22/05/2007 - MEDIA RELEASE
THE NEW 5-STAR LEGISLATION.
New Victorian Government legislation introduced on July 1 this year requires that new dwellings in Victoria meet a minimum five-star energy efficiency rating.
Representing one of the biggest changes in home building and design in Australia in the past 25 years, the new Victorian Building Regulations legislation aims to cut greenhouse emissions and improve energy efficiency in homes.
Builders and designers will be required to comply with the mandatory five star energy efficiency rating, which is based on the amount of energy required to heat a dwelling in winter and cool it in summer.
Research conducted by the Sustainable Energy Authority in 2002, indicated that the typical new home built in Victoria achieves a relatively low energy rating of an average 2.2 stars. The Victorian Government estimates that the average saving in energy use in a five-star-rated home is $200 a year.
According to Sandy McPherson, Managing Director of MasterWall Pty Ltd, the best way to keep down the costs for 5-Star compliance is to integrate environmentally sustainable design issues into the design process – including the choice of materials used.
“Careful and clever choice of materials during the design and specification stages can ensure that the five-star rating is met from the start, without too much additional expense,” he said.
Victorian Building commissioner, Tony Arnel, estimates that the adoption of the 5-star energy-efficient standard will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 40,000 tonnes a year.
Over a decade (assuming 30,000 five-star houses were built each year) this equates to the removal of half-a-million cars from service or the planting of three million trees.
Mr Arnel said that while the five-star legislation is a step in the right direction, Victoria is still well behind the US and Europe – where new buildings with the equivalent of six- and seven-star energy ratings are now the norm.
For more information on the MasterWall ready to render polystyrene insulation panel, please contact MasterWall on 03 9553 3211
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