Sustainable development: a concept deeply rooted in built heritage
October 29, 2020
When assessing the delicate issue of requalifying an existing building, the higher cost of such an intervention is often cited to justify demolition and replacement with new construction. However, this strictly economic comparison fails to account for the many benefits associated with the conservation of built heritage.
Indeed, the sustainable development of cities is a contemporary challenge to which the protection and enhancement of built heritage make an essential contribution. The two concepts overlap in many ways. The goal of sustainable development is to achieve a coherent and long-term balance between its three pillars—environmental, social, and economic—in order to support the development of future generations.
Built heritage inherently carries ideas of transmission, continuity, and longevity. Buildings constructed before the First World War have demonstrated their durability: they have withstood seasonal changes and extreme climatic conditions; their materials are local, natural, and reusable; and they represent the result of a long process of artisanal trial and error that led to the development of efficient construction solutions.
A life-cycle assessment of an existing building makes it possible to better understand and evaluate its strengths compared to a building yet to be constructed, providing a more comprehensive framework for comparing options. This evaluation tool measures the overall environmental impacts generated by a construction operation—from material extraction and transportation to long-term building operation costs. However, it remains limited, as it does not take into account the cultural and social value of historic buildings.
A comprehensive approach to built heritage across Québec could be inspired by the principles of sustainable development (the 3R-V approach):
REDUCE new construction and additional floor area
REUSE buildings by ensuring their ongoing maintenance
RECYCLE by rehabilitating buildings with compatible uses
VALORIZE the specificity and identity of Québec landscapes, whether urban, rural, or remote
Further reading on the topic:
Photography: Alexandre Zacharie
The stabilization work carried out at the Nouvelles-Casernes in Québec City, led by STGM for the Commission de la Capitale Nationale, provides a strong illustration of sustainable development principles applied to a heritage building. Artisans recover all possible materials (wood, stone, brick, etc.), work with local and durable materials, and the design team ensured the preservation of an existing group of buildings rather than demolishing and rebuilding—avoiding the extensive disruptions and impacts such an approach would have entailed.