Smart Growth Philosophy Driving New Development Decisions

The wildfire growth of Alberta's cities and towns continues to be fuelled by the province's hot economy, but at what cost to the environment and the social fabric of communities? These are among the many questions being raised as politicians, urban planners and developers grapple with the demands of providing homes and neighbourhoods to keep up with an ever-increasing population.

The principles of "smart growth" and sustainability are providing some of the answers. They stand to play a bigger role in driving development decisions, according to experts in the field.

"People are ahead of the politicians when it comes to many of these ideas and I think they are going to start demanding change," says Noel Keough, an urban planning expert at the University of Calgary and senior researcher at Sustainable Calgary Society. "More people are realizing that we're building a high-maintenance city on a limited future cash flow from a non-renewable resource. It doesn't make sense with the challenges we're facing, with the high price of oil and scarcity of other resources like water."

As Canada becomes an increasingly aged and urbanized society, the limitations of traditional suburban growth are becoming apparent. Rising energy costs, inadequate infrastructure, environmental concerns and lack of community spirit are prompting citizens to seek more sustainable living arrangements.

"We are at the tail end of 100 years of a planning system that promised a better quality of life, but people aren't seeing it," says Joanne Perdue, an associate with Designworks Architecture and sustainability expert who recently became the University of Calgary's director of sustainability. "People's desire for something more than long commuting times and a monoculture approach to suburban design is a tremendous impetus for change."

Denser communities that are pedestrian-friendly, well serviced by public transit, and allow residents to work and shop near their homes are considered beneficial because they promote greater social cohesion and have less environmental impact. Vehicle emissions are reduced, less land and water are required to build and maintain such communities and projects that maximize energy and water use become more viable.

"If we can take a more holistic view of how our communities operate, we can make large-scale changes to our infrastructure and see that the things we currently think of as waste can actually be considered sources of energy," Perdue said.

Pointing to countries like Sweden, striving to becoming independent of fossil fuels by 2020, Keough says Canada could achieve a similar goal. But it needs a strong voice from citizens to prompt governments to introduce the necessary policies.

"We could be carbon neutral by 2030 with all the technology we have right now," he said. "There are many obvious benefits to achieving that, but there is also a lot of push-back because of the trade-offs that go along with it. People don't like sprawl, but they are also wary about change and redevelopment in their own neighbourhoods."

In 2006 the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada has taken up on the 2030 Challenge which urges architects from around the word to adopt carbon-neutral building practices by 2030.

The Canada Green Building Council has set a national goal to have one million homes and 100,000 commercial/institutional buildings certified as green buildings by 2015, a plan that would reduce energy and water needs and greenhouse gas emissions. Meeting this goal requires commitment and strong leadership at all levels, says Perdue, noting the many perceived barriers on the road to sustainability disappear as the value of more efficient operations and improved quality of community is realized.

"On a community scale, it costs a lot of money to upgrade transit systems and increase service," she says. "But when we look at how much we pay for expanded roads, the community impact of increased traffic, reduced air quality in the city and associated health care costs, then perhaps the cost of transit upgrades are a more sound investment," she adds.