The retail sector consumes 50 per cent of the commercial property sector's share of energy. Now shopping centres, at least, will try to do something about that environmental profile. by Lynne Blundell FAVOURITES: 24 October 2010 - When it comes to energy efficiency the retail   sector is the very large elephant in ...Read More > >

By Andrew Starc 21 April 2010 - A new report by Curtin University of Technology and Parsons Brinckerhoff highlights evidence that the potential for the Federal Government to enforce deregulation of urban zoning and planning across Australia could  have detrimental effects on both the health and productivity of urban populations. In ...Read More > >

By Tina Perinotto 22 April 2010- Planners have reacted angrily to widescale moves to deregulate zoning controls, create land “competition” and fast track more urban sprawl that emerged in an avalanche of government announcements in the past week. Leading sustainability and planning authority Professor Peter Newman of Curtin University said more low-density ...Read More > >

By Tina Perinotto 19 April 2010 - [Updated 19 April 2010] A Productivity Commission inquiry into development controls is set to raise a storm of controversy if it results in loosening zoning controls for residential and retail property, as anticipated. Expect planners who have long argued for orderly and controlled zoning ...Read More > >

18 April 2010 - Property and construction consultancy Davis Langdon has published an on-line handbook that aims to simplify the overwhelming mass of information and requirements surrounding energy efficiency and sustainability in the property sector. Entitled The Road to Green Property, the e-book details Davis Langdon’s research as well as the ...Read More > >

By Andrew Starc 20 April 2010 - The surPLUShome is what results when you mix German efficiency with ecologically sustainable design. Designed and built by a team of students from the University of Dalmstadt, the house was part of Team Germany’s entry in the Solar Decathlon 2009, an ...Read More > >

By Andrew Starc 15 April 2010 - One look of Sydney’s skyline lit up at night tells you everything about the simple things we can do to save energy. This “Low Hanging Fruit” was the topic of discussion at a seminar held at the ARBS [Air Conditioning, Refrigeration and Building Services] Trade ...Read More > >

FAVOURITES: 14 April 2010 - What do tenants really want?  At the Green Cities 2010 conference in Melbourne this year one of the sessions, the Tenets of Tennants, took a hard look at demand for green buildings from the point of view of the people making the decisions and providing ...Read More > >

By Lynne Blundell 14 April 2010 - There could be light at the end of the tunnel for cogeneration projects seeking co-operation from energy agencies. In a victory for precinct-style power generation, a proposed shared cogeneration project between The University of Queensland and the Royal Brisbane Hospital has received support from ...Read More > >

By Lynne Blundell FAVOURITES - 8 April 2010 - As the deadline for the introduction of mandatory disclosure of energy efficiency in commercial buildings draws near, many owners of lower grade buildings are completely unprepared. And with these buildings accounting for around 80 per cent of the commercial market, property agencies ...Read More > >

By Tina Perinotto 8 April 2010 - A company that runs one of the most highly regarded solar power system testing stations in the world at Alice Springs is casting its wings offshore. The Centre for Appropriate Technology recently signed a commission for the Bushlight India Project which is delivering sustainable and ...Read More > >

By Tina Perinotto 8 April 2010 - The updated Building Code of Australia is about to hit the market next month – on 1 May – but many architects and consultants have little idea how significant the changes will be, especially for glazing commercial buildings. What’s likely is a huge reduction of ...Read More > >

By Andrew Starc 7 April 2010 – Parsons Brinckerhoff has opened its new sustainable Melbourne office space at Southbank to accommodate rapid staff growth. PB Regional Director for Victoria John Theodoulou said the company had appointed 30 per cent more staff in Melbourne since January 2009. ”This new space is part ...Read More > >

By Andrew Starc CASE STUDY - 6 April 2010 - Sydney Water has bolstered its  environmental credentials with their newly built corporate headquarters at Parramatta earning a 5 Star Green Star - Office As Built v2 rating by the Green Building Council of Australia. The One Smith Street building, designed by Denton ...Read More > >

By Lynne Blundell The smart grid is a “much riskier business model, beyond poles and wires, as it’s now about a customer response. Letting customer response drive initiatives is riskier. We have to break the existing business model and build a new one. And it’s a riskier model because there is ...Read More > >

By Andrew Starc 31 March 2010 - Projectors, microphones and surround-sound hi-fi systems are not uncommon in the boardrooms and theatres of large office buildings yet, more often than not, audio-visual technology is overlooked as a key component of creating a green building. Now, with advances in the control and intelligence of ...Read More > >

By Lynne Blundell 31 March 2010 - public discussion paper on the federal government’s proposed framework for setting energy efficiency standards for buildings has been released for public consultation. The discussion paper presents the National Building Energy Standard-Setting, Assessment and Rating Framework, which is part of the National Strategy on Energy ...Read More > >

By Michael Mobbs Every time I wake up there’s a new rating scheme. Enough is enough. It’s cold shower time. Remember when we were invited to spray DDT on our food and in our houses because it "harmlessly" killed bugs? (If you’re too young to remember, do an internet search on “DDT ...Read More > >

By Andrew Starc CASE STUDY - 2 April 2010 - Charter Hall’s new Home HQ North Shore has set a new benchmark for sustainable retail outlets by becoming the first bulky goods store in Australia to earn a 4-star Green Star Retail Centre v1 certified rating. Located in Artarmon on Sydney’s Lower ...Read More > >

By Andrew Starc 31 March 2010 - Business and environment group leaders met at the “Doing Nothing Is Not An Option” event in Sydney yesterday to review the collapse of the carbon pollution reduction scheme and discuss how to manage risk in the face of climate change and a policy void. The ...Read More > >

By Andrew Starc 31 March 2010 - The Victorian Government today announced a $500,000 boost to Melbourne City Council’s plans to retrofit more than two thirds of Melbourne’s commercial buildings as part of its “1200 Buildings” sustainability initiative. The voluntary program already has 16 corporations (see list below) among its signatories with ...Read More > >

By Andrew Starc - 31 March 2010 – The formation of the Prime Minister’s Task Group on Energy Efficiency has been welcomed by environment and green groups for its promises of economic benefits and emissions reduction. The Task Group, which will make recommendations for generating a step-change improvement in Australia’s energy efficiency, ...Read More > >

BRIEF – 30 March 2010 - Plans for the construction of one of the worlds largest solar plants in Victoria are back on track after technology innovation company Silex Systems took ownership of the solar power plant technologies of Solar Systems. Silex Systems has acquired a solar pilot plant at ...Read More > >

BRIEF – 30 March 2010 - The House of Representatives Primary Industries and Resources Committee has released a report addressing the challenges facing Australian farmers in adapting to the impacts of climate variability and climate change. Entitled “Farming the Future: the role of government in assisting Australian farmers to adapt to ...Read More > >

29 March 2010 - From The Sydney Morning Herald, by Paddy Manning (with a mention for The Fifth Estate) - Newsflash: bright idea fades in Canberra. Put differently, it seems likely that the best way to make the most cost-effective cuts to Australia's greenhouse gas emissions has absolutely no ...Read More > >

A cartoon illustrating the "blue water" and "green water" methodologies of categorising water resources. Water resource management needs to consider a holistic approach to manage the different types of flows that exist in the environment. Stuart McMillen works in behaviour change and is the Brisbane event organiser of the international Green ...Read More > >

BRIEF - 24 March 2010 - Co-owners of 1 Bligh Street, DEXUS Wholesale Property Fund and Cbus Property have announced that the 1 Bligh Street office development in Sydney has been awarded a 6 Star Green Star Office Design v2 Certified rating. The building’s double skin façade system is a major ...Read More > >

By Lynne Blundell FAVOURITES: 25 March 2010 - The Green Building Council of Australia’s Green Star rating system for buildings is undergoing a fundamental shift. It is a philosophical shift that involves working more closely with industry, particularly for rating building materials. The GBCA says this is a positive move that ...Read More > >

By Giles Parkinson From The Spectator: 24 March 2010- The greatest worry for members of the Australian clean-tech community is not that they have already missed two or three opportunities to take the lead in low carbon technologies, it’s that that they might miss the next two or three as well. That ...Read More > >

BRIEF – 24 March 2010 – Dozens of new raingardens will be planted across Sydney as part of the City of Sydney’s plan to harvest and treat stormwater. Raingardens are natural, underground stormwater treatment systems, designed to absorb pollutants that would otherwise end up in the Cooks River or ...Read More > >