“Project Neutral” is a new volunteer-based initiative whose goal is to work with a Toronto neighbourhood towards achieving carbon-neutrality.
They envision the first steps as being documenting the baseline household greenhouse gas emissions, and a neighbourhood summit that brings together residents and creative leaders from the private and public sector (e.g. renewable energy solutions providers) to help develop a path towards carbon neutrality. The long-term goal is to develop a replicable model that can be publicly shared to encourage all Canadian neighbourhoods to pursue carbon neutrality.
Project Neutral is currently looking for applications from neighbourhoods who are interested in pursuing this project, from which one will be chosen as the pilot project. If you would like to find out more or propose your neighbourhood, visit the Project Neutral website.
3 comments
Can a TO neighbourhood be carbon neutral? All depends on how you define “carbon neutral”. Objectively, I’d say no… but I’m sure the exercise will make some people feel good.
Would be rather tough for an existing neighborhood unless you completely rebuilt all housing stock and transportation infrastructure — these are extremely energy-intensive in their existing condition. I don’t think covering every rooftop in solar panels and putting wind turbines in every backyard would be able to comp for that. Look at the extents they are going to in Masdar, and that oil-funded desert fantasy is not exactly something that can be easily replicated.
Wishing Project Neutral all the best. They could certainly save some time and effort by focusing exclusively on home heating and transportation – the two major sources of emissions for most Torontonians.
Insulate your home, replace your inefficient heater, leave the car at home for your commute and offset your airline travel.
Seems simple enough, no?