Australia is leading the way in the green building sector, with further growth predicted over the next three years, according to a new global report.
Released by Dodge Data and Analytics, ‘The World Green Building Trends 2018 SmartMarket Report found that support for the green building sector is growing globally.
The firm surveyed over 2000 industry stakeholders across 86 countries, including architects, engineers, contractors, owners, consultants and investors, discovering that organisations across the construction industry are shifting towards more sustainable materials and practices.
The report noted that third-party certification systems (such as the Green Building Council of Australia’s (GBCA) Green Star rating system) were being used to make buildings perform more efficiently, yielding both commercial and environmental gains.
“The drivers for green building in Australia are noted as market demand, client demand and improving occupant health and well-being,” the report states, “Australia is also notably higher than the global average for each of these factors, demonstrating the sway they have on encouraging the green building market in this country.”
According to the report, 94 per cent of Australian respondents are involved in green building projects, with the majority (67 per cent) of respondents reporting at least a moderate level of green activity.
Notably, 46 per cent of those surveyed reported more than 60 per cent of their projects were in the green building space, the highest of any country, and 64 per cent expected that by 2021 the majority of their work would be in green building.
GBCA Chief Executive Officer Romilly Madew said the results were a testament to the continued commitment and leadership of the Australian property sector to sustainably transform the built environment.
“Australia’s green building sector is continuing to innovate and is leading the world,” Ms Madew said.
“Understandably, commercial property continues to perform strongly in the adoption of green building in Australia driven by world-leading investor and market demand. 37 per cent of Australia’s office space is now Green Star certified.”
“As green building expands we see huge growth opportunities in social infrastructure, led through government procurement, and in the residential sector,” she said.
A free copy of the ‘World Green Building Trends 2018 SmartMarket Report’, can be found here.