If you had the option of buying a ‘green’ home, would you? Not only would you be reducing your carbon footprint and lowering greenhouse gas emissions, your home would have a healthier living environment with better indoor air quality for you and your family.
Empire Communities was one of the first Ontario home builders to offer ENERGY STAR as a standard feature across all its low-rise communities and home designs. So what exactly is ENERGY STAR? Managed by Natural Resources Canada, the ENERGY STAR for New Homes initiative promotes energy efficiency guidelines that enable new homes to be more energy efficient than those built to minimum provincial building codes.
“What we’re trying to do is give our homebuyers an opportunity to save money on their monthly hydro and gas bills,” explains Paul Golini Jr., executive vice-president of Empire Communities. Homebuyers save up to 30 per cent off energy costs, which translates to the equivalent of four months of energy for free, as well as better indoor air quality and the production of fewer greenhouse gas emissions. So not only does the homebuyer benefit, Empire’s commitment to the environment also helps decrease the company’s carbon footprint.
“I just learned that building a home emits the same amount of greenhouse gas emissions as driving your car around the globe six times. For that reason, we said we need to do something about decreasing our gas emissions and carbon footprint,” says Golini.
But the commitment doesn’t end there. In fact, Empire Communities takes the green initiative one step further by educating their homebuyers on what it is to live green and how to take care of their high efficiency home. Empire has a dedicated home energy specialist on staff who visits homebuyers to explain the features and benefits of their houses.
Empire Communities also works with partners within the community to continue educating their homebuyers.
“We have a partnership with Sheridan Nurseries, where we offer workshops on how to make your garden green, both inside and outside the home,” Golini says. Sheridan has a recommended plant list that helps contribute to purifying the air in your home, resulting in a healthier living environment.
To find out more about Empire built ENERGY STAR homes, visit
www.empirecommunities.com.
