Montreal Space for Life has announced the Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium has been awarded LEED NC 1.0 Platinum by the Canada Green Building Council. The building, designed by Cardin Ramirez Julien + Ædifica, a Montreal firm, achieved a score of 55 out of 70, marking it as the fourth building in Quebec to receive LEED Platinum certification, and only the second in Montreal.
The planetarium achieved LEED Platinum by reducing energy consumption by improving energy efficiency; consuming a reduced amount of drinking water while creating less wastewater by collecting and using rainwater in toilets and to water outdoor gardens; causing less erosion by using the soil excavated during construction in landscaping and on the green roof; providing abundant natural daylight and using high-efficiency lighting fixtures and motion detectors to cut lighting consumption down; and being constructed from over 75 per cent recycled materials. Visitors to the planetarium will soon be able to follow a tour route with information on some of the building’s LEED elements on the free Montreal Space for Life app.
“The Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium is a key piece in Montreal’s architectural heritage. This signature building not only meets the city’s sustainable policy for municipal buildings, but it also marks Montreal as a UNESCO City of Design and member of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network. All these new buildings must be certified at least Gold for their design methods, building practices and sustainable operations,” said Manon Gauthier, Montreal Executive Committee member, in a press release. “The planetarium surpasses these requirements. Its esthetically bold architecture is also exemplary in terms of ‘green’ resource management.”
Montreal Space for Life is comprised of four attractions: Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium, the Botanical Garden, Biodome and Insectarium. Together they form Canada’s largest natural science museum complex.
