It’s no secret that a lot can change over the course of a couple years; and, more often than not, change is a very good thing! It can teach us to adapt, help us become more resilient, and offer new opportunities. Perhaps you’ve made some changes in the last few years that you’re better for! Maybe they’re subtle changes, like getting a different haircut or picking up a new hobby; or they could be big changes, like moving into a new home, changing careers, or teaching yourself how to live more sustainably!
Well, you’re not the only one who’s been making some changes!
Some of you may already know that from its inception, the idea for West 5 was to create a community that was smart, healthy, and walkable; and, when we really started to get into designing West 5 and thinking about the future, it was clear that our progression and innovation would continue to evolve. We needed to be so much more than just a smart, healthy, and walkable community; we needed to be a community that could power itself and grow into a place people felt proud to call home.
So, in 2017, we partnered with s2e Technologies, updated our development plans, and set out to become Ontario’s first Net Zero Community! And it’s been one of the best, most rewarding changes we could have possibly made. A few years ago, the West 5 team published a blog about what it means to be a Net Zero Community and provided the numbers to prove that every day we’re making conscious decisions to better ourselves and our community. We spoke about how it’s our responsibility to create and implement sustainable solutions so that our community will still be here and thriving generations from now.
Our feelings on what it means to be a Net Zero Community haven’t changed. We still believe that the path towards a bright and sustainable future is one that’s powered by the elements. It’s one that relies on the sun to power homes and businesses, and it’s a community that’s capable of being self-sustaining. What has changed though are our numbers!
We’re proud to share that, to date, the West 5 community has generated 7.8 gigawatts of energy!
But what does that much energy actually look like?
To start, it looks like 5,527,723 kilograms of avoided Carbon Dioxide (CO2). That’s the equivalent of 1,191 gasoline-powered vehicles driven for one year, or a whopping 22,081,722 kilometres driven. For reference, the equatorial circumference of the Earth is only about 40,075 km; which means you could drive around the world 551 times on the clean energy we produced and the CO2 we’ve saved!
7.8 gigawatts of energy is also enough to:
- Power 780 Ontario homes for a year,
- Charge 672,406,893 smartphones,
- Or boost a time-travelling Delorean 6 times!
This much energy also translates into avoided greenhouse gas emissions and carbon:
- It means 1,913 tons (or 273 garbage trucks full) of waste has been recycled instead of winding up in a landfill,
- Or 209,506 incandescent lamps switched to LEDs,
- And an impressive 91,401 tree seedlings producing oxygen for 10 years!
These numbers are all impressive, and ones we’re incredibly proud of; but we can’t wait to watch our numbers continue to grow, and see what the future has in store. As West 5 continues to take shape and welcome more people to the community, our early impact can already be seen and felt. Choosing to become a Net Zero Community is easily one of the best decisions we’ve made, and we can’t wait to share our future numbers with you, as we continue to change and grow.
