News in brief: June

New carbon credits to find WA biodiversity sanctuary

17 June: Carbon Neutral, a carbon offset accreditor, has developed a new Nature Credit scheme to help fund its proposed Perenjori Hills Sanctuary project in Western Australia.

The Sanctuary will protect 1054 hectares of natural bushland, which was declared a critically endangered ecological community home to many native plants and animals. The sanctuary will be in the Yarra Yarra biodiversity corridor, which is Australia’s largest biodiverse reforestation carbon sink.

The organisation says the scheme is targeted towards individuals, government and organisations looking to enhance the nation’s biodiversity and nature-positive future measurably, including regenerating land and protecting endangered species.

Citizen scientists have discovered the rare small marsupials, Wooley’s false antechinus and the long-tailed dunnart, in the proposed sanctuary – and were the only verifiable sightings of both creatures in the region.

Another survey of a small habitat in the reserve includes:

• 217 native flora
• 90 bird species
• 43 frog and reptile species
• 20 native mammal species
• 2 reptiles of conservation significance

“Ultra fast” fashion tax should be a sweeping trend

France became the first country in the world to tax ultra-fast fashion retailers such as Chinese manufacturers Temu and Shein. Both companies sell huge quantities of cheap and quickly made, shipped garments that use high volumes of polyester, a fossil fuel derived fabric consisting mostly of plastic. The French law taxes fast fashion garments €5 ($A9) each, and this will double by 2030.

The Australian Institute is pushing for more to be done after recommending that the Australian government follow the lead of France.

In research, released in May 2024, it said that Australian shoppers are contributing to fast fashion waste more than any other country and have surpassed Americans as the biggest textile consumers, per capita, on the planet. Most items end up in a landfill within 12 months of purchase.

What we’re reading

Janine Benyus, founder of Biomimicry 3.8, credited as the “godmother of biomimicry”, is completely uplifting to watch as she presents to the crowd at a recent Bioneers conference in the US on how humans can become a welcome species through the art of generous design that mimics the way nature works.

Benyus describes why nature, and the ecosystem are always generous and create abundance, where “one organism promotes another organism’s success and thriving”.

“Biodiversity begets biodiversity. It is stunning to watch and to be a part of. So, let’s remember that and then let’s try to do it consciously.”

There were two ways nature was creating abundance for all – through a culture of care and a culture of generosity.

An example was a tree island in the sub-alpine, which Benyus visited when she was stuck without water. It started from “a bird lands on a rock and drops a seed in its faeces,” and the tree then creates shelter for organisms from the harsh conditions of the sub-alpine.

Benyus adds that she has gone into the tree islands, which remain wet and mossy during August and September, “it’s unbelievable because they hold these snow drifts so beautifully”.

“At the base of these, I’ve found enough water to fill my water bottle. There’s no spring, it creates its own culture of care and generosity.”

“A biomimetic city would be functionally indistinguishable from the wildland next door.

She adds that between now and 2050, “we will welcome three billion people into cities, meaning we’re building right now the equivalent of a city for a million people every 5 days.”

“So, we have to get good at this.”

Cities need to provide a full suite of those gifts back to the wildland infrastructure, meaning the buildings and the sidewalks would do their part, too.

We aren’t getting the best EVs because we hate small cars

In a recent contribution to The Driven, Ed Lynch-Bell lamented Australia’s love for big cars during his visit to Japan, arguing that great and efficient EVs were small, compact, and built for Japan, where having space is a premium. Most advanced in the EV field in Australia is the Nissan Leaf, one of the only cars proven to use “vehicle to grid (V2G)” and “vehicle to house (V2H)” technology – allowing owners to use the car as a portable home battery storing energy during the day and selling it back during the night.

But its sibling, Nissan Sakura, likely won’t be available in Australia anytime soon. It’s got V2G, V2H and even “vehicle to load”, meaning it can power your fridge or rice cooker in the case of a disaster (handy for the earthquakes in Japan).

Lynch-Bell is urging the manufacturers to consider offering Australians the choice of small, light, efficient and practical EVs, arguing there is still an appetite for such EVs in Australia.

Jobs:

Emma Lucia has been appointed national sustainability leader and senior principal consultant at ACOR Consultants. Lucia was previously the head of growth at Bridgeford Group. Prior to that, she held a number of roles at Monash University for almost six years, including deputy director of development for STEM for almost two years.

Environmental accreditors, Eco-Markets Australia, has appointed Dr Goslik Schepers as its new chief executive, taking over the role from Maree Adshead.

Schepers comes from a background of medicine and science, and founded the company Integrated Gut Health, and remained a strategic advisor for the company for two years after stepping down as director. He was also a board member of advisory start up Kimaritec, as well was chairperson of Sicario Therapeutics. Schepers started his career as a biotechnology analyst and said he was excited to return to the environmental sector.

Adshead, who stepped down from the role after two years, will continue her other roles as the board chair of the Gladstone Ports Corporation as well as non executive director of logistics provider Orcoda Limited. The organisation says that under Adshead’s leadership, the Reef Credit Scheme expanded to double the number of ways people can get credits and prevented more than 60,000 kilograms of dissolved inorganic nitrogen from reaching the Great Barrier Reef. The organisation also launched Cassowary Credits, the country’s first biodiversity credit market focused on rainforest restoration.

Another solution for low carbon concrete – this time it’s common clay

12 June: The engineers at RMIT University have found a solution that may be able to  tackle  the problem of cement – a key ingredient of concrete that is responsible for 8 per cent of global CO2 emissions – by replacing it with common clay.

Traditionally, only high grade kaolin clay has been deemed suitable for cement replacement, but it is in increasingly high demand for ceramics, paints, cosmetics and paper. But the breakthrough is that cheaper and abundant illite clay can be mixed with low grade kaolin clay to make strong concrete.

The new process requires the two clays to be mixed at an equal ratio and then heated at 600 degrees Celsius, and processing the two together has led to improvements in the materials’ performance as well as lower fuel use.

According to project lead Dr Chamila Gunasekara, while low grade illite does not normally bind well with cement and water, the joint heating and co-calcination enhances the clay’s binding ability.

Six things about the capital markets for 2025

Property consultancy Knight Frank has released its new Capital View report, which revealed six trends that will play out over the rest of 2025, “as the market continues to recover.”

They are:
1.            Sydney and Brisbane are leading the recovery

2.            real estate portfolio weightings to rise

3.            shift in market conditions favours a tilt back to equity over debt strategies

4.            Australia is less exposed to tariff risks, but overseas investors may take a pause

5.            strong demand for retail, but sector specialists will dominate transactions

6.            election result will prompt further development activity in the living sectors

The report adds that capital markets are growing more confident “now that valuations have reached a cyclical low.”

Also notable is that build to rent is picking up in activity, with now 6900 student beds under construction and an estimated 8900 BTR apartments under construction nationally. A further 20,000 BTR apartments have been approved for development in the next five years.

MasterChef sponsors found to be gaslighting consumers

The Advertising regulator Ad Standards has found that Australian Gas Networks “overstated” the prospect of renewable gas being used in Australian kitchens in its promotions on Channel 10’s MasterChef Australia.

The company, part of Australia Gas Infrastructure Group), has now removed the television ad which said, “AGN, we’re working towards a future where renewable gas could one day be used in your kitchen.”

The ruling found that its concept of gas blended with biomethane, or renewable hydrogen, was “vague and does not make it clear that the plan to fully transition to renewable gas, sourced from hydrogen and biomethane, is not expected to be realised until 2050.”

Founder of Comms Declare, Belinda Noble said that while the group wasn’t behind this specific complaint, the company was a repeat greenwashing offender.

Real estate on the move

Big real estate agencies are on the move. CBRE has bought Burgess Rawson’s eastern seaboard office, which has a team of about 80 staff. Phil Rowland, CBRE chief executive for Australia and New Zealand, told The AFR that the investible property market will only expand as population grows.The purchase price has not been disclosed.Ingrid Filmer, chief executive at Burgess Rawson, will head CBRE’s metropolitan investments team, which manages investment and development properties under $35 million.

She said that the industry had “changed exponentially in terms of innovation and AI since she took over the helm 18 years ago and that was one of her reasons for accepting the CBRE offer. “And in another real estate services acquisition, Colliers has bought a controlling interest in Ethos Urban, which employs about 160 people in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. John Kenny, CEO of Colliers, Asia Pacific, said Ethos Urban has “accelerated Australia’s urbanisation and development over many years.”

Colliers Engineering & Design Australia has also bought Pritchard Francis Consulting Pty Limited, based in Western Australia, which has about 125 people employed in the company.

Farmers take the federal government to court over risks from the Narrabri gas pipeline

4 June: A group of farmers and community members are taking the federal government to court, arguing that Australia’s environment minister has wrongly assessed the impact of Santos’ Narrabri Lateral Pipeline on water and the environment.

The government ruled that the pipeline, an approved 50 to 60 kilometres underground gas transmission pipeline connecting Santos’ coal seam gas field to the east coast, “wasn’t integral” to the project and waved the project through without applying its “water trigger”.

This refers to a mechanism that would have put the project under environmental scrutiny due to risks to the Great Artesian Basin and Murray-Darling catchment.

The group, known as the Mullaley Gas & Pipeline Accord, says the project crosses with Gomeroi Country, productive farmland, private property, and sensitive areas of the Pilliga Forest and putting the project under controlled action” isn’t enough. The project must be legally required to assess for potential risks to the region’s rivers, creeks and groundwater.

PCA’s Guide to Office Building Quality needs an update

So, at the event we had on Tuesday – Show me the Green Money (brilliant by the way) John Goddard of Goddard & Co took the opportunity to ever so politely ask Frankie Muskovic who heads policy for the Property Council of Australia when the PCA’s Guide to Office Building Quality might ever be updated. The version still doing the rounds is circa 2019, and people use it to assign a quality metric to their assets, Goddard said.

Hmmmm, can do better PCA, surely.

In a letter to the property industry’s umbrella group (it must be said), Goddard pointed out the guide is a “highly respected document relied on by the property industry”.

It sets the standards and definitions for the Grades: Premium, A, B and C for both new and existing office buildings, he said.

“It needs to be updated as a matter of urgency, or we run the risk that definitions of quality will become blurred and misrepresented as they were prior to the PCA issuing their first Guide in 2006.

“The last PCA Guide to Office Building Quality was #3, released in 2019. With the changes in the industry, particularly in energy efficiency and ratings, it is so far out of date that it lags behind the standards expected in commercial buildings, even the National Construction Code. (Now we know this means trouble.)

• Goddard reminded the PCA of the kinds of people who use the guide:
• building owners to promote their buildings’ standards,  
• people who define standards for refurbishment and upgrade
• marketing, so that there is an understanding of the quality that is being offered
• In actual contractual documents relating to sales and leases  
• architects, engineers and project managers to set standards and as a reference when designing new buildings
• valuers

Muskovic, equally – and always – politely, responded to Goddard that this was indeed a frequent inquiry at the PCA and that it is on the list. Goodard suggested there may be more than one volunteer committee member happy to step up to the challenge.

Yerrabingin appointed to renew Redfern neighbourhood park

The City of Sydney has appointed Aboriginal-owned design practice Yerrabingin to lead the next stage of Sydney’s Redfern neighbourhood parks renewal.

The firm will use the concept designs the council developed in consultation with the local community and will enhance three pivotal community spaces: Redfern Community Centre open space, Yellomundee Park and Hugo Street reserve.

The design is said to will address urban heat, increase biodiversity to invite in birds, bees and other non-human kin as well as take in community preferences for a trio of green, cool spaces for recreation and play that celebrate the area’s Aboriginal culture and heritage.

International news: TOMRA, manufacturers of reverse vending machines, has unveiled its “return and earn” machines that collect reusable takeaway food packaging. The first global look at the new machine was available at the Reuse Economy Expo in Paris last week, after a successful trial in Aarhus, Denmark, which saw an 85 per cent return rate.

Consumers will benefit as well, earning €0.67 ($A1.18) per takeaway cup when returned, similar to the New South Wales 10 cents per PET bottle return and earn scheme.

What are we reading

A recent New Yorker article claims that violence and crime are rooted more in “place” rather than “people”, and crime would geographically concentrate in the same urban blocks every year.

Something that has always fascinated me about criminology is how much turmoil the field seems to be in. You would think that with phenomena such as crime and violence—which have been with us for as long as human beings have—we would have sorted things out by now. But we haven’t.

When, for example, David Weisburd and Lawrence Sherman made the observation a generation ago that crime was concentrated geographically—that a tiny percentage of urban blocks accounted for an overwhelming number of a city’s crimes, that those same few blocks remained violent year after year, and that this observation was true everywhere—their findings shocked many. People didn’t believe them at first. In the course of all the many centuries that researchers had studied and catalogued crime, it had never (until that moment) occurred to anyone to ask whether violence might be rooted in place, as much as (or more than) it is in people. The shock carried over into the hot-spots policing movement that grew out of the observation about crime’s concentration. Maybe you shouldn’t put the same number of cops on every corner of a city, the hot-spots advocates argued.

Read more in the New Yorker.