Industry’s climate call

Industry groups are calling on the state government to support the increased energy efficiency requirements for new homes, as part of the National Construction Code.

Australian Institute of Architects, Engineers Australia, WA Local Government Association and WA Council of Social Services are among the eight Western Australian signatories on a letter to Deputy Premier Roger Cook urging him to support the changes.

Proposed amendments to the National Construction Code include raising the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme rating from six to seven stars, which measures the thermal performance of homes.

Additionally, it recommends introducing an energy budget that covers all the appliances in a home.

In a letter to Mr Cook, who will vote on the proposed changes at a building ministers meeting on August 26, the group stated that making homes more energy efficient would carry several long-term benefits.

“It will lead to significant and ongoing energy bill savings for households, better health outcomes and greater resilience to weather extremes,” the letter read.

“The changes will also cut out emissions and reduce the need to invest in expensive generation and network augmentation. It will help make the transition to renewable energy faster and cheaper.”

Department of Industry Science and Resources figures show residential buildings account for about 24 per cent of overall electricity use and 12 per cent of carbon emissions globally.

“Energy efficiency in residential buildings can have a significant impact on WA’s economy while also improving reliability of the WA energy grid,” the letter continued.

This coincided with a national push from more than 100 domestic organisations including the Property Council of Australia to the state, territory and Federal governments to mandate increased energy efficiency for new homes.

A spokesperson for Commerce Minister Roger Cook told Business news “the Minister welcomes the contribution from the industry organisations”.