Creating Carbon Offsets With Our Social Partners

TD is supporting Habitat for Humanity Canada to build super-energy-efficient homes for low-income families. In return, TD will be able to purchase carbon offsets. Through the program, an average 1,000-square-foot home will have annual heating and hot water costs of just $350 a year – compared with about $1,050 for a typical house of the same size.

“This is an exciting, pioneering program,” says Neil Hetherington, chief executive officer of Habitat for Humanity Toronto. “Energy costs for our homeowners will be lowered, enabling them to set aside money for other necessities such as their children’s education.”

This program will put more money in the pockets of Habitat families, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide a model for affordable energy-efficient housing in Canada. It's a great example of how we can all contribute to living in the low-carbon economy.

Green Teams in Action

Technology Solutions (TS) Green Team is finding innovative ways to reduce the substantial footprint that technical equipment creates. “Technology is a fundamental part of the way we run our business. However, IT equipment both inside and outside our data centres is a major ongoing consumer of energy,” says Ralph Gallaugher, Technology Solutions Green Team member. “As a team, we knew we needed to start somewhere, but the question was where.”

To date the team has removed over 1,200 devices, reducing greenhouse gases by 473 tonnes, the equivalent of taking 86 average vehicles off the road a year. And what happens to that equipment, now rendered obsolete? It’s recycled. In 2009 over 37,000 kilograms (81,400 pounds) of equipment was diverted from landfill. And that’s just the beginning. The TS Green Team is making better decisions for the bank and for the planet.