While the Federal Government has shown itself to be hesitant about embracing action on Climate Change, State Governments around Australia are becoming much more proactive. This new found enthusiasm has perhaps been encouraged more by large corporations and the Paris Climate Change Accord, rather than by an environmental conscience, but whatever the driver, the result has been much more ambitious targets to reduce carbon emissions. In NSW, the BASIX targets will be made more stringent, with the energy reduction component increasing to 50%

In NSW, the BASIX targets will be made more stringent on July 1st, with the energy reduction increasing to 50% from 40% and thermal performance caps lowered across the board. While this has been in the pipeline since before 2012 and only brings NSW more in line with the rest of Australia, what is more encouraging, is the aspirational targets of net zero carbon emissions for buildings by 2050 and an ongoing pathway to reach that point.  Consistency and predictability is one element that businesses request from Governments so that they can plan with certainty. This has been sadly lacking, especially at a Federal level, from both sides of the political spectrum. This will have significant implications for design and especially for windows. Windows are the weakest element in the current building stock in NSW and it seems inevitable that double glazing will eventually become the default window type, as it has become in the southern states. Another initiative is the proposed energy efficiency disclosure for existing rental and sale, similar to the ACT and the NABERS scheme for commercial properties. Mooted as a voluntary scheme to be introduced in 2018 and if successful mandatory by 2020.

This increasing stringency will have significant implications for design and especially for windows. Windows are the weakest element in the current building stock in NSW and it seems inevitable that double glazing will eventually become the default window type, as it has become in the southern states. Another initiative is the proposed energy efficiency disclosure for existing rental and sale, similar to the ACT and the NABERS scheme for commercial properties. Mooted as a voluntary scheme to be introduced in 2018 and if successful mandatory by 2020.

Another initiative is a proposed energy efficiency disclosure initiative for existing residential dwellings, both at the point of rent and sale; this is similar to the ACT residential and the NABERS commercial properties schemes and which is common in the Northern Hemisphere. Initially mooted as a voluntary scheme to be introduced in 2018, if successful it may become mandatory in 2020. This promises to give a major boost to the energy efficiency of existing housing stock, and is especially good news for renters, who may, at last, begin to see benefits of increased energy efficiency that much of the rest of the population enjoys.