Briar Chapel green community hosts Earth Day 5K

Shannon McSwiney says that every day feels like Earth Day at Briar Chapel.

McSwiney is the marketing manager for Briar Chapel, the largest green community in the Triangle, located nine miles outside of Chapel Hill.

“Earth Day is really fitting for us because it’s a focus on something we do every day,” she said.

The community is home to 230 families and requires homes to be built to a green standard.

In honor of Earth Day — celebrated nationwide on Sunday — the community held its 4th annual Briar Chapel 5K Saturday.

This year a record 195 runners participated in the race — more than the 150 McSwiney said they initially expected.

All proceeds from the race went to the Abundance Foundation, a local nonprofit that works to educate the public on sustainability topics, such as local food and renewable energy.

Briar Chapel also organized post-race festivities, called “A Celebration of All Things Local,” which included a performance by local stunt crew King BMX, demonstrations on sustainable living and food truck vendors.

Briar Chapel first partnered with the Abundance Foundation in 2008. The 5K alone has raised more than $10,000 for the foundation since 2009, not including this year’s race.

Jenny Schnaak, development director for the Abundance Foundation, said the partnership with Briar Chapel has helped them reach new people.

“We feel like the awareness in Chapel Hill is growing deeper,” she said.

Chapel Hill has long been recognized as a community focused on sustainability.

In 2006 it became the first municipality in the country to commit to a 60 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions by 2050. It was also recognized as a Sierra Club “Cool City” in 2007.

Josh Gurlitz, chairman of the town’s sustainability committee, which provides guidance to the planning board, said the town’s new comprehensive plan is currently their largest sustainability project.

“People think of sustainability as applications of technology — say solar-thermal or photovoltaic panels — but part of sustainability has to do with decision-making and transparency in government,” he said. “It has to do with those social elements.”

Gurlitz said while the town’s comprehensive plan, Chapel Hill 2020, is still evolving, each of the six theme groups already have goals related to sustainability.

“For example, there are some theme groups that have goals that relate to energy independence or carbon neutrality,” he said. “There are other theme groups, like one called ‘nurturing our community,’ that have goals that have to do with social equity.”

Gurlitz said Chapel Hill has many sustainability goals, including purchasing new energy-efficient buses and minimizing carbon dioxide emissions, but the town is often constrained by its budget.

“I would say that Chapel Hill is unique in its determination to become a sustainable community,” he said. “But the largest constraint has been finances.”

Gurlitz said the committee works to fund projects by applying for grants and issuing bonds.

“Sometimes we have to move more slowly than we like, but we’re making sure all the time we are moving in the right direction,” he said.

Contact the City Editor at city@dailytarheel.com.