Last year, the New Earth Solutions (NES) team, successfully restored a failing five-storey living wall at Algonquin College in Ottawa. The wall, originally built in 2011 at the Algonquin Center for Construction Excellence (ACCE), was the biggest living wall in Ottawa for many years.
The installation at Algonquin College was a testament to their commitment to making all new buildings LEED-certified, creating healthier and more efficient green buildings. The ACCE space is used by staff and students alike, for studying and events, and is a source of pride for the college.
The Problem
The living wall at Algonquin College’s ACCE building performed reliably for years, but the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 changed everything. With reduced staffing and access restrictions, the college no longer had the resources needed to maintain the feature. Amanda Barr, a horticulturist at the college, explained that they couldn’t use the lift to access higher sections of the wall, which meant leaves couldn’t be cleaned, pests couldn’t be removed, and clogged drip lines were left unchecked.
Originally integrated into the building’s HVAC system to help clean the air, the wall began to suffer due to lack of maintenance. The system, which once contributed to better indoor air quality, started to harm the plants instead. To prevent further decline, the college turned off the HVAC integration, further limiting the wall’s intended benefits.
As a result, the once-vibrant vertical garden became a patchwork of dying plants, losing both its functional and aesthetic value. At that point, Algonquin College reached out to New Earth Solutions for support. “We had the right infrastructure to support the repairs,” said Mitchell Cowburn, co-founder of New Earth Solutions. Because NES operates greenhouses that grow plants hydroponically, they were able to replace the wall with species that didn’t need to adapt to soil conditions—offering a more resilient, long-term solution.
Our Solution
As our team worked to restore and reconstruct the wall, campus occupants were excited to see plants return. While the team was on-site, they heard many stories from the community about how much the wall was missed. It quickly became clear that the wall was one of the campus’s most beloved features before the pandemic.
Each floor of the building has a unique relationship with the wall. Visitors can observe its function and enjoy the greenery. The first floor includes a communal area with tables for studying and eating. The upper floors offer more study spaces and new viewing angles of the wall.
Now that the restoration is complete, the Algonquin College community is thrilled to see it brought back to life. After just one week of work, the living wall is once again a vibrant, biophilic feature for all to enjoy.
