BROOKFIELD Multiplex’s general manager for sustainability, safety and health, Dr Dennis Else, has been elected to the board of the newly launched Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) for Low Carbon Living based at the University of New South Wales (UNSW).
The CRC comprises a national consortium of 45 participants including universities, government and construction and building industries and $28 million has been granted by the Federal Government towards the $100 million cost to establish the CRC.
Dr Else said the CRC for Low Carbon Living is tackling the best way to reduce carbon emissions in Australia.
“Previous reports have shown that tackling the built environment is the best and most cost effective way of reducing emissions in both new builds and also retrofits of all buildings from the commercial sector right through to the residential sector.
“Brookfield Multiplex is committed to constructing high performance buildings that maximise value for occupants and the surrounding community whilst minimising the impact on our environment. Our involvement in this venture will ensure that we and the building industry as a whole can have as positive an impact as possible on future generations,” he added.
Dr Else’s role will be to represent the industry segment of the CRC and, as Chair of the Research Advisory Committee, to lead a distinguished independent panel of researchers who will vet the quality of all research programs.
The CRC is a collaboration of key researchers from the UNSW, University of Melbourne, Curtin University in WA, the University of SA and CSIRO and is coordinated from the UNSW Tyree Energy Technologies building in Kensington that was constructed by Brookfield Multiplex and was completed earlier this year.
The CRC aims to help cut Australia’s residential and commercial carbon emissions by an extra 10 mega tonnes per year by 2020, which is the environmental equivalent of taking 2.3 million cars off the road each year. It plans to do that by developing low carbon building construction materials and increasing the evidence base for government policy and planning, among other measures. Australia has set greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets of 25 per cent by 2020 and 80% by 2050 compared with 2000 levels.
When the 2020 carbon reduction targets are met, the CRC will have delivered a direct benefit of $250 million per year to the economy, while reducing risk to the $150 billion per year construction industry as it adjusts to a carbon-constrained economy.
“The reduced cost of achieving national greenhouse gas emissions targets will cut the cost of Australia’s carbon reduction obligations by around $70 billion by 2040, all without a reduction of living standards,” CRC’s CEO UNSW Professor Deo Prasad said.
Some of the 15 research projects already underway at the CRC include developing next-generation building products including roofing materials that double as solar panels and can also moderate the temperature of buildings; exploring how low carbon concretes incorporating fly ash can be used within existing standards; zero carbon housing through the integration of design and technical features with new materials and technologies; and scoping studies for the design, creation and evaluation of entire low-carbon precincts and suburbs.
Property Review