Environmental product declarations (EPD) for medium-density fiberboard (MDF) and particleboard are now available in North America.

The Canadian Wood Council (CWC) and American Wood Council (AWC) announced the release of the resources, which are third-party verified by Underwriters Laboratories (UL) Environment.

The 15^th annual Canstruction Toronto non-profit competition for engineers, architects, and designers is now accepting entries.

king place this spring, the event challenges participants to build a structure entirely from canned foods in a 3 x 3 x 2.4-m (10 x 10 x 8-ft) space. The competition is in support of the Daily Bread Food bank—over the past 14 years, it has generated nearly 335,658 kg (740,000 lb) of food, Canstruction Toronto’s co-chair, Helen Kabriel told Construction Canada Online.

The Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC) has announced the release of the newest version of its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program—LEED v4.

CaGBC is participating in LEED International Roundtable discussions to develop Alternative Compliance Paths (ACPs). This approach will streamline certification, and in collaboration with Green Building Certification Institute, Canadian projects will be certified online.

Claude Giguère, Eng., LEED AP, CSC’s immediate past-president and an editorial advisor for Construction Canada, has been awarded by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

Giguère’s work on the McGill University Otto Maass Building received an ASHRAE 2014 Technology Award Honourable Mention under the category of existing educational facilities.

CNN has named the Halifax Central Library in Nova Scotia as “one of the most extraordinary structures” of 2014.

The Halifax Central Library was designed by Danish firm schmidt hammer lassen. Construction on the 14,500-m² (156,076-sf) project began in 2010 and will be completed this year. The library will serve multiple functions in the community and is situated within Halifax’s downtown core, next to Dalhousie University’s Architecture School.

A planned 31-storey office tower in Vancouver’s financial district will incorporate the neighbouring Old Stock Exchange building originally built in 1929.

The $200-million project is targeting Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification, which would make it the country’s second-tallest structure to receive the highest Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC) rating.

Recent North American data has confirmed the built environment is a leading cause of bird mortality—with in-flight impact into glass cited as a major factor.

Last year, Environment Canada released documents outlining a major cause of bird death in the country is a result of collision. Researchers looked at data from 92,000 casualties and more than 20 studies, grouping the results by points of impact such as high-rise, low-rise, and detached homes.

A recent standard adoption has made the National Building Code of Canada (NBC) more consistent with other North American codes when it comes to test methods for measuring long-term thermal resistance (LTTR) of polyisocyanurate (polyiso) foam insulation.

The implementation of Underwriters Laboratories of Canada (CAN/ULC)-S704-11, Standard for Thermal Insulation, Polyurethane, and Polyisocyanurate Boards, Faced, references the test method CAN/ULC-S770-09, Standard Test Method for Determination of Long-term Thermal Resistance of Closed-cell Thermal Insulating Foams—making the test methods for measuring LTTR uniform throughout Canada and the United States.

Canada’s December housing starts were at 195,760 units, down slightly from the previous month, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) reports.

This trend has remained stable since October, as the country’s housing demand has stayed consistent. The seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of urban starts decreased by 5.1 per cent from the previous month and multiple urban starts was down 4.1 per cent to 108,910. Single detached urban starts also dropped 6.7 per cent to 59,304 units.

Last year, Saskatchewan’s largest cities experienced a continuing boom of building permits.

In Saskatoon, the total 5020 permits issued in 2013 was slightly lower than 2012, but the total value of $1.1 billion is a high for the Paris of the Prairies.