Background

Buildings account for about 30% of Canada’s energy consumption, about 50% of its electricity consumption and roughly 28% of its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. These energy flows and GHG emissions, which are associated with heating, cooling and lighting buildings, have the potential to be substantially reduced if the incident solar energy on the façades or roofs of buildings is utilized.

The solar energy incident on the roof of a typical home far exceeds its energy consumption. There is, therefore, the potential for a building to achieve, on average, zero energy consumption if the utilization of solar energy to produce electricity, useful heat and daylight is optimized.