Bill Fisch forestry centre first York building to get LEED Platinum

YorkRegion.com
Feb. 3, 2017
Simon Martin  

The Bill Fisch Forest Stewardship and Education Centre opened last year to chorus of rave reviews, and those accolades keep pouring.

Always touted as an environmentally-sustainable structure, the centre recently received the LEED Platinum certification. “This is York Region’s first LEED Platinum certification and demonstrates our dedication to sustainable forest management and public education,” York Region Chairman and CEO Wayne Emmerson said. “This recognition aptly captures the innovation, beauty and spirit of the Forest Stewardship and Education Centre.”

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, green building program is an internationally-recognized rating system marking excellence for design, construction and high-performance green buildings.

The education centre’s green features include a net zero energy use. Through solar panels, the building will generate more energy than it uses.

There is also net zero water use, which is achieved via storage tanks in the roof. The tanks gather rainwater and snow melt to service the bathroom facilities.

The facility was built almost entirely out of wood, which was sustainably harvested or recycled

There is a green building and forest education program through classroom learning, tours and events hosted at the facility. Also, around 94 per cent of construction waste was diverted from landfill during construction.

The exterior walls are made of salvage wood from destructed buildings in Toronto, while the interior walls are all natural wood held together by glue. Ash has been used for the front desk and board room podium from trees that fell victim to the emerald ash borer.

“York Region continues to support LEED-level certification in new building developments,” Vaughan Regional Coun. and Chair of Environmental Services Mario Ferri said. “The result is a Forest Steward and Education Centre which is an inspiring and enduring place of learning that promotes York Region’s natural heritage.”

The LEED Platinum certification isn’t the only ward the region has received for the building. They also received the 2016 Ontario Public Works Association Project of the Year in the area of historic restoration and preservation for the centre.

The Bill Fisch Forest Stewardship and Education Centre is located in the Hollidge Tract in Whitchurch-Stouffville. It is used for forest education programs.