Project teams will soon have the chance to use the Green Star Buildings tool, but there’s still time to submit a project using Green Star – Design & As Built.
When the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) launched the tool in 2020, it came with a transition period during which applicants could still register their projects using either Green Star – Design & As Built or Green Star Buildings.
This transition period is coming to an end on 17 December so project stakeholders intending to use Green Star – Design & Built on an upcoming build must execute their project’s Certification Agreement by this date.
There is also an option for Green Star – Design & As Built projects to use some Green Star Buildings credits, or to completely upgrade to the new system.
To better respond to global megatrends and rise to emerging challenges with healthy, resilient buildings, after 17 December all new projects will need to be registered under Green Star Buildings.
Professionals working on Green Star projects know that factoring in sustainability early lowers costs and maximises outcomes. The submission planner evolves this thinking, helping embed the ambitions from the design stage by mapping out each credit to its delivery stage and linking to the evidence required for submission.
All Green Star Buildings are required to meet 10 minimum expectations while the 6 Star Green Star certification goes further, setting a new climate positive pathway that requires projects to be fossil fuel free, highly efficient, powered by renewables and built with low carbon materials.
Over time, this requirement will also apply to registered projects seeking 5- and 4-Star ratings, so all new buildings are climate positive by 2030 however, the climate positive pathway can be used voluntarily for 4 and 5 stars now, allowing teams to respond to the climate challenge sooner and be recognised for it.
GBCA has developed a suite of resources to help in the transition by digitising the rating tools. The first version of Green Star Online serves as the online submission system for Green Star Buildings and includes:
- Ability to develop a scorecard for Green Star Buildings based on targeted credits;
- Provision of digital submission forms (replacing submission templates);
- Ability to upload and manage documentation as required in the submission guidelines;
- Facilitate the management of project team members, by assigning tasks and milestones;
- Calculators; and
- Reporting capabilities through Power BI dashboards.