Rainwater collection from the ES 2 building

The Faculty of Environmental Studies at the University of Waterloo is the oldest of its kind in Canada. While a number of universities in Ontario and across the country have recently built ‘green,’ sustainable buildings, the University of Waterloo, at present, has none. With the recent move of the Department of Architecture to the City of Cambridge, the Environmental Studies 2 (ES2) building presents a prime and unique opportunity for the University of Waterloo to develop its first green building. With several indoor and outdoor components to consider, a venture in greening the existing ES2 building would carry a number of challenges to reach a desirable, feasible and acceptable state for sustainability. WATgreen is an initiative at the University of Waterloo and its mandate, along with the ERS 250 class, is to transform the university into “a showcase of sustainability…a process referred to as ‘Greening the Campus’ ”. At present, the ERS 250 class is currently researching and integrating greening building initiatives and components to allow the ES2 building be a “true ecosystem in harmony with its environment”. These components and initiatives include green roofs, solar energy use, rainwater collection, outdoor landscaping, lighting, waste management, heating/cooling systems, bio filtration, building maintenance and work environment… For full text, please e-mail sustainability@uwaterloo.ca