Email this pageInterim Change to the Building Code – Energy Efficiency Update for Large Buildings – July 2011
The 2006 Building Code sets out a “roadmap” for energy efficiency changes to be implemented from January 1, 2006 through to December 31, 2011. As part of that roadmap, the Code sets out energy efficiency requirements for large buildings and small non-residential buildings.
The Code, as originally produced in 2006, required that the energy efficiency of those building types for which a permit has been applied for after December 31, 2011 exceed, by not less than 25 percent, the energy efficiency levels attained by conforming to the 1997 Model National Energy Code for Buildings (MNECB+25%).
A recent amendment to the Building Code (Ontario Regulation 315/11) was made to assist the implementation of the energy efficiency requirements produced in the 2006 edition of the Code. The amendment requires that the energy efficiency of those buildings conform to an updated Supplementary Standard SB-10, which is referenced in the Building Code.
This Supplementary Standard indicates that the energy efficiency of these buildings can be achieved through meeting the MNECB+25% levels but provides additional compliance paths to achieve them. It does not reduce the level of energy efficiency of these buildings.
These additional compliance paths reference the 2010 edition of the 90.1 standard developed by the American Society of Heating Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). The ASHRAE standards are widely used by the North American building industry.
Ontario is a Canadian leader in using the Building Code to regulate energy efficiency in new buildings. To date, no other Canadian jurisdiction has set a Building Code energy efficiency requirement for large buildings that meets or exceeds MNECB+25%. This amendment to the Building Code will provide flexibility for designers and builders in meeting the Code’s energy efficiency requirements without compromising important objectives related to energy efficiency.
This amendment will be supported by updating the following Building Code technical courses: Resource Conservation (All Buildings), and Building Services. These courses are developed by the ministry and are delivered by stakeholder organizations and community colleges.
Future energy efficiency requirements for houses and large buildings are being developed as part of the next edition of the Building Code. Public and stakeholder consultations on potential changes have taken place and the government is currently reviewing this input and recommendations from the Building Code Technical Advisory Committees.
