Vaughan is one of Canada's most rapidly
growing municipalities. With our population expected to exceed 300,000
by 2011, it is imperative that we focus on building sustainably
- to provide healthy communities for our residents and to protect
our natural environment.
|  Did
you know?
Vaughan is home to an extensive network of green space and
trails including:
Click here
for more information on Vaughan’s parks and trails.
|
Vaughan Tomorrow
is the City’s growth management program. It will identify
and address the ongoing challenges and opportunities that will shape
the future of the City of Vaughan. Through this program, the City
will create an Environmental
Master Plan and review and update its Official
Plan. These processes will incorporate sustainability into the
day-to-day operations and future development in the City of Vaughan.
Leading by example, Vaughan has, or is in the process of completing
LEED-certified municipal facilities and is encouraging the development
of the green building industry in Vaughan. Healthy community projects
include:
-
New
Energy Star Policy - In November 2007, Vaughan City
Council approved a policy requiring all new low-rise residential
subdivisions to meet Energy Star Standards as a conditizon of
subdivision approval. With an average of 3,200 low rise residential
units constructed annually over the last five years in the City
of Vaughan, implementing the Energy Star policy can prevent
over 9,600 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions each year, or
the equivalent of taking approximately 1,600 cars a year off
the road.
-
New
Civic Centre – Projected to be LEED – Gold Certified
- Sustainable
Community Pilot Project - Block
39
- Working with local developers and builders, plans have
been approved for 1000+ Energy Star qualified homes
- Energy Star homes consume 30-40% less energy and generate
2-3 fewer tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions than homes built
to the minimum Ontario Building Code standards
- Estimated energy cost savings to homeowners of $750 per
year.
| Community Resources
Are you interested in learning more about how to make your
home, business or community more sustainable or interested
in getting involved?
 The
Windfall
Ecology Centre is a community-based non-profit organization
that motivates personal and community action in several areas,
including renewable energy, transportation, energy audits
and water conservation.
The York Region
Environmental Alliance (YREA) raises awareness of environmental
issues and promotes healthy actions and choices through presentations,
workshops, education and outreach.
Other programs and resources:
The Good Life, a WWF initiative, promotes simple but significant changes in lifestyle that can help fight climate change.
CBC One Million Acts of Green, provides a green calculator and assists individuals to determine the impacts of their actions and choices on the environment.
|
 Spotlight
on Sustainable Building In Vaughan
What does a sustainable house look like?
Architects, engineers and designers across Canada were challenged
to design the ultimate environmentally-friendly home. In December
2005, the Toronto and Region Conservation (TRCA), in partnership
with the Design Exchange, launched their first-ever Sustainable
House Design Competition.
The recipient of ‘The Archetype House’ award
was a Toronto design team comprised of architects Anne Stevens
(Fort Architect Inc), Clelia lori (lori Architects) and Christina
Carydis, Interior Designer Terrell Wong (Stone’s Throw
Design), Mechanical Engineer Al Davies (Ecologix), Industrial
Design Student Sunmee Kim, and Real Estate advisors McKellar
Associates Inc.
Construction on the winning design began in July and after
a 17-day building blitz, coordinating the efforts of volunteers
from BILD and TRCA, the house is scheduled to be open to the
public in September 2008.
The sustainable house will become a training centre for contractors
building new homes, an information centre for consumers looking
to incorporate sustainable design into their own homes, and
it will serve as a model for new homes in the area. It will
be one of the first projects to incorporate the new Leadership
in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for homes rating
system.
For
more information, click here.
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