Bold plan aims to cut Toronto emissions in half by 2030

Toronto is set to join the 2030 club, a group of cities across North America that aim to drastically reduce their emissions over the next 15 years. The initiative is the result of public-private collaboration that includes founding sponsors Sustainable Buildings Canada (SBC), the Ontario Association of Architects (OAA), and Enbridge Gas.

While the initiative doesn't cover the whole city, the so-called 2030 District in Toronto spans from Dupont St. to Lake Ontario, and the Don Valley to Bathurst St. It's all very ambitious -- and exciting depending on how one cares to regulate his skepticism.

The advisory board sounds very promising (representatives come from Brookfield Properties, Avison Young, Diamond and Schmitt Architects, Ryerson University, and the city of Toronto), but the initial plan is short of specifics.

According to a press release, the initiative aims "to leverage existing local programs, increase information sharing, promote district-wide benchmarking, create economies of scale and build performance data." These are all important things, but it sounds like it will take a while before District 2030 has any real clout.

Nevertheless, bold goals like this one are crucial should we ever hope to get a handle on climate change.

Photo by twurdmen in the blogTO Flickr pool.

by Derek Flack via blogTO