The purpose of this study is to develop a design framework for retrofitting a light industrial building with a hybrid renewable energy-assisted hydroponics farming system for production of fresh food in rural north Canadian communities. This design protocol is targeted at facilities in rural areas of northern Canada, which could benefit from better access to fresh food, especially given the harsh climate as well as the long and limited transport routes. The process includes 1) a review of the existing building; 2) estimation of design loads for system sizing, such as temperature and humidity control, adequate lighting, airborne carbon, and water; 3) multi-objective genetic algorithm optimization of the hybrid renewable energy system for minimal operating cost and emissions; and 4) comparison of costs and greenhouse (GHG) emissions of the proposed farming operation with the traditional food supply chain. To demonstrate the proposed methodology, a case study building in a rural community in Alberta, Canada was evaluated for retrofit. The results showed that the GHG emissions generated from local hydroponic lettuce production, aided by a hybrid renewable energy system (HRES), are three times greater than those emitted by transporting an equivalent quantity of food from southern California, USA. On the other hand, the life cycle cost showed that the cost to produce lettuce from the case study facility is comparable to the price of lettuce available from traditional import, which shows a promising potential to provide fresh and cost-competitive food in the community, among other qualitative benefits gained from this empowering opportunity.

这项研究的目的是开发一种设计框架，以使用混合可再生能源辅助水培法耕作系统改造轻工业建筑，以在加拿大北部农村社区生产新鲜食品。该设计协议针对加拿大北部农村地区的设施，这些设施可以受益于新鲜食物的获取，尤其是在恶劣的气候以及漫长而有限的运输路线下。该过程包括1）对现有建筑物的审查；2）估算系统规模的设计负荷，例如温度和湿度控制，充足的照明，空气中的碳和水；3）混合可再生能源系统的多目标遗传算法优化，以最小化运营成本和排放；4）将拟议的农业经营与传统食品供应链的成本和温室气体排放进行比较。为了证明拟议的方法，对加拿大艾伯塔省一个农村社区的案例研究大楼进行了评估以进行改造。结果表明，在混合可再生能源系统（HRES）的帮助下，当地水培生菜生产所产生的温室气体排放量是从美国南部加利福尼亚州运输等量食品所产生的温室气体排放量的三倍。另一方面，生命周期成本表明，案例研究设施生产生菜的成本与传统进口生菜的价格相当，这表明在社区提供具有竞争力的新鲜食品的潜力很大，