18-June-2018

The New Champlain Bridge Corridor (NCBC) project in Montréal, Québec, received the Envision® Platinum award for sustainable infrastructure. Envision recognition for this iconic and regionally important infrastructure project was officially unveiled on June 5, 2018 to coincide with World Environment Day. An award celebration was hosted by Signature on the Saint-Lawrence Construction (SSLC) near the project site in Montréal at the annual BBQ, organized by the Consortium. Attendees at the event included Melissa Peneycad, ISI’s Director of Sustainable Projects, as well as Hugh Boyd, SSL Project Manager; Marthe Robitaille, SSL Environmental Manager; and Chantale Côté, Senior director of the New Champlain bridge project at Infrastructure Canada and a crowd of over 150 people. The NCBC project is the first Envision-recognized project in the province of Québec (fourth in Canada overall) and the second bridge project to earn an Envision award in North America.

“The project is subject to very high technical standards of sustainable development and, as a flagship project for Montréal and Canada, it was crucial for SSL to attain the highest possible distinction.”

– Hugh Boyd, SSL Project Manager

“Given the unique requirements of this project and the leadership of the SSL Management team in protecting the environment, we wanted to aim for the highest level of recognition, i.e. Platinum. We are very proud today of this result. I thank all the teams that enabled us to attain this prestigious award. This is a great day for us.”

– Marthe Robitaille, SSL Environmental Manager

In 2011, the Government of Canada announced the construction of the NCBC to replace the existing Champlain Bridge that was nearing the end of its useful life. The NCBC project includes a new 3.4-kilometer bridge connecting the cities of Montréal to the west and Brossard to the east, the replacement of the existing Île-des-Soeurs (Nun’s Island) Bridge, as well as highway redevelopment work along the A-15 and A-10 in Montréal and Brossard respectively.

The NCBC project is a major regional transportation system and a significant throughway allowing for nearly $20 billion annually in Canada-US trade. It is being delivered through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) with the Federal Government acting as the public partner and the Signature on the Saint-Lawrence (SSL) as the private partner responsible for carrying out the project. The SSL consortium is comprised of four companies, including SNC-Lavalin, Dragados Canada Inc., Flatiron Construction Canada Limited, and EBC.

“I am very pleased that the New Champlain Bridge Corridor Project has earned the Envision® Platinum award. This confirms it is following high standards of sustainable development to ensure the environment is protected. I want to congratulate the environment teams of Infrastructure Canada and Signature on the Saint Lawrence for their hard work in developing and applying the project’s environmental requirements. It is thanks to their efforts that the new Champlain Bridge will not only be a modern effective piece of transportation infrastructure, but also an example of sustainable development and innovation Montréalers and Canadians can be proud of.”

– The Honourable Amarjeet Sohi, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities

To reach Envision Platinum status, a project must demonstrate that it delivers a range of environmental, social, and economic benefits to the host and affected communities. The Envision system examines the impact of sustainable infrastructure projects as a whole, through five distinct categories: Quality of Life, Leadership, Resource Allocation, Natural World, and Climate and Risk. These key areas contribute to the positive social, economic, and environmental impacts on a community.

Key factors contributing to the New Champlain Bridge Corridor project earning Envision Platinum include:

Sustainable Growth and Development: As one of the busiest crossings in Canada, the economic contribution of the NCBC project to the provincial economy cannot be overstated. This transportation corridor will support annual traffic of between 40 and 50 million commuters, as well as over $20 billion in international trade. Improvements to mobility brought by the NCBC compared to the existing Champlain Bridge will have a direct positive impact on the economy by reducing travel time for cars and trucks and providing reliable public transit options as well.

Community Quality of Life: In addition to addressing safety and security concerns and maintaining the vital economic link of the Champlain Bridge, the NCBC project improves the quality of life of the host and neighbouring communities in a multitude of ways. For example, the project improves accessibility to non-motorized transportation and public transit by including a multi-use path for both pedestrians and cyclists and rehabilitating existing cycling networks on the project site in Montréal, and by including provisions for future light rail transit (LRT) in the center lanes of the bridge. The project also improves community mobility by enabling safer, more secure travel across the corridor, and improving the efficiency of traffic flows, especially on the approaches to the NCBC and for communities bordering the project site; and improving pedestrian linkages at the center of Île-des-Soeurs, under the highway, to allow connection between the northern and southern portions of the area.

Leadership in Sustainability: As the owner of the project, the Government of Canada laid a strong foundation for sustainability. The Federal Sustainable Development Act (FSDA) publicly articulates the government’s commitments to improving the sustainable performance of Canadian initiatives, projects, and developments. The NCBC project aligns with the FSDA commitments to ensuring continued safety and service, promoting economic growth and providing value for Canadians, and fostering sustainable development and urban integration. Specific to this project and in keeping with each member’s long-standing commitments to sustainability, SSL developed its own policies and tools to ensure the priorities and commitments made by the Government of Canada were translated into concrete actions and outcomes over the life of the project. For example, the project team implemented an extended environmental quality management system (EQMS) to include social aspects in order to improve the project’s sustainable performance across a broad range of social, environmental, economic, and quality indicators. The EQMS was developed in accordance with the International Standard Organization’s 14001 and 9001 standards for environmental and quality management respectively.

Active stakeholder engagement and continued dialogue have been among the core principles of the project since its inception. Initial consultations were led by the federal government, and subsequently by SSL. A wide variety of stakeholders were solicited for input throughout project planning and delivery, including residents from the City of Montreal’s Verdun and Sud-Ouest boroughs, residents in the cities of Brossard and Longueuil, members of Mohawk Council of Kahnawake, Port of Montreal, the association of intermunicipal transit councils, and the interregional committee for freight transport. The project addressed several concerns raised by stakeholders, including technical constraints regarding constructing the project over the St. Lawrence Seaway, integrating multi-use paths in the project area, managing traffic flows during and post-construction, reducing noise and vibration for residents in the area, and providing accessibility to public transit.

Innovation and Exceptional Performance: The NCBC project exceeded the highest levels of achievement within the Envision system for several credits in the Quality of Life category, earning the project bonus points for exceptional performance.

Furthermore, the project is implementing a new passive de-icing concept to mitigate the risk of ice accumulation on the bridge cable-stay system from falling to the bridge below. A modified bridge structure designed to prevent ice from shedding in large quantities was developed in partnership with DSI, the project’s cable-stay system supplier, and the National Research Council of Canada.

The construction of the NCBC project is complex; no temporary structure or construction barges are allowed on the St. Lawrence Seaway as this is a dedicated navigation channel where no activity may interfere with maritime traffic. To overcome this technical constraint, the team requested the use of an innovative approach to construction where the assembly of the main span tower of over 240 metres in length could be done without disrupting traffic on the seaway. The approach used by the NCBC project team was the object of an experimental development in the field of civil engineering.

“Congratulations to the many firms, individuals, and other stakeholders that have contributed, and continue to contribute to this truly exemplary project. The New Champlain Bridge Corridor project is deserving of its Platinum-level rating,” said Melissa Peneycad, of ISI’s Canadian office. “This iconic infrastructure asset has been designed to meet the needs of the people of Montréal and Brossard, and indeed the entire region for a 125-year period. During this time, many variables are expected to change that could influence the functioning of this corridor, such as future developments, climate change impacts, demand on the road network, and even the way people travel. This project has been designed with the necessary flexibility, adaptability, and resiliency to continue to meet the needs of the host and affected communities for its design life, even under changing operating conditions. This project sets a new standard for other major infrastructure investments in Canada and beyond.”

Surrey Biofuel Facility Earns Envision Platinum

8-March-2018

The Surrey Biofuel Facility located in the City of Surrey, British Columbia is the most recent recipient of the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (ISI) Envision Platinum award. This is the first waste sector infrastructure project in North America and the third Canadian project overall to earn the prestigious Envision award for sustainability.

The largest facility of its kind in Canada, the facility is also the first closed-loop fully integrated organic waste-to-energy infrastructure facility in North America. The 14,323 square metre facility is capable of processing 115,000 tonnes per annum of residential and commercial organic waste into renewable natural gas (RNG). Approximately 120,000 gigajoules of biogas per year will be generated – enough to fuel the city’s entire natural gas-powered waste collection vehicles and its growing fleet of natural gas-powered operations service vehicles, as well as provide a renewable fuel source for the City’s District Energy System. It will also help the Metro Vancouver area achieve its regional waste diversion targets of 80% by 2020. The by-product of this facility—Class A organic compost—will also be available for use in local agriculture and landscaping applications.

“ISI is pleased to present the Surrey Biofuel Facility with the Envision Platinum award for sustainable infrastructure,” said ISI President and CEO, John M. Stanton. “This project is an excellent example of a closed-loop system that will serve the needs of the City for years to come, while significantly reducing waste, and greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change.”

The Surrey Biofuel Facility is a flagship Public-Private Partnership (P3) project and is eligible for up to $16.9 million in grant funding from the federal P3 Canada Fund. It was developed between the City of Surrey and its partner, Orgaworld Canada part of Renewi plc – a leading international waste-to-product business based in the United Kingdom. Construction of the facility commenced in spring 2015 and operations began in fall 2017.

“Designing, building and operating sustainably is at the core of achieving Surrey’s vision for a thriving, green, inclusive city,” said Mayor Linda Hepner. “I am extremely proud the collaborative efforts and sustainable decision making of everyone on our Surrey Biofuel Facility design-build team who were responsible for making this remarkable infrastructure project a reality.”

Renewi will operate the facility for a 25-year period. This partnership required teamwork and close consideration of shared challenges and opportunities throughout the planning, design and operational phases of the project. Other key firms involved in this state-of-the-art project included the building design firm Stantec Consulting Ltd., the contractor Smith Brothers & Wilson Ltd., and process design/construction by Waste Treatment Technologies BV from the Netherlands.

The Surrey Biofuel Facility earned high scores in the Leadership, Climate and Risk, and Natural World categories.

Key sustainable accomplishments include:

Leadership: The City of Surrey has demonstrated tremendous leadership by intentionally selecting CNG-powered vehicles to establish the option to transition them onto biofuel energy once the City could establish a reliable local supply. From the conception of the city’s overarching organic waste collection system, the City has always intended to pursue a closed-loop system. The completion of the Surrey Biofuel facility will help to realize the City’s vision to power its fleet of waste collection and service vehicles through natural gas produced from organics collected from residents and commercial enterprises throughout Surrey.

The City’s approach to organics waste management is both scalable and transferrable to other cities in North America with established organics diversion and collection programs. In fact, other Canadian municipalities are currently exploring opportunities to replicate this strategy for a closed-loop organics system because of this project’s anticipated success.

Sustainability is a core value of the City of Surrey, and the City based part of its selection process for the consortium of partners who have been working collaboratively to design, build and eventually operate this state-of-the-art project on sustainable performance This facility will be the first organic waste facility to be completed using this approach, and one of only five solid waste P3 projects Canada-wide, a testament to the project team’s leadership.

Climate and Risk: The Surrey Biofuel Facility is expected to have a negligible impact on air pollutant emissions, and the project’s anticipated emissions are far below the California Ambient Air Quality Standards, and well below the even more stringent British Columbia Air Quality Objective.

In addition to falling below air pollution emissions standards for the province of British Columbia and Canada generally, the Surrey Biofuel Facility is expected to be net carbon negative, and it is expected to contribute to a net reduction of more than 49,000 tonnes of CO2e (carbon emissions) after one year of operation. This net reduction in carbon emissions will be primarily achieved through the transition of anaerobic digestion of organic wastes, rather than open air composting.

Natural World (NW): The project site is surrounded by industrial lands. The City commissioned a full remediation of the entire site. Metals and hydrocarbons were among those contaminants removed from the site. No previously undeveloped land was acquired for this project.

Although the project is situated in an industrial area, the project team introduced significant landscape elements to preserve species biodiversity. Vegetation will include a wide range of native and non-native shrubs, and more than 20 trees which far exceed local tree protection bylaws.

To learn more about the Surrey Biofuel Facility, please visit surreybiofuel.ca.