The federal government’s commitment to build another 1.2 million homes is great news, but not so much if we don’t use this as an opportunity to transform the sector with lower carbon materials, modular construction and perhaps a newfound love for smaller simpler housing, the Green Building Council of Australia said as it released a new report.
Our Homes Weigh a Tonne – of Carbon Per Square Metre, makes some dramatic observations – for instance, “before a single appliance is switched on, an average all-electric Australian home has already emitted more than seven times the carbon it will produce over its operational lifetime”.
GBCA chief executive officer Davina Rooney led a call for the federal government to achieve a number of goals:
- upfront carbon reporting for all homes through an expanded NatHERS scheme, so it includes emissions from construction and materials, “not just energy use”
- a target to reduce embodied carbon by 20 per cent by 2031
- long term funding for NABERS to maintain Australia’s emissions data infrastructure (is this under threat? Ed)
- embed low-carbon requirements in government-funded housing projects
- supporting local innovation in circular and low-carbon building materials
- using planning rules to encourage smaller, simpler homes and smarter density
The report, produced in partnership with the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, Development WA, Landcom and technical partner TSA Riley, found that “building and furnishing a typical detached home results in 185 tonnes of upfront carbon emissions – equivalent to driving a petrol car around Australia 185 times.”
The report pushes to the top of the agenda a growing movement to make sure that government housing programs can unleash the kind of catalyst for change that occurred when the federal government, years ago, mandated greener buildings.
It kickstarted the green building movement, and a growing number of observers and commentators believe the government housing program can do the same for the residential sector.