Moss Park is a somewhat rundown area of downtown Toronto, home to several aging apartment buildngs and also an armoury, parking and lots of scrub grass.

A project called GROW Housing is looking to change that. It would be home to about 1000 people on just more than a hectare of land, with four- to seven-storey buildings encircling a courtyard. But what interests Greenthinkers are the environmental breakthroughs included in the plans. The aim is to create a self-contained community that relies as little as possible on city services.

The more familiar ingredients in the Moss Park concept include a biodigester to produce methane out of organic wastes from the farm and residential kitchens, and from human feces…The gas would be burned to generate enough electricity for all of the project’s needs. A by-product would be high-quality soil for rooftop gardens… Liquid wastes would be treated in an artificial wetland. The result would be water – not drinkable, but pure enough to supply the farm and gardens as well as some residential uses…Heating and air conditioning would be provided by a geothermal system – a network of underground pipes. It would also service the nearby arena and community centre.