The 10 Sustainable Building categories

When submitting ESD information applicants are asked to address 10 core categories. Policy objectives, City Development Services expectations and resources are listed for each below.

Clause 22.02 Objective

The overarching objective is that development should achieve best practice in environmentally sustainable development from the design stage through to construction and operation.

Expectation

Building orientation and design are to optimise passive design.

Other Guidance

SDAPP fact sheet: 9.1 Melbourne climate
Your home technical manual
The peak brick industry body offers guidance on improved thermal design for dwellings.
The peak timber industry body offers guidance on improved thermal design for dwellings.
National Residential Efficiency Scorecard.

Clause 22.02 Objectives

To achieve a healthy indoor environment quality for the wellbeing of building occupants, including the provision of fresh air intake, cross ventilation, and natural daylight
To achieve thermal comfort levels with minimised need for mechanical heating, ventilation and cooling
To reduce indoor air pollutants by encouraging use of materials with low toxic chemicals
To reduce reliance on mechanical heating, ventilation, cooling and lighting systems
To minimise noise levels and noise transfer within and between buildings and associated external areas.

Clause 15.01-2S Strategies

Improve the energy performance of buildings through siting and design measures that encourage:
- passive design responses that minimise the need for heating, cooling and lighting.

Expectation

Adequate daylight to all habitable rooms including commercial spaces
Effective natural ventilation including openable windows in all habitable rooms
Residential: Windows are able to be locked open and have provision for insect screens, to encourage use
Residential: Northern glazing to allow winter, warming sun in living areas.

Other Guidance

Clause 22.02 Objectives

To improve the efficient use of energy, by ensuring development demonstrates design potential for environmentally sustainable design indicatives at the planning stage
To reduce total operating greenhouse gas emissions
To reduce energy peak demand through particular design measures (e.g. appropriate building orientation, shading to glazed surfaces, optimise glazing to exposed surfaces, space allocation for solar panels and external heating and cooling systems).

Clause 15.01-2S Strategies

Ensure a comprehensive site analysis forms the starting point of the design process and provides the basis for the consideration of height, scale, massing and energy performance of new development
Improve the energy performance of buildings through siting and design measures that encourage:

- Passive design responses that minimise the need for heating, cooling and lighting.

- On-site renewable energy generation and storage technology

- Use of low embodied energy materials.

Expectations

Thermal performance of buildings to have a minimum 10% improvement on the NCC requirement
Residential: provide preliminary NatHERS ratings indicating a 7 star minimum rating
Effective external shading to glazed doors and windows in habitable rooms

- Residential: glazing facing north and west, and over 2m² cumulative glazing in living spaces facing east

Energy efficient hot water, heating and cooling systems within one energy star rating of the best available (including pools and spa heating)
An external clotheslines per dwelling appropriate to hang bed linen
Limit operation of equipment to save energy where appropriate (e.g. sensors to common and external lighting, HVAC CO² monitoring, etc.)
Design roof orientation and size to accommodate solar panels.

Guidance

Brimbank ESD Guidance: Effective External Shading (PDF 868 KB)

Other Guidance

Clause 22.02 Objectives

To improve water efficiency
To reduce total operating potable water use
To encourage the collection and reuse of stormwater
To encourage the appropriate use of alternative water sources (e.g. greywater).

(See also the Integrated water management policy objectives listed under ‘Stormwater Management’ below).

Clause 15.01-2S Strategies

Encourage water efficiency and the use of rainwater, stormwater and recycled water.

Expectations

Best practice water efficiency water for fixtures, appliances and irrigation
Optimised rainwater capture for onsite use (e.g. toilet flushing, laundry and irrigation)
Minimise water use in testing fire safety systems (e.g. through capture for on-site reuse).

Guidance

Brimbank ESD guidance - Water sensitive urban design.

Other Guidance

Clause 22.02 Objectives

To reduce the impact of stormwater run-off
To improve the water quality of stormwater run-off
To achieve best practice stormwater quality outcomes
To incorporate the use of water sensitive urban design, including stormwater re-use.

Clause 53.18 Objectives for subdivision

To minimise damage to properties and inconvenience to the public from stormwater
To ensure that the street operates adequately during major storm events and provides for public safety
To minimise increases in stormwater and protect the environmental values and physical characteristics of receiving waters from degradation by stormwater
To encourage stormwater management that maximises the retention and reuse of stormwater
To encourage stormwater management that contributes to cooling, local habitat improvements and provision of attractive and enjoyable spaces.

Clause 53.18 Objectives for buildings and works

To encourage stormwater management that maximises the retention and reuse of stormwater
To encourage development that reduces the impact of stormwater on the drainage system and filters sediment and waste from stormwater prior to discharge from the site
To encourage stormwater management that contributes to cooling, local habitat improvements and provision of attractive and enjoyable spaces
To ensure that industrial and commercial chemical pollutants and other toxicants do not enter the stormwater system.

Clause 53.18 Objectives for site management during construction

To protect drainage infrastructure and receiving waters from sedimentation and contamination
To protect the site and surrounding area from environmental degradation prior to and during construction of subdivision works.

Clause 15.01-2S Strategies

Encourage water efficiency and the use of rainwater, stormwater and recycled water
Minimise stormwater discharge through site layout and landscaping measures that support on-site infiltration and stormwater reuse.

Expectations

Follow Brimbank ESD guidance for Water Sensitive Urban Design
Provide WSUD strategies and maintenance that endure for the life of the development.

Guidance

Brimbank ESD guidance - Water sensitive urban design.

Other Guidance

Clause 22.02 Objectives

The ESD Policy doesn’t have a heading for Materials, though see objectives for Waste Management:

To promote waste avoidance, reuse and recycling during the design, construction and operation stages of development
To ensure durability and long-term reusability of building materials.

Clause 15.01-2S Strategies

Encourage use of recycled and reusable materials in building construction and undertake adaptive reuse of buildings, where practical
Improve the energy performance of buildings through siting and design measures that encourage:

- Use of low embodied energy materials.

Expectations

Retain as much of the existing structure as possible.
Material choices with reduced environmental impact (e.g. reused, recycled content, low embodied energy, timber from sustainable certified plantations, concrete with cement substitution and/or recycled aggregate).

Other Guidance

Clause 22.02 Objectives

To ensure that the built environment is designed to promote the use of walking, cycling and public transport, in that order
To minimise car dependency
To promote the use of low emissions vehicle technologies and supporting infrastructure.

Clause 15.01-2S Strategies

Ensure development considers and responds to transport movement networks and provides safe access and egress for pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles.

Expectations

Provide undercover, secure, parking for occupant bicycles with access to an electrical outlet:

- Residential: bicycle per dwelling (no car movement or lifting)

- Non-Res: exceed bicycle parking required by Clause 52.34 by 50% (min. of 1) with 1 locker per occupant bicycle and a shower for every 10 bicycles*

*(less when remote from residential areas and public transport).

Provide infrastructure to support electric vehicles charging:

- Houses: Level 1 (15 amp. min.)

- Apartments: Level 2 (32 amp. min.)

- Non-res: Level 2 (32 amp. min.) 5% occupant vehicle car parking bays, with a minimum of 1.

Other Guidance

Clause 22.02 Objectives

To promote waste avoidance, reuse and recycling during the design, construction and operation stages of development
To ensure durability and long-term reusability of building materials
To ensure sufficient space is allocated for future change in waste management needs, including (where possible) composting and green waste facilities.

Clause 15.01-2S Strategies

Ensure the layout and design of development supports resource recovery, including separation, storage and collection of waste, mixed recycling, glass, organics and e-waste.

Expectations

Designate waste / recycling areas to allow for current and future expansion of waste streams. (See Cl. 15.01-2S of the Planning Scheme)
Provide a recycling target for demolition and construction waste to minimise landfill waste.

Other Guidance

Clause 22.02 Objectives

To protect and enhance biodiversity within the municipality
To provide environmentally sustainable landscapes and natural habitats, and minimise the urban heat island effect
To encourage the retention of significant trees
To encourage the planting of indigenous vegetation
To encourage the provision of space for productive gardens, particularly in larger residential developments.

Clause 15.01-2S Strategies

Ensure development provides landscaping that responds to its site context, enhances built form, creates safe and attractive spaces and supports cooling and greening of urban areas.

Expectations

Residential:

- provide a tap and drain on apartment balconies and taps to courtyards

- enhanced foliage to increase urban cooling.

Provide tree canopy to shade large paved areas (e.g. one tree every 6 parking bays)
Roofs to be medium or lighter coloured where visible, and as light as possible where not visible. (e.g. Solar Absorbance ≤ 60 where visible).

Guidance

Brimbank ESD Guidance - Roof Colour & Urban heat island effect.

Other Guidance

Construction and building management

Clause 22.02 Objectives

The ESD Policy doesn’t have a heading for Construction and Building Management, though states:

The development should achieve best practice in environmentally sustainable development from the design stage through to construction and operation.

Expectations

Provide a Builder’s Users Guide for complex or multi-tenanted buildings.

Other Guidance

SDAPP fact sheet: 10.0 Construction & Building Management.

Clause 22.02

It is policy to ensure innovative technology, design and processes positively influence the sustainability of all development.

Expectations

Innovative solutions for complex and/or larger scale development.

Other Guidance

Additional resources

Resources

There is a wide range of resources available online from government and non-government organisations. This includes general ESD guidance at a national level, more specific information for Victoria, and information focused on key ESD categories.

Need assistance

Please email the Brimbank ESD Officer if you would like assistance.

Glossary of terms

BAU – Business-as-Usual refers to typical rather than ‘best practice’ building design and construction
BESS - The Built Environment Sustainability Scorecard is a green building rating tool
BUG – A Building User Guide is written to inform occupants of a building’s ESD features, and how these are best operated to improve environmental performance
ESD - Environmentally Sustainable Design (ESD) aims to improve the health and comfort of building occupants while reducing the negative environmental impacts of a development
GBCA - Green Building Council of Australia is the peak NGO focused on the sustainable transformation of the Australian built environment
LPD - Legal point of discharge is the Council designated stormwater drainage point for a particular site
MUSIC – Model for Urban Stormwater Improvement Conceptualisation is a stormwater modelling tool
NATHERS - The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme is a thermal performance rating tool for dwellings
NCC – The National Construction Code is the building code shared by all Australian states and territories.
OSD - On-Site Detention provides for the slow release of stormwater to avoid overloading the drainage system when it rains
SDA - Sustainable Design Assessment is an ESD report for smaller projects
SDAPP - Sustainable Design Assessment in the Planning Process is the framework for assessing the ESD credentials of proposed development.
SMP - Sustainable design management plan is an ESD report for larger projects
STORM - Stormwater Treatment Objective - Relative Measure is a stormwater modelling tool
WSUD - Water Sensitive Urban Design improves urban design to improve the impact of stormwater runoff from development.

Last updated: 26 March 2024 - 9:45am

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