NET ZERO IN NUNAVUT

Dealing with supply logistics and low-temp heating in Canada’s north.

BY DOUG PICKLYK

Sanikiluaq is Nunavut’s southern-most community, located about 150 km off the northwest border of Quebec among the Belcher Islands, an archipelago in the southeast section of Hudson Bay.

Among the newest buildings in Sanikiluaq is a roughly 5,000 sq. ft. multi-purpose research centre owned by the Arctic Eider Society, an Inuit not-forprofit organization dedicated to supporting Inuit-led stewardship and nature conservation in the area.

Positioned on a hill, the main floor brings visitors into the commercial space which includes offices, staff kitchenette, research labs, a large meeting room and a visitor’s foyer. The second floor provides temporary residence for rotating researchers, with three bedrooms with ensuites, a shared living space and kitchen. The lower level is really a crawl space which accommodates the mechanical room.

This mixed-use complex aims to be the first net zero building in Nunavut.

AIR-TO-WATER

The project was led by Jeff Armstrong, the managing director at Cold Climate Building, a specialist in designing and building energy efficient structures in Canada’s far north, including a project with Nunavut Housing Corp. where he introduced structural insulated panel (SIP) building systems to create well-insulated air-tight envelopes suited to net-zeroready structures.

The mechanical system in the building was designed by Cameron Haines, P.Eng., of Southface Engineering, who was brought on board by the building’s design architect, Richard White.

The heating system is driven by three air-to-water heat pumps which are connected to two 70-gallon storage tanks with integrated electric boilers.

“I love this type of system because the buffer tanks act like a battery, and they offer flexibility with being able to tie them into any type of future energy source or backup source that they may need,” says Haines.

The selected air-to-water heat pumps are a split system with separate indoor and outdoor units. The outside section includes the air coil, fan, expansion valve, and outdoor temperature sensor. All other components, including compressor and electronics, are contained in the indoor units.

“The logic is really simple,” says Haines. “All the heat pumps have to do is

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It is very eco-friendly!