TorontoPlanning ApplicationsPlanning guidelines

Zero Carbon Building – Design Standard Version 3

Published by Canada Green Building Council

This is Canada Green Building Council’s document, as linked from Toronto’s website on 20 October 2026. It may have changed since: check the current version at the source. Legal notice

Type: Document
Published by: Canada Green Building Council
Date: June 2022 (updated November 2024)
Also called: CAGBC Zero Carbon Building Standard
For: designer
Building types: All building types
Pages: 65
Agencies: Canada Green Building Council
Instruments: Zero Carbon Building – Design Standard · Zero Carbon Building – Performance Standard · National Building Code · LEED BD+C

Overview

The Canada Green Building Council's Zero Carbon Building – Design Standard version 3, hosted on cagbc.org and linked from the City of Toronto's Toronto Green Standard version 4 buildings energy, emissions and resilience page. Certification is awarded on a project's final design. The standard sets out a zero carbon balance across embodied carbon, operational carbon and avoided emissions, a maximum embodied carbon threshold, a limit on onsite combustion for space heating, thermal energy demand intensity, energy use intensity and peak demand reporting, and two impact and innovation strategies.

What it covers

Introduction
Overview
Eligibility
Scope
Required Documentation
Carbon
Embodied Carbon
Operational Carbon
Direct Emissions
Indirect Emissions
Avoided Emissions
Onsite Combustion
Energy
Thermal Energy Demand Intensity
Energy Use Intensity
Peak Demand
Modelling and Design Considerations
Airtightness
Future Weather
Impact & Innovation Requirements
Glossary
Acronyms
Appendix I – Embodied Carbon Requirements for Baseline Buildings
Appendix III – Summary of Addenda Changes

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