When it comes to the greening of the film and TV industry, British Columbia continues to blaze the trail in Western Canada, with numerous productions actually reducing their environmental impact.

Strategic government initiatives – such as Reel Green B.C. from the B.C. Film Commission – have also been running since 2006, providing information and spreading awareness about sustainability in the film and TV industry.

Its key work to date includes a website – www.reelgreenbc.ca – with a nuts-and-bolts guide detailing how each department on a film set can reduce their imprint; a list of local environmentally friendly suppliers and support companies; and an annual forum where the industry and sustainability groups meet to discuss further ways to green the industry.

The City of Vancouver is also in on the act, and plans to establish permanent power drops in the coming year at five popular locations where film trucks park, eliminating the need for generators. (This is less expensive than ordering temporary hydro power drops, which many productions are already using.)

‘Our initiative has been quite successful,’ says Gordon Hardwick, the B.C. Film Commission’s manager, community affairs and Reel Green. ‘It really is driven at a grassroots level.’

Hardwick notes that many productions are using hydroelectric power or bio-diesel generators, and are passing sets on to other shows. It is also telling that he says suppliers can’t keep up with industry demand for hybrid cars, and that Vancouver Film Studios has become one of Canada’s first carbon-neutral facilities for shooting films.

Also inspiring more green shoots in Vancouver are the major studios, including Warner Bros., Fox, Sony and Universal, with corporate sustainability policies aimed at reducing the environmental impact of their productions.

For example, last year the Vancouver-shot movie Alien Trespass was a carbon-neutral production. This means that greenhouse gas emissions were assessed and the impact was offset by financially contributing to an emissions-reducing project.

Similarly, when Sony Pictures’ Farewell Atlantis, with a reported budget of $200 million, was prepping in Vancouver this past summer, the line producer invited Hardwick to attend a production meeting and help the various departments come up with ways to be more eco-friendly. Now that the movie has wrapped, the producers are planning to measure the footprint of the shoot with the aid of the L.A.-based Environmental Media Association.

Vancouver’s Omni Film Productions instituted a number of green initiatives on the set of its previous series Robson Arms, and is implementing these practices on Defying Gravity, a new series with Fox Television Studios, which began principal photography Jan. 19 in Vancouver.

Fox has a sustainability policy and provides a green production guide to all its shows before prep begins, then each production tailors the manual to the specifics of their shoot.

‘It is a way to establish expectations early on, start discussions and get people invested in the process,’ says Dania Sigler, director of production at Fox Television Studios.

Defying Gravity’s notable green activities include using sets picked up from other shows, including one that was passed from the movie Blade: Trinity and then series Stargate: Atlantis.

‘It’s very green and it’s a great bargain,’ says Bob Lemchen, SVP production at Fox Television Studios.

In a conference call, Omni head of production Steve Harmaty also noted that agreeing upon such decisions has been easy, as both Omni and Fox are committed to the green movement.

‘It’s great that a Vancouver company and a U.S. company can embrace these green initiatives together. We also jointly sent out a ‘green memo’ to production – it’s been a unified approach,’ says Harmaty.

Reel Green B.C.’s next priority is to offer department-specific workshops where crew can meet with sustainability experts.

‘To get beyond recycling and turning off the lights, you have to get down to the nitty-gritty of each film department and respond to their specific needs,’ says Hardwick.