“I think it’s justified that the built environment moves much more quickly. Rather than casting out long-term scenarios, for many sectors of the economy, the question should be, why not net-zero today? If not, why not?”, argues Bruce Precious in today’s episode, which discusses the question of how the built environment can achieve net-zero emissions.

The built environment is a significant contributor to the global carbon footprint. It accounts for approximately 40% of our emissions. And in Australia, 50% of electricity consumed is in buildings, such as homes, offices, warehouses, shopping centres, or hospitals. On top of that, there are emissions generated through raw materials that go to construct these buildings.

In this episode, Bruce and Barbara discuss how the built environment causes emissions, how to reduce them, NABERS and Green Star ratings for buildings, the use of carbon offsets to reach carbon neutrality and how the built environment can adapt to the physical impacts of climate change.

To view or download this episode’s transcript, please click here.

About Bruce Precious

Bruce is widely respected for his achievements in the built environment sector to transform how the property industry responds to the most significant sustainability challenges. Bruce has seen and championed the evolution of green building ratings right from their inception in the mid-1990s to where they are today.

In 2019, Bruce was awarded the NSW Green Globes Lifetime Achievement Award and, in 2020, was named a Green Star Champion by the Green Building Council of Australia.

With a career spanning over 30 years, he is now Principal Consultant at Six Capitals Consulting. Before this role, he was GPT’s National Manager – Sustainability and Property Services.

If you want to get in touch with Bruce, you can email him at bruce.precious@gmail.com or connect with him on LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/preciousbruce

Links to documents mentioned in the podcast

• City of Sydney: Net zero by 2035 – https://news.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/articles/net-zero-by-2035-city-sydney-bold-new-plan
• Ambitious climate action commitments by states, local governments and communities – Sep 2020 [with video] – https://100percentrenewables.com.au/ambitious-climate-action-commitments-local-governments-states/
• NABERS – https://www.nabers.gov.au/
• NABERS Co-Assess for Business – https://www.nabers.gov.au/ratings/spaces-we-rate/co-assess-business
• Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) – https://new.gbca.org.au/
• Better Business Partnership (BBP) – https://www.bbp.org.au/
• Property Council of Australia – https://www.propertycouncil.com.au/
• Property Council of Australia – A Guide to Office Building Quality (Guide)
• The Oxford Offsetting Principles – https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2020-09-29-oxford-launches-new-principles-credible-carbon-offsetting
• GreenPower for Businesses Guide – https://www.greenpower.gov.au/documents/greenpower-businesses-guide
• NSW Waste and Sustainable Materials Strategy 2041 – https://www.dpie.nsw.gov.au/our-work/environment-energy-and-science/waste-and-sustainable-materials-strategy
• RE100 – https://www.there100.org/
• GHG Protocol Scope 3 Calculation Guidance – https://ghgprotocol.org/scope-3-technical-calculation-guidance
• Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TFCD) – https://www.fsb-tcfd.org/
• BBP Demand Management Planner –https://www.betterbuildingspartnership.com.au/resource/bbp-demand-management-planner/

While it was not mentioned in the podcast, we’d also like to link to the MECLA, the ‘Materials and Embodied Carbon Leader’s Alliance’ – https://www.wwf.org.au/what-we-do/climate/mecla

About 100% Renewables:

100% Renewables is a boutique consultancy founded in 2015. We help large energy-using businesses, and government organisations make a meaningful difference by responding to climate change while driving financial performance. We are known for developing climate action strategies that are pragmatic, are based on sound business cases, and have organisational buy-in.

Connect with 100% Renewables:

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