VicUrban develops sustainable community rating tool

The Sustainable Community Rating is a development planning tool that provides a common language to assist developers plan and deliver new sustainable communities.

It is based on an approach to sustainability that encompasses five interrelated objectives:

• Community Well-being
• Environmental Leadership
• Urban Design Excellence
• Housing Affordability
• Commercial Success

Developed by VicUrban, the Rating is a voluntary self-assessment framework for developers to use at the planning stage of projects. Three Rating tools have been developed for communities of different size and scale:

• Master Planned Community – a community with more than 500 homes and some element of mixed use. VicUrban and industry have been trialling this tool.
• Urban Renewal Community – the redevelopment of a previous land use activity within the established metropolitan area.
• Provincial Community – a community planned for a Provincial city.

For more information or feedback on the rating tool

World’s first government procurement framework released by the APCC

The Australian Procurement and Construction Council (APCC) have developed the world's first government procurement framework incorporating all three elements of sustainability.

The Australian and New Zealand Government Framework for Sustainable Procurement (Framework) is a set of national and trans-Tasman principles to guide Australian Federal, State and Territory governments and the New Zealand Government in implementing sustainable procurement.
Principles include:

1. Adopting strategies to avoid unnecessary consumption and manage demand;
2. In the context of whole-of-life value for money, selecting products and services which have lower environmental impacts across their life cycle;
3. Foster a viable ANZ market for sustainable products and services by supporting businesses and industry groups that demonstrate innovation in sustainability; and
4. Support suppliers to government who are socially responsible and adopt ethical practices.

The Framework is a ‘blueprint for change’ which supports and encourages collaboration across governments to develop national programs and tools to promulgate the principles of sustainable procurement.
The APCC has commenced a number of projects which will support implementation of the Framework.

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Background and update on the Joint Building Planning Working Group

The Joint Building Planning Working Group (JWG) is a non-statutory grouping of senior officials from the Australian Building Codes Board and Planning Officials Group, augmented by industry representation and for its initial piece of work, participation by the former Australian Greenhouse Office.

The JWG emerged in response to what on the surface appeared as two opposing outcomes from the Council of Australian Governments at its meeting in February 2006. The first was a renewed focus on the national reform agenda with a view to improving delineation between planning and building regulation, as well as reducing the level of red tape within these systems.

The second was the adoption of a Climate Change Action Plan, to contain a National Adaptation Framework. This Action Plan inherently acknowledged the potential for proliferation of sustainability regulation as part of the toolkit of responses to climate change, which inevitably meant that there was a need to reconcile these two COAG agenda items.

At the same time the Local Government and Planning Ministers' Council sought to determine the potential for BASIX to operate as a national sustainability tool as part of a holistic review of environmental performance measures in the built environment.

The JWG brought all of these issues together and proposed that a National Implementation Model be developed to interrogate where sustainability regulations, amongst many other types of regulation, should best be controlled between planning and building systems, as well as how sustainability tools should operate within this structure. The preferred position of this work was that:

1. the role of regulation should be to regulate performance measures that will deliver on national targets allowing for a range of innovative responses rather than prescribing these;

2. a mechanism be devised to determine which performance measures belong in the building system and which in the planning system; and

3. sustainability tools not be regulated, but rather accredited to demonstrate that they can be used to demonstrate that the performance measures can be achieved.

A report was presented to the Ministers' Council in March 2008 on this matter, with a less than clear decision having been taken. The matter also has to be considered by the Building Ministers' Forum, which is meeting in July.

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Creating a Framework: GBCA discussion paper

The development and uptake of environmental rating tools in Australia has been rapid, with many stakeholders considering them a key strategic factor in the development and future performance of their buildings.

In response to industry feedback, the Green Building Council of Australia has commissioned a paper examining the similarities and differences of the two current rating schemes, identifying the opportunities of how these schemes could work together, and the potential success of such a collaboration.

As both Green Star and NABERS share the common goal of reducing the environmental impact of commercial office buildings, this rating tools discussion paper will attempt to resolve the concerns raised by the industry and find a strategic solution that will benefit both organizations’ and the market.

This discussion paper will be available on the Green Building Council of Australia website www.gbca.org.au in July/August.

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BENCHMARK: The NABERS Conference Series

The NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC) has completed Benchmark: The NABERS Conference Series in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth.

The May Conferences, attended by more than 400 property industry and government representatives, launched the expanded suite of NABERS tools, including Waste and Indoor Environment for office buildings and Energy and Water for hotels.

The feedback we received from the conferences was that the new tools have been well received, and will be widely adopted by industry leaders.

A range of case studies were presented highlighting the use of NABERS and how NABERS is becoming embedded as standard practice for managing and reporting environmental performance. Speakers described how NABERS has changed their business practice, and allowed them to significantly reduce energy and water use from office buildings.

Presentations from the conferences will be available at www.nabers.com.au

Currently in Australia, there is no consensus agreed “level playing field” national methodology for Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and no consistent database of life cycle data that can be used to inform design and procurement decisions for the selection of building products and materials.

Building products and materials used in Australia are being promoted for their environmental attributes based on single issue claims like “recycled”, “recyclable”, “FSC Certified”, “non-toxic”, “natural”, “renewable”, “low VOC” etc.

The Australian Life Cycle Assessment Society (ALCAS) and CSIRO have led a consortium of stakeholders to establish the Australian Life Cycle Inventory (AusLCI). This is intended to develop a nationally agreed “level playing field” methodology and database of Australian life cycle data and make this available to Australian industry.

This project, known as the BPIC ICIP project, is led by BPIC on behalf of ALCAS and BRANZ in partnership with the Department of Innovation, Industry, Science & Research and with the support and participation of BPIC’s 10 major building material national representative associations.

For more details contact: DavidSharp@bpic.asn.au

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In light of the Governments recent announcements and the amount of views and ideas that have been generated with regards to emissions trading, ACEA is compiling a discussion paper to collate and capture some of these ideas and encourage some further thought on the debate.

The paper, Policy Options for an Australian Emissions Trading Scheme is not a definitive ACEA viewpoint but a collection of views presented by ACEA members and other stakeholders for broad consideration. The paper discusses a number of areas associated with emissions trading including setting the emissions cap and industry coverage, planning and resources and other complementary measures, a look at the Garnaut Review, alternatives to emissions trading and international partnerships and engagement.

The paper will be made public with the completion date to coincide prior to the release of the department of Climate Change Green Paper in July 2008.

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GBCA commissions study to explore opportunities for buildings and ‘carbon markets’

With interest in the Australian Emissions Trading Scheme (AETS) increasing with the new Rudd Government combined with the 2020 Summit, the Green Building Council of Australia has commissioned a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers to explore opportunities for buildings and ‘carbon markets’.

A number of studies including ASBEC’s research ‘Capitalising on the building sector’s potential to lessen the costs of a broad based GHG emissions cut’ clearly show the significant opportunity for low cost abatement in the Australian building sector.

The objective of the discussion paper is to support the GBCA in its discussions with policy makers regarding Australia’s development of market-based mechanisms and the role that the built environment can play in achieving significant emission reductions. The GBCA has a crucial role to play in understanding the needs of the building sector and articulating these to policy makers.

This discussion paper will be available by July via the GBCA website

A $2million Building Tune-Ups project to make commercial buildings in Adelaide’s CBD more energy efficient has been announced by the South Australian Premier, Mike Rann.

The South Australian Government and the commercial building industry, through its peak body, the Property Council of Australia, will work together to improve the performance of commercial buildings in an effort to lift the performance of eligible buildings by at least one star rating.

The 4-year initiative will focus on upgrading existing stock, rather than solely on new developments. The Building Tune-Ups project supports the third sector agreement entered into under the Climate Change and Greenhouse Emissions Reduction Act 2007 between the South Australian Government and the Property Council of Australia. For more information

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Energy Use in the Australian Residential Sector 1986-2020 is a new report that analyses household energy usage. Energy use was tracked at a state level from 1986 to 2005 and projected to 2020.

The model separately tracked four main categories of end use: space conditioning (heating and cooling); water heaters; cooking appliances; and electrical appliances and lighting, and the four main fuel types: electricity; mains (natural) gas; LPG; and wood.

Findings of the report not only forecast an increase in energy use of 56 per cent by 2020, but it estimates that one in four Australians buys a new television each year and that TVs are now the fourth-largest user of electricity, behind water heating, domestic refrigeration and lighting.

The report also found that the household sector is forecast to grow by almost 4 million homes and over 1,000 million square metres in combined floor space by 2020, creating increased demand for heating, cooling, lighting and electrical appliances. More information

Clean Business Australia consultations with industry

The Clean Business Australia initiative has three distinct elements to it and will be delivered through the Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research.

Green Building Fund ($90m) – subsidises 50 percent of commercial office refurbishments focusing on improved energy efficiency outcomes up to a maximum of $200,000 of Commonwealth funding per building.

Retooling for Climate Change ($75m) – assists manufacturers improve their energy and water efficiency of their production processes and operations. Grants of up to $500,000 will be provided to small and medium sized companies, up to a third of the cost of each project.

Climate Ready ($75m) – the program will support the development and commercialisation of products to the market that save energy and water, reduce pollution and use waste products in innovative ways.

The formal consultations will be with key industry stakeholders on the respective draft program guidelines. The consultations are yet to be finalised, but those for the Green Building Fund are expected to be held in late July. More information

The QLD Department of Public Works is implementing a range of initiatives and strategies to improve the overall environmental performance of its office buildings, while also targeting reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, the consumption of potable water and waste reduction.

The Department is now aiming for a minimum Green Star rating of 5 stars for new office buildings. For all green leases, office fit-outs and refurbishments of existing office buildings in excess of 2,000m2, the target is a minimum Green Star rating of 4 stars.

The Department is also committed to achieving carbon-neutrality for all its office buildings by 2020, or sooner. The intention is to achieve as much as possible through reductions in the amount of energy, primarily electricity, used in its buildings.

The Department is also trialling harvesting of air conditioning condensate and rainwater to supplement potable water make-up in cooling towers.

Five fabulous ASBEC members - The Planning Institute of Australia, Australian Institute of Architects, Property Council of Australia, Green Building Council Australia and the Association of Consulting Engineers Australia - are inviting you to join them for Built Environment Meets Parliament (BEMP) 2008 to be held at Parliament House, Canberra on 1-2 September 2008.

They have organised a great program including a welcome cocktail function, full-day Summit and gala dinner incorporating the presentation of the Australia Award for Urban Design.

This program links with the next ASBEC Council meeting so there is a great opportunity to attend both.To register for BEMP

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The next meeting will be held on Monday September 1 2008 to coincide with BEMP.

Time:
September 1
10am -12.30 pm Strategic Planning discussions - we encourage members to attend this session to discuss our next action plan and key milestones for 2010.

12.30 – 4 Lunch and ASBEC Council Meeting

Where: Engineers Australia Engineering House, 11 National Circuit, Barton ACT 2600

Thank you to Engineering Australia and The Planning Institute of Australia for hosting the event

For those flying in we encourage you to car pool to Engineering House.

Edited by Peter W Newton, Transitions identifies 21st century challenges to the resilience of Australia's cities and regions that flow from a range of global and local influences, and offers a portfolio of solutions to these critical problems and vulnerabilities. The solutions will require fundamental transitions in many instances: to our urban infrastructures, to our institutions and how they plan for the future, and perhaps most of all to ourselves in terms of our lifestyles and consumption patterns.

With contributions from 92 researchers - all leaders in their respective fields - this book offers the expertise to chart pathways for a sustainability transition for our cities. For more information on the detailed contents of this book and the list of authors.

Department of Climate Change looking for opportunities to present at forums/conferences

The Department of Climate Change are looking at opportunities for Emissions Trading Scheme consultations and are seeking to present at suitable forums/conferences over the coming six months to December.

If your association is involved in, or planning, large forums or conferences to be held over the next six months contact etsconsultation@climatechange.gov.au or Justine O'Brien, Public Affairs Officer Communication & Stakeholder Relations, Department of Climate Change on Ph: 02 6275 9719 or Mob: 0434 560 153.