Cities of the Future: More Sustainable or More Congestion?

A new national framework for sustainable communities was released by the Green Building Council at the opening of the Green Cities 2010 conference, providing an independent, national language to guide the development of sustainable communities and precincts, while a warning came in the “Cities for the Future” report that by 2041 Australia’s cities will experience significant increases in traffic congestion, people will spend more time travelling and cars will generate more greenhouse gas emissions.

Green Cities (21 February 2010):  

The Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) has released a new national framework for sustainable communities at the opening of the Green Cities 2010 conference.

Launching the new Green Star – Communities framework, GBCA Chair Tony Arnel said that the framework would establish an independent, national language to guide the development of sustainability communities and precincts.

“The framework – and its guiding principles – provides a dual purpose. It is a national resource for those creating sustainable communities and it establishes the context for the GBCA’s Green Star – Communities tool, which will commence development in June.”

The national framework has been developed by the GBCA and its partner VicUrban, in collaboration with industry and government, and outlines five national principles for sustainable communities:

1. Create liveable communities

2. Provide opportunities for economic prosperity

3. Enhance environmental quality

4. Design great places

5. Promote good urban governance.

According to the GBCA’s Chief Executive, Romilly Madew, launching the framework at Green Cities 2010 reflects the evolution in the GBCA’s focus – from individual buildings to communities, precincts and cities themselves.

“The GBCA is confident that the construction and property industry now has sufficient momentum and interest to keep driving forward on both an individual building and community basis. While the GBCA expands its influence beyond the building envelope, Green Star continues to advance to ensure we have the right tools – and the right skills – to push the boundaries of best practice sustainability

benchmarks,” Ms Madew said.

The new framework complements the Australian Government’s new reforms which will require states and territories to develop capital city strategic plans by 2012 that meet national criteria for transport, housing, urban development and sustainability.

“This framework will provide valuable support for, and complement, the federal government’s sustainable cities agenda, and we expect everyone from planners and designers, through to builders and community neighbourhood groups will find the framework useful,” Mr Arnel concluded.

The GBCA’s Framework for Sustainable Communities has been developed with the support of principal project sponsor, Rock Development Group, together with other sponsors Brisbane City Council, Grocon, Lend Lease, Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority, Barangaroo Delivery Authority and Stockland

About the Green Building Council of Australia

The Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) is Australia’s leading authority on

green building. The GBCA was established in 2002 to develop a sustainable

property industry in Australia and drive the adoption of green building practices.

The GBCA has more than 785 member companies who work together to support

the Council and its activities. The GBCA promotes green building programs,

technologies, design practices and processes, and operates Australia’s only

national voluntary comprehensive environmental rating system for buildings -

Green Star.

Source: www.gbcaus.org

From Greener Cities (22 February 2010):

Prepare for more time in the car, new report finds

By 2041, Australia’s cities will experience significant increases in traffic congestion, people will spend more time travelling and cars will generate more greenhouse gas emissions, a new study has found.

Cities for the future: Baseline report and key issues, commissioned by the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC), has been released today at Green Cities 2010 in Melbourne.

The report points to a bleak future where transport-related greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) increase by almost 50 per cent and travel times increase by quarter.

“Under a business as usual approach, our urban centres will become more transport intensive and less transport efficient. Congestion will worsen, travel times become longer and transport-related GHG increase,” says ASBEC President, Tom Roper.

“The report is a clarion call to our federal, state and local governments that swift, decisive action is required to deliver better transport systems in Australia’s cities,” Mr Roper says.

According to Romilly Madew, Chief Executive of the Green Building Council Australia and task group chair, the analysis “clearly shows that, without action to change the way people live, work and play in our cities, our transport challenges will only get worse.”

Cities for the future is the first part of a four stage project which aims to explore and measure the links between greenhouse gas emissions from urban transport and land use within our cities.

“This report has found that the shape of our cities and the distribution of land uses can influence transport and therefore emissions. However, in raising sustainability and reducing emissions, we are likely to realise other tangible benefits, such as healthier communities, more accessible services, appropriate responses to demographic change, and more efficient use of land and infrastructure,” Ms Madew explains.

The study examined two cities, Greater Melbourne and South East Queensland, with key findings including:

 Urban centres will become more transport intensive and less transport efficient: The total amount of passenger travel and time spent travelling in cities is forecast to grow more than proportionally to population and employment.

 Transport is forecast to be slower: Average trip speed (kilometres per hour) is projected to decrease in both regions studied in the report by around 10 to 13 per cent by 2041.

 Transport outcomes are likely to deteriorate: people in both cities are projected to spend more time travelling per day and to travel longer distances. People in South East Queensland and Greater Melbourne will see their travel time increase by approximately 26 and 23 per cent, respectively, by 2041.Transport GHG emissions are projected to rise in the studied urban centres: Emissions in South East Queensland are projected to have the largest increase, rising by 75 per cent between 2006 and 2041.

 Land transport GHG emissions from within urban Australia are projected to rise substantially under the baseline scenario: Without additional policy interventions these emissions are projected to rise from an estimated 41 megatonnes per annum in 2006 to 60 megatonnes in 2041 – an increase of 46 per cent.

 The need for mobility and its costs will increase: Overall, the analysis shows that the need for mobility and its costs in terms of time and harmful impacts upon the environment will increase. These adverse changes are expected to outpace the growth in underlying population and represent a challenge for future transport networks.

Stage two of ASBEC’s study will bring together key experts and stakeholders in Australia to discuss the initial findings and develop alternative frameworks for land use, transport, environmental outcomes and community planning.

“From this, we will determine which alternative scenarios provide the best outcomes for Australia’s cities and the people who live in them,” Ms Madew explains.

“The challenge is to recast our vision for Australia’s cities and deliver sustainable, liveable places that service a diverse and growing population,” says Tom Roper.

“While the model is still being debated, the principles of the sustainable city of the future are clear: well planned, built and operated places that are sensitive to their environment, meet the diverse needs of existing and future residents, and contribute to a high quality of life.”

About ASBEC

The Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC) is the peak body of key organisations committed to a sustainable built environment in Australia. ASBEC members are industry and professional associations, non-government organisations and government observers who are involved in the planning, design, delivery and operation of our built environment, and are concerned with the sector’s social and environmental impacts.

ASBEC’s Cities for the Future task group comprises representatives from the Green Building Council Australia, Australian Institute of Architects, Australian Conservation Foundation, Property Council of Australia, the Planning Institute of Australia and the Association of Consulting Engineers Australia. Cities for the future: Baseline report and key issues was funded by task group members, the Built Environment Industry Innovation Council (co-funded by the Australian Government Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research), the ACT Planning and Land Authority and the Victorian Employers’ Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Source: www.asbec.asn.au