Find out more about sustainable housing design as developed at the prize winning 'The Cape' project at Cape Patterson in this podcast.featuring Jess Cuman from Adapt Design.  (There's a 10 minute or so 'chatty introduction', so be patient at the beginning.)   

The Ecological, Sustainable Planning and Development group has not had a formal meeting since the Review, however there has been some email discussion of ESD and Subdivision Development Planning.

I followed up with Council Environmental Officer Nathan Gasperoni the offer to arrange a
Planning Meeting with Developers to consider passive solar design principles. After his
discussions with Council Planning people Nathan reported at a meeting with him and Bronwyn
Bishop yesterday that Planning is reluctant to pursue this.

This reminds me of the paper I am reading on ESD in Australia, ‘Ecologically Sustainable
Development’: Success in Principle, Failure in Policy, Still in Prospect'. I wonder if we need a
Target for ESD such as the Ecological Footprint, which shows that we are currently overshooting
the carrying capacity of the planet. This year, Earth Overshoot Day fell on July 28.

See my article 'Ecological Sustainable Development and Planning' in BSFG Newsletter 33, August 2022 (previous post).

Peter Maddock
29/9/2022

I have been researching Ecological Sustainable Development since the formation of our BSFG Review Group and found a September 2018 PhD Thesis by Peter Bennet, 'Australia’s National Approach to ‘Ecologically Sustainable Development’: Success in Principle, Failure in Policy, Still in Prospect', https://openresearch-repository.anu.edu.au/ handle/1885/156800.

‘The thesis concludes that, properly understood and incorporated into an appropriate policy framework, ESD is a coherent and viable concept, one which remains in prospect when and if society returns the problem of general environmental decline to the top of the public policy agenda.”

Ecologically Sustainable Development is an Australian approach to Sustainable Development. I am up to page 128 of 476!

Further ESD research has led me to the Victorian Government's Environmentally Sustainable Development of Buildings and Subdivisions, https://www.planning.vic.gov.au/policy-and-strategy/environmentally-sustainable-development-of-buildingsand-subdivisions where there is a download for a roadmap for Victoria’s planning system which looks at ESD in many areas related to sustainable buildings and subdivisions.

One issue we are often concerned about in new subdivisions is the apparent lack of consideration of house orientation. This roadmap outlines a program to introduce new ESD planning policies and standards that will help, for instance improve building energy efficiency and support the transition to a low emission future by ensuring buildings are sited and orientated to optimise energy efficiency and encourage the use of renewable energy.

The Council Alliance for a Sustainable Built Environment, CASBE, also has resources available for their related Sustainable Subdivisions Framework,  www.casbe.org.au/resources/sustainablesubdivisions-resources/ 

ESD assessment tools available include Green Star developed by the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA), EnviroDevelopment developed by the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA), and BESS the Built Environment Sustainability Scorecard developed by CASBE. BESS is the only dedicated tool in Victoria for assessing sustainable design at the planning permit stage. CASBE membership is open to all Victorian councils.

My initial search about Ecological SD has led me to finding the encouraging development of Planning for Environmental Sustainable Development in Victorian subdivisions. I will continue to investigate Peter Bennet's thesis on Ecological Sustainable Development as the Ecological Footprint by the Footprint Network indicates globally we are exceeding the biocapacity of the planet.

This year, Earth Overshoot Day fell on July 28. A good reason for emphasising the Ecological in Sustainable Development.

Peter Maddock,
​Ecological Sustainable Planning and Development and Retrofits Group

Ecologically Sustainable Development may be a consideration in Planning Developments however it appears not be a major factor in Planning Subdivisions.  We see this by the absence of passive orientation in Subdivisions.

Our group has yet to have a formal meeting however we have had email contact regarding goals and actions.  One of our members with planning experience is away now and we hope to meet on his return.  Another member has alerted us to the Sustainable Subdivisions Framework which is an initiative of the Council Alliance for a Sustainable Built Environment (CASBE).
​
At the Council Office on Wednesday July 27, I met Bronwyn Chapman and the Environmental Sustainability Officer Nathan Gasperoni.  We discussed the new BSFG Review groups.  As for our group Bronwyn thought the current Planning Scheme enabled developers to consider and incorporate passive design in new subdivisions.  She also felt there may be an opportunity to have a Briefing for Developers about sustainable subdivisions.  This could be a joint briefing with BSFG and with Council funding.  We also briefly discussed Retrofits and Council may have looked at retrofitting buildings and have a tool, Combat, which might be of interest to us.

I mentioned my interest in Council emissions following the BSFG Climate Emergency Petition presentation to Council on Wednesday September 29th, 2021.  At the meeting Council was to have available an emissions report ready for the review of the Climate Adaptation Strategy which is now due.  I recently found that Council have been involved in evaluating Emissions Assessment tools with Strathbogie, Indigo and Towong Shire Councils.  Bronwyn suggested I write to the Council asking for a Council emissions report.

Bronwyn suggested a way for BSFG to work with Council could be to have regular meetings with her and Nathan.  Council funding could also be available for BSFG projects however these could only be considered for the 2023 Council Budget.  There are also the annual Community Grants and the monthly Sponsorship Grants to support BSFG activities,  https://www.benalla.vic.gov.au/Your-Community/Annual-Grants-Program.

Bronwyn also suggested BSFG report to Council regularly about BSFG activities, such as the recent well attended Landlords Solar Forum.


Peter Maddock

**The position of retrofitting in terms of the action groups may better fit/has fitted in the past with Renewable Energy Benalla under the 'Reduce 1/3 goal'.

Peter and Trish, members of the new Ecological Sustainable Planning, Development and Retrofits action group completed this training recently!