Learning that Sustains

Jim Farrell, Manager of Energy & Sustainability, is NSCC's "green detective." Photographs of paintings with permission of Wayne Boucher.

As NSCC's Manager of Energy & Sustainability, Jim Farrell knows there's more to being green than simply declaring it. Jim is constantly searching out ways to reduce NSCC's carbon footprint; a sort of "green detective" if you will.

With financial help from Conserve Nova Scotia's "Smart Lighting Choices" program, Jim is overseeing the replacement of out-dated lighting systems at every NSCC campus across the province. Once complete, NSCC expects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 550 tonnes.

"That's the equivalent of taking 136 motor vehicles that travel nearly 20,000 kilometers per year off the road," says Jim. "It's also an important reminder that some solutions are at our finger-tips; literally at the flick of a switch."

NSCC's new Energy Sustainability Engineering Technology program helps tradespeople become "Green Collar Workers".

The Centre for the Built Environment will be a living lab for collaboration between students, faculty and industry.

Energy solutions become more complex as people seek ways to incorporate alternative and renewable energy sources into new and existing buildings.

Demand for that kind of knowledge is what led to the development of the Energy Sustainability Engineering Technology (ESET) program; a two year diploma that began this year at NSCC's Annapolis Valley Campus.

ESET is part of "The Greening of NSCC" - a multi-layered vision that involves the construction of internationally recognized, environmentally-friendly buildings, the creation of ecologically-themed curricula, and the development of leading-edge environmental knowledge and sustainable practices.

NSCC's Waterfront Campus is in the final stages of earning its Leadership in Energy Environmental Design (LEED) certification. LEED certified buildings are rated on the following five points: sustainability, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources as well as indoor environmental quality.

Currently under construction, NSCC's Centre for the Built Environment aims to surpass those standards. It will consume half the energy of conventional buildings and maximize the use of alternative energy sources such as solar and geothermal. Planted roof tops and "bio-walls" (structures that support indigenous and exotic plant life) are also in the plans.

The Centre for the Built Environment (CBE) will be a learning tool itself: its mechanical systems will be accessible and interactive allowing students to monitor the building's performance and experiment with sustainable building solutions.

"The programs that will be taught here will demonstrate the important merger of skilled trades with technology, and with the environment," says Cathy MacLean, Principal, NSCC's Waterfront Campus. "Movable walls inside labs will allow inter-disciplinary teams to collaborate on joint projects."

When its doors open in 2010, the Centre for the Built Environment will welcome 500 students into 13 programs ushering in a new era of learning.

The Score:

The CBE will include a geothermal system to meet all cooling needs of the building and approximately 50% of the heating requirements.