Dr. David Suzuki Public School

Five hundred Dr. David Suzuki Public School students are going back to school this fall in a facility powered in part by solar photovoltaic technology developed by Canadian-based solar integrator, Carmanah Technologies (TSX: CMH). The Greater Essex County District School Board of Windsor, Ontario, is receiving a 32 kW grid-tied Photovoltaic system with funding provided by the Government of Ontario Green Schools Initiative. The new 58,000 square foot Public School in Windsor, Ontario, named after internationally renowned environmentalist, Dr. David Suzuki, will serve as both a learning tool for students as well as a standing demonstration of environmental design for the architectural and engineering community. The addition of the grid-tied solar PV system, valued at approximately $400,000 (CDN), will support the School’s goal of obtaining LEED Platinum certification, the nation’s highest level of certification for green building design. Dr. David Suzuki Public School would be the first school in Canada to receive the environmental accreditation.

Expected to generate 32 kW of clean, renewable energy; the new roof-top mounted grid-tie solar photovoltaic system is a functional power source, meeting approximately 10 per cent of the School’s electrical needs. According to Carmanah CEO, Ted Lattimore, the system will contribute to the spirit of environmental stewardship that the Dr. David Suzuki Public School aspires to embody. “The 32 kW panels are affixed to the roof, but the design also extends the system downwards to form a canopy over the main entry of the building. This serves as a symbol to visitors and students of the Public School’s commitment to environmental building design. At the same time, the panel’s placement optimizes the system’s performance with increased solar exposure.”

By including sustainable technology early in the building design process, the Greater Essex County District School Board hopes to incorporate the new technologies in both student academia and culture; providing information kiosks throughout the building and a website that will inform students and guests about the energy and environmental technologies being employed.  “We believe it is important to teach children about alternative energy sources as well as energy conservation,” stated Giuliana Hinchliffe, Coordinator of Engineering, Facility Services Department, Greater Essex County District School Board. “We wanted to create a building that inspires and teaches the spirit of earth stewardship, which we feel the School embodies.”

A first for a public school in Canada, the solar integration will propel the School’s eligibility for platinum-level certification in LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design); a green building rating system for design and construction practices managed by the Canadian Green Building Council. “To help reach our target of LEED Platinum designation, which includes a renewable energy component as part of the rating system, the decision was made to include solar renewable energy as part of the Dr. David Suzuki Public School.” Hinchliffe continues, “The platinum-level distinction is not only a first for a Canadian public school, it is also the highest level of green building certification available.”

Slated for installation in the spring of 2010, the grid-tie solar photovoltaic system from Carmanah is expected to begin providing power to the Dr. David Suzuki Public School’s 25 classrooms in time for students to return to school in September.

As Canada’s largest and most successful name in commercial photovoltaic projects, Carmanah has designed and installed more grid-tied solar power systems than any other integrator or EPC contractor in Canada. Working directly with more than a dozen Ontario LDCs, including Hydro One, Whitby Hydro, Enersource, Powerstream, Toronto Hydro, Ottawa Hydro, and Enwin (Windsor), Carmanah has been entrusted with providing grid-tied solar PV systems for the City of Toronto Police Services and the Toronto Parking Authority facility under funding by the Ontario Government Feed In Tariff (FIT) Program. Carmanah is a publicly traded company, with common shares listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol “CMH”. For more information, visit carmanah.com

The Greater Essex County District School Board, in partnership with the community, provides learning opportunities which support, challenge, and inspire all students to achieve their full potential and enable them to participate meaningfully in their communities. With support from the Government of Ontario, the Greater Essex County District School Board of Windsor, Ontario, has upgraded many existing school facilities and opened four new elementary schools, as well as currently being in the design/construction phase of two additional elementary schools and one secondary school.

PHOTOS: Carmanah Solar power systems photos available at http://bit.ly/5mkgfc

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The Spokane Public Facilities District is illuminating a central city parking lot with solar LED lighting from Carmanah Technologies (TSX:CMH). Installed as part of a new parking lot facility constructed in conjunction with the INB Performing Arts Center in downtown Spokane, the Carmanah EverGEN™ 1530 solar LED lights are providing the first LED site lighting in the city. Centrally located and easily recognizable as a sustainable energy solution, the lights are showcasing the Spokane Public Facilities District’s continued commitment to going green.

In addition to reducing the city’s carbon footprint, the solar parking lot lights also provide portability. Without the need for trenching or electrical grid connections, the solar lights can be picked up and moved to a different location as the Spokane Public Facilities District (SPFD) grows and site requirements change.

The SPFD, which operates the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, Spokane Convention Center and INB Performing Arts Center, has adopted a Sustainability Policy to operate its venues in an environmentally friendly manner, taking every available opportunity to reduce waste by conserving essential resources, recycling and using recycled materials, and utilizing renewable energy sources whenever possible. Procedures have been developed and communicated in various ways to engage all employees, clients and guests in participating in sustainable practices.

Kevin Twohig, Executive Director of the Spokane Public Facilities District, couldn’t be happier with the lighting selection. “As a district we have adopted practices and procedures that actualize our Sustainability Policy. We are constantly looking for ways to better improve our venues in environmentally friendly ways and selecting solar LED lighting for the new parking lot facility was both logical and environmental.”

Provided through Carmanah lighting agent Cascade Lighting in cooperation with Escent Lighting and MW Consulting Engineers, the Carmanah EverGEN 1530 solar lighting systems were chosen based on company experience and the superior performance offered by the lights.

Featuring dark-sky friendly LED fixtures by BetaLED Lighting, the Carmanah solar lights are also designed to reduce light pollution. BetaLED fixtures are recognized as incorporating some of the most advanced LED technology on the market and their bright, focused light output will provide the city with hundreds of thousands of hours of maintenance-free illumination. In combination with the solar-powered technology of the lights, the LED fixtures will allow the city to significantly reduce maintenance costs for the lights and will eliminate electricity costs for illuminating the parking lot altogether.

In addition to the cost benefits of electricity and maintenance savings, the lights will provide a portable lighting solution that stands as a continual reminder of the Spokane Public Facilities District’s commitment to renewable technology infrastructure.

Carmanah EverGEN™ 1500-series street lights are available now from Carmanah Technologies. For more information on solar LED lighting, visit http://bit.ly/7wv52e

As one of the most trusted names in solar technology, Carmanah has earned a reputation for delivering strong and effective products for industrial applications worldwide. Industry proven to perform reliably in some of the world’s harshest environments, Carmanah solar LED lights and solar power systems provide a durable, dependable and cost effective energy alternative. Carmanah is a publicly traded company, with common shares listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol “CMH”. For more information, visit www.carmanah.com

PHOTOS: Carmanah Solar LED lighting photos available at http://bit.ly/6WCC2x

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New Lumen IQ™ Streetlight Optimization System

City of Vancouver Selects Lumen IQ(TM) Technology For Canada’s First Adaptive LED Street Light Installation

Streetlight Intelligence Inc. is pleased to announce that the Company has received a purchase order from the City of Vancouver, British Columbia, for a Lumen IQ(TM) Adaptive Street Lighting System.

“We are particularly excited to participate in this project because our Lumen IQ(TM) monitoring and control technology will be integrated with LED-based fixtures,” states Vince Krynski, CEO of SLQ. “To our knowledge, this will be the first adaptive LED street lighting installation in Canada. As we expect LEDs to play a more prevalent role in street lighting over the next 10 years, this project presents the perfect opportunity to demonstrate the performance of our Lumen IQ(TM) technology when integrated with LED fixtures.”

Comprised of 40 lamp controllers, the system is scheduled for installation in the Yaletown district of Vancouver by the end of January 2010. “The location and timing are ideal,” continues Krynski. “Yaletown is one of the more popular night-life areas of Vancouver and the system will be illuminating a busy pedestrian zone located between two venues that will be used during the 2010 Olympics.”

This purchase order evolved from an Expression of Interest announced by the City of Vancouver in August of 2009, where the City of Vancouver indicated it wished to explore installing decorative adaptive lighting fixtures and LED light engines. Specifically, the City of Vancouver was seeking the following capabilities:

    -   the ability to be remotely controlled individually, in groups, or in any combination required from the kiosk or laptop to attain the specified lighting levels;

    -   the ability to have light level transition times set for the lamps on pre-defined schedules;

    -   the ability to have the lighting output levels adjusted to reduce energy consumption during non peak hours; and

    -   the ability to be triggered by dawn or dusk to accommodate for localized ambient lighting.

The City of Vancouver appointed PBA Consulting Engineers to review all responses to its Expression of Interest and to recommend the appropriate technology. SLQ’s Lumen IQ(TM) Adaptive Street Lighting System was selected along with Philips’ Lumec LED lighting fixtures (provided by Metrolume Lighting Systems Inc.) as the two technologies that best served the city’s criteria.

About Streetlight Intelligence Inc.

Streetlight Intelligence Inc. develops advanced street light optimization systems - and was recently recognized as the “New Technology of the Year” at the British Columbia Hydro 2009 Power Smart Excellence Awards. Trademarked as Lumen IQ(TM), SLQ’s technologies provide improved lamp performance, adaptive lighting control, and system-wide communications for centralized street light management. SLQ’s systems enable street light operators to significantly reduce their community’s energy consumption, maintenance costs and environmental impact. SLQ is a public company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol “SLQ”. For more information, visit www.StreetlightIQ.com

VIDEO: Describing Streetlight Intelligence Technology: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVBPik5Rp48

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The Ellsworth

Remaining home sells for $3.1 million

Internationally acclaimed builder Mike Miller of Abstract Developments www.abstractdevelopments.com has sold the final home in Victoria’s award-winning Edgecliffe Estate. The Ellsworth, (http://bit.ly/8NS4KG) Miller’s Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired house, was purchased by a local buyer for $3.1 million.

Celebrating his tenth year in business, Victoria-based Miller has been touted by Architectural Digest Magazine as one of his industry’s “most accomplished practitioners.” NUVO Magazine agrees, praising his “careful and deliberate design approach.” And his many national awards – among them, 19 Gold CARE Awards including Project of the Year in 2007 and 2008, eight Gold Georgie Awards including Best Townhouse Development, and two Gold SAM Awards for Best Detached Home – back up the accolades.

Ellsworth’s 6,287 square feet of contemporary space feature a spa/fitness room, a billiards room, a media room, a thermostatic-controlled wine room and a built-in coffee bar. An entire wing is dedicated to a master suite that includes a private office, a deck and a luxurious ensuite. Architectural design is by Zebra Design; interior design is by Robyn Bryson.

Ellsworth is one of four homes that make up the now sold-out Edgecliffe Estate. The site’s original home, The Griffith – a stately 1910 Tudor Revival house – earned two 2009 Gold CARE Awards and a Heritage designation from the District of Oak Bay after Miller’s painstaking, 18-month restoration. Edgecliffe Estate also includes Westcott, a classic English cottage home and recipient of a 2009 Silver CARE Award, and Montebello, a new home with a Tuscan ambience.

Abstract has several other projects currently underway, ranging from modern westcoast single-family houses to New York brownstone-inspired townhomes. Miller recently broke ground on Terra Verde (www.terraverdeliving.com), a follow-up project to Terra Rose, his Gold Georgie Award-winner for Best Townhouse Development in British Columbia. Already, 40 percent of the luxurious, green-built contemporary townhomes have been purchased and construction has just begun. In November, Miller began work on Rockland Wynd, (http://bit.ly/5Hz2mK) a pair of classic westcoast houses in the prestigious Rockland neighbourhood. Miller is also currently working on the last of three contemporary new homes that make up Moss Rock Place (http://bit.ly/6Q42Yc) in the heart of Fairfield.

Abstract’s Mike Miller is Victoria’s most highly regarded housing developer. Miller founded Abstract Developments in 1999. Since then, his work has included both the meticulous recreation of some of the city’s most important historic homes and the construction of ultra-modern coastal residences. Along the way, he has received international praise and numerous national awards. Visit www.abstractdevelopments.com for more information.

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No matter where you are in the world, the smartmeter will one day become common place in all homes and business.  An insurrection has begun that will revolutionise the way we all use and consume energy.
http://www.smartmeters.com/the-news/724-smartmeters-the-next-boom.html

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The British Columbia Technology Industry Association (BCTIA) is pleased to announce the launch of PODIUM, our 2010 business outreach program.  The PODIUM program is designed to connect guests and media of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic Games with technology sector business partners and media stories while visiting BC.  

The centrepiece of the program is our PODIUM digital guide, an e-book illustrating the talent and ingenuity that makes British Columbia a great place to live, work, study and invest. 

The PODIUM guide profiles over one hundred world-class companies and includes a number of companies whose technology is being used to power aspects of the Games. The digital guide will be distributed to thousands of contacts, including International Business Development offices, Olympic Sponsors and hosting organizations, Federal and Provincial governments, and media. 

To help guests and media  connect with innovative BC companies, the BCTIA will be providing meeting concierge services – coordination services to facilitate introductions before, during and after the games.   With non-stop activity during the 2010 Games, we are working to ensure that international business people and media call upon us to connect them with business introductions and unique media stories.  Interested parties need only send an email to podium@bctia.org.

 The PODIUM digital guide can be downloaded at http://www.bctia.org/podium

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Government needs to set realistic policies and frameworks as well as support clean technology

By Mark Jaccard

 At the Copenhagen climate negotiations, environmentalists from Canada and abroad repeatedly vilify the Canadian government for refusing to adopt an aggressive target that would require an eye-popping 50 per cent reduction of our greenhouse gas emissions in just 10 years. As my grandmother used to tell me: “Be careful what you ask for.”

At Kyoto in 1997, environmentalists likewise urged the Canadian government to adopt aggressive targets that matched those of Europe, even though European emissions had recently plummeted with the rapid closure of coal-burning plants in eastern Germany and the U.K.

http://bit.ly/8zu21R

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BC’s largest solar system

Sum-SHA-Thut, an installation by Canadian solar energy company Home Energy Solutions, has been named ‘Solar Project of the Year’ at the 2009 Canadian Solar Industries Association (CanSIA) conference. The winning project, built for Vancouver Island’s T’Sou-ke Nation, is BC’s largest solar power instalment to date and the recipient of several previous awards.

“The success of this project and the leadership demonstrated by the T’Sou-ke Nation and Chief Gordon Planes show great promise for solar electric generation in Canada,” says Dave Egles, founder and president of Home Energy Solutions. Since the July 2009 installation of Sum-SHA-Thut (the Sencoten term for ‘sunshine’), energy consumption has dropped 30 percent, making T’Sou-ke Nation the most solar-intensive nation per capita on the planet.

“The T’Sou-ke Solar Community project is a great example of how BC is a leader in the alternative energy sector, and how solar can play a significant role in our future energy supply,” said Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources Minister Blair Lekstrom. “Communities throughout the Province will benefit from a clean, renewable and climate-friendly source of energy. As the world embraces innovative and sustainable energy solutions, BC is at the forefront with its environmental and economic leadership.”

The timing of the CanSIA award and conference is highly significant for the Canadian solar industry, falling in the midst of the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference and just two months after Ontario introduced its micro feed-in-tariff program for renewable energy technologies. “This award could not come at a better time,” says Egles. “It shows that people are starting to recognize solar electricity as a real solution for climate change – internationally and at a local level.”

Victoria, BC- and Barrie, Ontario-based Home Energy Solutions is Canada’s premier provider of renewable solar energy systems. Founder and President David Egles is one of Canada’s leading solar experts, with over 20 years experience at the helm of several prominent solar companies. Egles is also past president of the Canadian Solar Industries Association. For more information, visit www.solarforhomes.ca

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Cleantech Financier calls current carbon treaty system “aparthied” from Ann Danylkiw on Vimeo.

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Richard Blackwell

Globe and Mail Tuesday, Dec. 08, 2009

http://bit.ly/4WizoD

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