W.C. McEwen¹ and R.R. Marshall²

1. Executive Director, Masonry Institute of British Columbia, 3636 East 4^th Avenue, Vancouver, BC, V5M 1M3, info@masonrybc.org
2. Executive Director, Masonry Canada, 4628 10^th Line, RR 2, Beeton, Ontario, L0G 1A0, infomasonrycan@aol.com

ABSTRACT

Owners, communities, universities, designers, producers, and contractors all profit from the sustainable or “green” design of buildings with concrete and masonry materials. Sustainability measures such as durability, extended life cycle, and energy efficiency can enhance building performance, reduce costs, increase health & safety and reduce potential liability & property loss. According to the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC), the number of sustainable building projects is predicted to grow by 360% per year for the 2004 to 2009 period.

This paper will review masonry sustainable design by introducing the Guide to Sustainable Design with Concrete, which is a tool targeted to help the design industry select building products and choose systems that contribute to sustainable buildings. It introduces many possible energy and environmental credits, based on the provisions of LEED^® Canada-NC 1.0. Several key credits that affect masonry are reviewed, including the new durable building credit.

KEYWORDS: sustainable design, green building, durability, LEED

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