Throughout British Columbia there are various green building labeling and certification programs available. In the past, many municipalities had adopted a particular building certification as a mandatory requirement for builders to obtain a building permit, such as:
• BUILTGREEN®
• ENERGYSTAR®
• R2000
• LEED
• PassiveHouse
The building and administrative requirements for each green building program vary and not all builders have knowledge about every certification program. This can become complicated and costly to builders when bordering municipalities adopt different green building certification programs. The BC Energy Step Code is a uniform building energy performance standard which allows builders to build in multiple jurisdictions without worrying about different labeling or certification standards.
The BC Energy Step Code is not designed to replace green building program certifications, but rather to provide a consistent energy metric baseline for performance modelling across all municipalities.
The BC Energy Step Code also reduces the need for builders to complete added administrative requirements that are mandatory for many programs listed above. While there is still a cost to work with an energy advisor to obtain an EnerGuide evaluation, the BC Energy Step Code will reduce the administrative workload that many builders need to meet in order to achieve green building certifications.
For more information about the BC Energy Step Code visit: https://energystepcode.ca.