Funding still needed for sustainability rating scheme

By Jennifer Perry

Initiated in Queensland and to be developed in Australia, the AGIC’s rating scheme will benchmark, advance and promote the concepts and knowledge of sustainability throughout the design, construction and lifecycle of infrastructure projects.
“AGIC’s rating tool will contribute to the establishment of a nationally recognised common industry language and understanding based on the principles of economic, social and environmental sustainability,” AGIC’s chairman David Hood told Rail Express.
And while Hood believes that the Federal Government’s unprecedented investment in infrastructure projects highlights the need to implement a sustainability rating scheme, the AGIC requires Federal and State Government funding to make this happen.
“I am advised Infrastructure Australia (IA) has used rigorous protocols to determine the priorities for the recently announced national building infrastructure projects,” Hood said.
“It is imperative that the delivery of these infrastructure projects is managed within a sustainability framework.
“AGIC’s Rating Scheme will provide this framework when it is ready for implementation in mid-2010 in time to ensure that IA’s sustainability criteria are actually met.
“However we can’t complete the AGIC scheme without government funding support.”
AGIC put in a submission to IA, however it did not make a specific request for funding at that time.
“Professor Peter Newman who is an AGIC member as well as being on the IA board has supported our case, but while IA supports the AGIC scheme they aren’t able to provide funds; that is for the government to decide according to IA.”
AGIC has met with all of Australia's state infrastructure ministers and senior officials, however some states have said they will only financially support AGIC if the Federal Government jumps on board first.
“Despite strong, positive messages from government ministers and senior officials around Australia, securing funding for AGIC is proving difficult,” Hood said.
“Currently, dedicated programs, millions of dollars and hundreds of public servants are assigned to support green buildings however it appears that no programs, officials or funding seem to have been allocated to facilitate the delivery of sustainable infrastructure in Australia.
“To my mind that is a failure that needs to be fixed.”
Hood said that AGIC is requesting $1.25 million from State and Federal Governments - $130,000 from each state and $600,000 in federal funding.
“This will allow us to write the tool system, produce all the mechanisms to do with the ratings schemes as well as allowing us to conduct two series of pilot trials and workshops with industry,” Hood said.
“It’s not a significant ask considering the quantum of the proposed national infrastructure spend.”
AGIC’s sustainability rating categories for the Rating Scheme are currently under development, with AGIC recently announcing the successful tenders who will develop 23 of AGIC’s 27 categories.
Each category will cover the assessment methodologies, metrics and credit requirements in a specific sustainability field such as climate vulnerability, energy use, emissions, materials consumed, community amenity, safety and economic viability, etc.
Hood said that AGIC has already received in excess of $2 million in in-kind support from volunteers on top of $0.5 million in membership fees and sponsorship received over the last 18 months.
“Investment by governments in supporting the development of the AGIC scheme can leverage incredible industry effort that will transform our infrastructure delivery and operation ensuring sustainable outcomes,” he said.

For more information on the AGIC visit: www.agic.net.au