Australia has awarded the first official National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERS) Embodied Carbon rating to an industrial warehouse in Kemps Creek, New South Wales.
Joint venture partners Frasers Property Industrial and Aware Real Estate, alongside Mainbrace Constructions, used an innovative approach to drive down embodied carbon and increase transparency.
They selected materials with Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), which disclose the emissions created in making each product.
They also collected an industry-leading level of on-site construction data to track all materials delivered and provide a clear picture of the building’s true carbon footprint.
The new NABERS rating measures the “hidden emissions” created during construction, from manufacturing building materials to transport, site energy use and waste.
A NABERS embodied carbon rating gives builders and developers independently verified proof that their projects have reduced their construction emissions.
The rating also strengthens credibility with investors and provides a clear competitive advantage in tenders and leasing, particularly as government and corporate clients increasingly seek low-carbon buildings.
NABERS Director Magali Wardle said: “Embodied carbon is the next frontier when it comes to reducing carbon emissions in buildings.
“The team at Frasers Property Industrial and Mainbrace has set a great example by collecting an exceptional level of construction data and choosing materials backed by Environmental Product Declarations.”
Frasers Property Industrial Manager Director Australia Ian Barter expressed his pride in his teams and partners in receiving the rating.
“At Frasers Property Industrial, we’ve always backed ourselves to lead the sector on sustainability and innovation, and becoming the first industrial developer in Australia to secure a NABERS embodied carbon rating really reinforces that ambition.”