Archived News for Green Sector Professionals

The Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA), has assessed the NSW Government’s green building performance against five key criteria.

The GBCA released five green building priorities in 2010, and according to chief executive, Romilly Madew, “these five priorities will support the property and construction industry’s transition to sustainability. The question is – how close is NSW to achieving those priorities, and how does it compare to other states and territories?”

Priority 1: Provide visionary government leadership

“The GBCA recognises that leadership takes many forms, but one of the most influential ways to demonstrate their dedication to green building is for state government departments to commit to achieving Green Star ratings for every building they own, occupy or develop. This demonstrates both financial responsibility and long-term thinking.

“Currently, the Victorian and Queensland governments have both mandated minimum Green Star standards for their office accommodation, but NSW is yet to make that same commitment.

“The people of NSW deserve visionary, decisive policy which states that the NSW State Government will not own, occupy or develop anything less than 4 Star

Green Star, buildings, representing ‘best practice’, and which states that they will provide both contemporary regulation and a range of incentives,” Madew says.

“While the handling of the NSW solar feed-in tariff generated negative publicity, there remains a need to provide contemporary and well-considered incentives for initiatives, such as solar panels, greywater systems and recycling schemes, which will not only reduce our environmental impact but also reduce our household bills.”

Priority 2: Retrofit and improve existing buildings

“With just two per cent of Australia’s buildings considered new, greening the remaining 98 per cent of our building stock is an enormous challenge. State governments around Australia are introducing a range of policy incentives to improve existing buildings’ energy efficiency, reduce water use, widen the range of green building materials used and reduce the waste going to landfill.

“As NSW is Australia’s second largest contributor to our net greenhouse gas emissions by state, we believe the NSW Government has an obligation to introduce measures that reduce the state’s carbon footprint. Other states are introducing retrofit programs – from Victoria’s 1200 Buildings program in Melbourne to the Tune Up Canberra initiative – and we would like to see the NSW Government recognise that complementary measures in the built environment can provide cost-effective solutions to climate change. As a first step, the NSW Government should undertake a complete audit of their own existing buildings, to ascertain levels of energy and water efficiency and opportunities for incremental improvement.

“State governments are also rolling-out demonstration projects to encourage people to ‘think big’. In Adelaide, for instance, the Lochiel Park green village aims to reduce water demand by 78 per cent, greenhouse gas emissions by 74 per cent and energy use by 66 per cent. About one third of the 15 hectare Lochiel

Park site is urban forest made up of 160,000 trees and plants to help offset greenhouse gas emissions and wetlands for stormwater recycling. In comparison, the people of NSW are faced with endless suburban sprawl, skyrocketing greenhouse gas emissions and hours spent in traffic gridlock.”

Priority 3: Green education and healthcare facilities

Every pupil has a right to fresh air, daylight and good indoor environment quality within a building that reflects long-term sustainability goals and financial responsibility. Similarly, patients and staff across Australia have a right to productive, healthy healthcare environments – and case study evidence from around the world demonstrates the quantitative and qualitative benefits of green healthcare facilities from GP clinics to major hospitals.

“Green Star-rated schools such as Wangaratta High School in Victoria and Peregian Springs State School in Queensland are already achieving outstanding outcomes for pupils, staff, parents and visitors alike,” says Ms Madew. “Similarly, we have just certified our first Green Star healthcare facility, the Flinders Medical Centre – New South Wing in South Australia.

“Despite the growing body of evidence of the benefits of green schools and healthcare facilities, the NSW Government is yet to commit to greener schools, colleges and universities, and greener healthcare facilities. The people of NSW should demand schools and hospitals that are healthy and productive buildings as a right, not as a privilege.”

Priority 4: Move beyond buildings to communities and cities

The GBCA has commenced development of the Green Star – Communities rating tool, which will provide best practice benchmarks for delivering adaptable, liveable, prosperous and sustainable cities, communities and precincts.

The framework, released in 2010, sets out five principles:

Enhance liveability
Create opportunities for economic prosperity
Foster environmental responsibility
Embrace design excellence
Demonstrate visionary leadership and strong governance.

These principles are directly relevant to major new projects such as Barangaroo and Frasers Broadway in Sydney, as well as to the creation of new residential areas in Sydney’s West, the re-visioning of centres from Byron Bay to Bowral, and the refurbishment of cities such as Wollongong and Newcastle.

“We welcome the support of every government land organisation in Australia, including NSW’s Landcom and Hunter Development Corporation, as well as the support of the NSW Government’s Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority. We are pleased to see the NSW Government support the development of the Green Star – Communities rating tool, and demonstrate strong green leadership in this area,” Ms Madew says.

Priority 5: Embed green skills across all industry training

As Australia transitions to a low carbon economy, we can expect a booming demand for ‘green collar workers’ across the property and construction industry.

But NSW industry must have the skills to ensure we fully capitalise on this green collar growth. In the same way that Occupational Health & Safety has become an integrated part of industry training, green skills must be embedded into the curriculum to ensure we develop better, safer, greener buildings.

“The Queensland Government has provided the GBCA with $250,000 in funding to support the green skills training of 650 students across the state. We would like to see the NSW Government commit to providing similar funding to ensure apprentices, TAFE students and trainees integrate sustainability into their skills base. In the long term, this will ensure that NSW can remain competitive and grow the number of green collar jobs.

“We encourage all of those standing for election to the NSW Parliament to engage with the Green Building Council of Australia, to understand its objectives and the business case for green buildings, to ensure NSW can transform into a greener, more productive, more economically sustainable place both now and in the future,” Madew concludes.

EPA gives green light to Oakajee development

The Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority has given the green light to the $A6 billion Oakajee port and 570-kilometre rail development.

Tasmanian Government releases climate change reports

The Tasmanian Government has launched major reports to help Government, business and farmers better understand the impacts of climate change.

Draft planning framework for the Pilbara released

A new planning framework to guide development in the Pilbara has been released in response to many of the opportunities and challenges facing the region.

Built Environment Industry Innovation Council report released

Partnerships between Government, industry, academia, unions and small business have been demonstrated in a new report from the Built Environment Industry Innovation Council.

Report finds power bills hikes not related to renewable energy schemes

Sharp rises in household power bills are being driven by rising network costs and retailer margins not renewable energy according to new analysis.

Queensland announces new Wild Rivers initiatives

An Economic Development Mentor Support Network is part of package of new initiatives announced by Environment and Resource Management Minister Kate Jones as the next plank of the Bligh Government’s Wild Rivers program, aimed at providing Indigenous communities in the Cape with greater capability to capitalise on economic opportunities.

WA releases strategic energy discussion paper

WA Energy Minister Peter Collier has launched the latest initiative in planning for the State’s future energy needs.

Engineers Australia launches sustainability publication

Engineers Media, the publishing company of Engineers Australia, has launched Sustainable Engineering Australia, an electronic publication containing news and other information about one of the most important challenges for the engineering profession - sustainability.

Caring for Our Country review discussion paper released

A discussion paper on Australian Government investment in natural resource management has been released for public consultation, as part of the Caring for Our Country Review.

Economic and social impact of Murray-Darling Basin Plan paper released

ABARES has issued 'The economic and social effects of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan: recent research and steps'.

Coasts and Climate Change Council extended

The Federal Government has announced the extension of the Coasts and Climate Change Council until December 2011, saying its principal focus would be on advising government to ensure progress on coastal adaptation.

Life cycle inventory data for building products finalised

The Building Products Innovation Council (BPIC) has completed a three year project in partnership with the Federal Government to provide Australian life cycle inventory data for building materials.

The Building Products Innovation Council is Australia’s peak body representing the building materials sector. It aims to provide a unified and coordinated approach to the rapid pace and expanding scope of regulatory change in the Australian building industry and the need for better environmental outcomes.

The Building Products Life Cycle Inventory will assist life cycle assessment practitioners, architects, designers, engineers, builders, developers and regulators to more accurately assess the impact building products and buildings have on the environment.

It is freely available to all industry stakeholders from BPIC.

For further information go to www.bpic.asn.au

ASBEC calls for coordinated approach to urban management policy

Australia needs a federal Minister and Department for Cities and Urban Development to ensure the nation meets its urban challenges, according to the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC).

Romily Madew appointed as new World Green Building Council standards committee chair

The chief executive of the Green Building Council of Australia, Romilly Madew, has been appointed chair of a new committee tasked with overseeing consistent standards for global green building rating.

The World Green Building Council’s (WorldGBC’s) new committee will develop an international standard for quality assurance of global green building rating tools.

“Our immediate priority is to provide guidance on the Common Carbon Metric project, which is working towards a globally-accepted and consistent methodology for measuring the carbon performance of our building stock,” Ms Madew says.

“With Australia moving towards a price on carbon, robust carbon accounting within the built environment will become increasingly critical.

“We will also be complementing the work commenced by the South African Green Building Council on socio-economic criteria for green building rating systems.”

Other nations represented on the committee include the US, UK, Japan, Singapore, South Africa and Germany.

“I’m delighted to take on the role of Chair of this new committee. Australia’s property and construction industry should take this as further evidence of our leadership role in the formation and delivery of green building rating tools,” Ms Madew says.

“Being part of this new committee enables us to continue to play an active role in the evolution of the global green building movement,”

Amendments to NSW Coastal Protection Act come into force

The Regulation that supports the 2010 amendments to the Coastal Protection Act 1979 has come into force.

Updated estimates of Australia's emissions released

The Quarterly Estimates of Australia’s National Inventory: September Quarter 2010 has been released by the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency.

National Greenhouse and Energy Report data released

The National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting data has been released, capturing 2009-10 greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption data of approximately 300 Australian corporations.

Local urban sustainability indicators toolkit being developed

RMIT University researchers are developing a participatory toolkit for establishing local urban sustainability indicators.

The toolkit, Circles of Sustainability, is being developed in partnership with the UN Global Compact Cities Programme, which is based at RMIT.

It brings together city leaders, citizens groups and businesses to identify and debate critical issues and to set targets for progress towards sustainable development.

Developed through pilot projects in cities worldwide, the Circles of Sustainability method has been adopted as part of the UN Global Compact Cities Programme approach to resolving intractable urban development issues.

The pilot projects addressed issues such as sustainable tourism in French cities, sustainable urban planning in Mongolia and infrastructure for clean water in cities in India and the United States.

Professor Paul James, Director of RMIT's Global Cities Research Institute, said the last decade had seen enormous growth in the use of sustainability indicators.

"There are corporate-sustainability indices, city-liveability indices, community-sustainability indices, waste-disposal indices … the list goes on."

He said that developing an adequate indicator set had become a difficult task. The size, scope and number of indicator sets could cause an organisation to lose focus and not use available local resources that could support sustainable practices.

The Circles of Sustainability toolkit supports local communities in developing a means to track sustainable practices in relation to a global framework while encouraging the use of locally relevant quantitative with qualitative measures of sustainability.

It aims to balance economic and environmental sustainability concerns with the political and cultural dimensions of the issue.

When completed in 2013, the toolkit will be an open-access resource for governments, non-government organisations and businesses debating issues and actions required for sustainable urban development.

The Circles of Sustainability project team is led by Professor Paul James and includes contributions by Professor Lin Padgham and Associate Professor James Thom from RMIT's School of Computer Science and Information technology, Professor Hepu Deng from the School of Business IT and Logistics, and Research Fellows Dr Andy Scerri, Dr Liam Magee and Dr Sarah Hickmott.

The project is supported by industry partners FujiXerox Australia, Cambridge International College, Microsoft Australia, Angusta Systems and the City of Melbourne.

Qantas investigates viability of using algae-based sustainable fuel

Australian-based airline Qantas will collaborate with Solazyme, one of the USA’s leading renewable energy companies, to investigate opportunities for sustainable, algae-based aviation fuel.

Qantas and Solazyme will develop a business case for the introduction of the fuel technology in Australia during the next year.

Qantas also has an agreement with the US-based Solena Group for research into waste-based aviation fuel.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce said the both projects are part of the airline’s strategy to accelerate the commercialisation of ‘drop-in’ alternative jet fuels to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

“The costs and environmental impacts associated with traditional jet fuel mean it is imperative that we push hard now for the commercialisation of alternative fuel sources,” Mr Joyce said.

“We want to be at the forefront of this growing sector.”

The Qantas Group is one of the largest fuel users in Australia, consuming 4.6 billion litres of jet kerosene in the last two years, at a cost of $3.3 billion.

Austrade’s Regional Director for The Americas, Grame Barty said, “Austrade has been working with the top US biofuels companies for the past three years as part of a strategy to attract investment and grow the advanced biofuels industry in Australia.

“These agreements highlight both the US market as a leader in this space and Australia as a high-potential, key investment target for international companies,” Mr Barty said.

Qantas said cleaner fuel sources are sought to ensure the company’s long-term sustainability.