The Ecoparc includes a 3.6 hectare (9 acre) Acadian forest woodlot along the Kouchibouguac (Kagibougouet) River. In partnership with Vision H2O and with the assistance of a Roland Chiasson, a biologist and naturalist, educational trails have been established.
Plans call for a minimum 0.8-hectare (2-acre) sustainable landscaped and demonstration area.
Included will be an organic vegetable garden, native plant and shrubs, sustainable water management demonstration to mention a few of our plans.
This project has been 2 years in the planning. The residents in Cormier Village have been consulted in depth as well as many consultants in energy efficient construction and representatives of the other communities in our area.
The community centre will be like no other that exists. The building will be the centrepiece of a 5-hectare (12-acre) Ecoparc aimed at providing recreational and learning opportunities for residents of Cormier Village, surrounding communities, the Province of New Brunswick and beyond. The long term aim of the new community centre is to provide a place for community activities while creating the basis for learning how to cope with the many environmental issues that face us, energy conservation, water management, the development of practical energy alternatives, and the general care and improvement of our local environment.
This nature centre is a 650 m2 (7000 sq. ft.) building with a passive solar design with most windows (double pane low-argon) facing south. The walls of the building are made of an insulated concrete with high R-values and a high thermal mass. The floor is a 10-cm (4″) floor slab and the ceiling is of a R-60 insulation. The ground-source heat pumps and the evacuated tubes use a 450-L (100-gal.) hot tank and an auxiliary tank. Floors are heated with hydronic (water circulation) radiant floor slab heating and cooling divided into 7 zones. Eight 1.4-t (1.5-ton) wall-mounted fan-coil units are used for heating and cooling. A 2-panel SolarSheet solar air heated is regulated by a fan motor and thermostat using electricity from a photo-voltaic panel. The building uses energy efficient fluorescent lighting and dimmable LED pot lights.
A REHAU energy monitoring and management system is used to determine what energy source would be most effective at any given time.
