Bushmead Case Study
Responding to climate change is one of the biggest challenges affecting our society globally, and every industry across the planet has a role to play in addressing the impacts of their operations.
In Australia, the property development industry is the fourth biggest carbon emissions producer and it is, therefore, no surprise that the industry has an increased focus on environmental performance as they create places for people to live, work and enjoy for many years to come.
Australian developers are starting to build their capability to better measure greenhouse gas emissions, working together to not only account for their carbon impact, but also transition toward more efficient buildings and renewable energy sources.
The desire to limit environmental impacts is not only driven by an aspiration to create future-focused communities, but also by increasing expectations from investors, industry and the wider community.
With the Australian Government seeking to introduce standardised, internationally aligned reporting requirements for climate related disclosures, companies will be required to report annually on generated greenhouse gas emissions and other climate-related impacts.
Cedar Woods is actively implementing several initiatives to understand and reduce its carbon impact. As part of this, the company has partnered with the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA WA) and DevelopmentWA to commission a research project with Cerclos to complete a Life Cycle Carbon Assessment Study of three land developments targeting high levels of sustainability.
Cedar Woods Director Sustainability and Planning, Karl White, said the research report is an important first step in building our capacity to measure our carbon footprint when it comes to project emissions.
“The study firmly aligns with our ESG principles and guiding value, which is that we are always thinking about tomorrow,” he said.
“We are committed to understanding and improving the environmental footprint of different development types and have a societal responsibility to ensure the work we do has a positive impact for future generations.”
Landmark study sets the standard
We hope that the pioneer study will set the benchmark for the wider industry.
The study focused on the Global Warming Potential (GWP) impacts of property developments using a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) – the industry standard for measuring environmental impacts arising from the construction and operations of buildings and infrastructure.
Cerclos, global leaders in Life Cycle Assessment Software, profiled and measured the environmental performance of infrastructure works for three industry-leading land developments - Cedar Wood’s Bushmead Estate, Development WA’s Orion Industrial Park and One Five Hamilton Hill.
Karl said that by commissioning the report, Cedar Woods hopes to help boost awareness of the new standards and a create a focus on measuring and reducing carbon impact within the industry.
“We know in future years we will be required to report annually on our generated greenhouse gas emissions and other climate-related impacts on the environment – this report helps us stay ahead of the curve,” he said.
“We take sustainability reporting as seriously as we do our financial reporting – this report helps us proactively address future reporting requirements as we build our capacity to both monitor and increase the sustainability of our developments.
“We hope that other developers will be able to refer to this study as guidance as they also commit to greenhouse gas emission targets and conform to future reporting standards.”
Bushmead – A Greenfield Exemplar
The study modelled the design life for the three innovative developments and compared the life cycle performance of the chosen projects to other models.
Bushmead Estate, the only greenfield estate to be featured in the study, represents an industry benchmark as one of Cedar Woods’ most awarded developments for environmental excellence.
Designed as an environmentally sustainable community, Bushmead is located 16 kilometres from the Perth CBD. It also includes 185 hectares of land that is being preserved as natural bushland, minimising newly landscaped areas and water use for irrigation.
Karl said Bushmead was chosen as the greenfield development for the study as sustainability was integral to the design philosophy for the community.
“Bushmead was a great fit for this study, having been recognised as an EnviroDevelopment project, and receiving recognition for numerous excellence awards from the Urban Development Institute of Australia, as well as an award for parks and open space from the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects and a Waterwise Development Award from the Water Corporation,” he said.
“From the beginning we maintained our commitment to creating a truly sustainable suburb, centred around the unique retained bushland at Bushmead.”
The results
The report showed that the Global Warming Potential (GWP) impact of the construction phase of property development projects is the largest contributor to the life cycle impact.
There are significant opportunities identified for improvement for the industry across five key areas: minimising imported fill and earth movement; landscaping; electrification of construction and freight; utilising low impact material; and solar streetlights.
The analysis of Bushmead in the report showed strong examples of how the impact of construction can be limited in greenfield developments.
“Bushmead is a great example of our commitment to driving change and ensuring the future wellbeing of all our residents, both now and into the future,” Karl said.
“The case study of Bushmead in the report demonstrates that the extensive measures we have taken to minimise environmental impact really do work.”
Examples in the case study include Bushmead’s minimisation of landscaped areas, with the development retaining large areas of natural bushland, helping to reduce the need for irrigation and having a significant impact on biodiversity.
The use of low impact materials such as 100 per cent recycled road base resulted in the highest carbon saving at Bushmead, while the use of plastic materials for drainage, rather than traditional concrete, also resulted in less carbon emissions.
Bushmead was designed to reduce the import fill required. The products used represented nearly 24 per cent of the life cycle carbon, with their transport to site representing a further 23 per cent – demonstrating the importance of reduction.
Bushmead’s approach of sand mining on site to reduce external fill as well as earth movements, was another highlighted example of minimising impact.
Other environmental initiatives implemented at Bushmead that reduced greenhouse gas emissions included the planting of 500,000 new trees, inclusion of waterwise gardens and a 3,500L rainwater tank provided to every home.
The journey to Net Zero
As companies like Cedar Woods look to the future, prioritising environmental responsibility will continue to be a key objective.
Cedar Woods’ Eglinton Village is further demonstration of the company’s future focus and how it is putting sustainability into action. In a joint initiative with independent power producer Zenith Energy, Cedar Woods recently launched WA’s first-ever community energy sharing network at Eglinton Village.
Eglinton Village residents have the unique opportunity to benefit from long-term energy savings while reducing their environmental footprint, through the initiative called ‘Eve’, which gives participating homes at least 50 per cent renewable energy and a 20% saving on their energy use.*
Karl said initiatives such as Eve and the Life Cycle Carbon research report are part of the journey for Cedar Woods.
The final research report has been endorsed by the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) and is now available to all members.
“The plan is to expand the Life Cycle Carbon Assessment Study and feature more than three examples across two developers,” Karl said.
“We also want to take these valuable case studies in the report and eventually produce a template and user-friendly tool that other developers can use for reporting.”
For more information on Cedar Woods’ commitment to sustainability, view the recently released 2023 Climate and ESG reports here.
