Public awareness of “green” and “energy efficient” residential property : an empirical survey based on data from New Zealand

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the buyer awareness and acceptance of environmental and energy efficiency measures in the New Zealand residential property markets. This study aims to provide a greater understanding of consumer behaviour in the residential property market in relation to green housing issues ---------- Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on an extensive survey of Christchurch real estate offices and was designed to gather data on the factors that were considered important by buyers in the residential property market. The survey was designed to allow these factors to be analysed on a socio-economic basis and to compare buyer behaviour based on property values. ---------- Findings – The results show that regardless of income levels, buyers still consider that the most important factor in the house purchase decision is the location of the property and price. Although the awareness of green housing issues and energy efficiency in housing is growing in the residential property market, it is only a major consideration for young and older buyers in the high income brackets and is only of some importance for all other buyer sectors of the residential property market. Many of the voluntary measures introduced by Governments to improve the energy efficiency of residential housing are still not considered important by buyers, indicating that a more mandatory approach may have to be undertaken to improve energy efficiency in the established housing market, as these measures are not valued by the buyer. ---------- Originality/value – The paper confirms the variations in real estate buyer behaviour across the full range of residential property markets and the acceptance and awareness of green housing issues and measures. These results would be applicable to most established and transparent residential property markets.

An experimental and computational investigation of performance of Green Gully for reusing stormwater

A new stormwater quality improvement device (SQID) called ‘Green Gully’ has been designed and developed in this study with an aim to re-using stormwater for irrigating plants and trees. The main purpose of the Green Gully is to collect road runoff/stormwater, make it suitable for irrigation and provide an automated network system for watering roadside plants and irrigational areas. This paper presents the design and development of Green Gully along with experimental and computational investigations of the performance of Green Gully. Performance (in the form of efficiency, i.e. the percentage of water flow through the gully grate) was experimentally determined using a gully model in the laboratory first, then a three dimensional numerical model was developed and simulated to predict the efficiency of Green Gully as a function of flow rate. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code FLUENT was used for the simulation. GAMBIT was used for geometry creation and mesh generation. Experimental and simulation results are discussed and compared in this paper. The predicted efficiency was compared with the laboratory measured efficiency. It was found that the simulated results are in good agreement with the experimental results.

Influences of green star rating tool on HVAC system design

Buildings are one of the most significant infrastructures in modern societies. The construction and operation of modern buildings consume a considerable amount of energy and materials, therefore contribute significantly to the climate change process. In order to reduce the environmental impact of buildings, various green building rating tools have been developed. In this paper, energy uses of the building sector in Australia and over the world are first reviewed. This is then followed by discussions on the development and scopes of various green building rating tools, with a particular focus on the Green Star rating scheme developed in Australia. It is shown that Green Star has significant implications on almost every aspect of the design of HVAC systems, including the selection of air handling and distribution systems, fluid handling systems, refrigeration systems, heat rejection systems and building control systems.

Investigation of cooling energy performance of commercial building in sub-tropical climate through the application of green roof and living wall

This paper investigates cooling energy performance of commercial building before and after green roof and living wall application based on integrated building heat gain model developed from Overall Thermal Transfer Value (OTTV) of building wall and steady state heat transfer process of roof in sub-tropical climate. Using the modelled equation and eQUEST energy simulation tool, commercial building envelope parameters and relevant heat gain parameters have been accumulated to analyse the heat gain and cooling energy consumption of commercial building. Real life commercial building envelope and air-conditioned load data for the sub-tropical climate zone have been collected and compared with the modelled analysis. Relevant temperature data required for living wall and green roof analysis have been collected from experimental setup comprised of both green roof and west facing living wall. Then, Commercial building heat flux and cooling energy performance before and after green roof and living wall application have been scrutinized.

Evaluation of green public road procurement in Australia : current practices and gaps to fill

Public road authorities have a key responsibility in driving initiatives for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the road construction project lifecycle. A coherent and efficient chain of procurement processes and methods is needed to convert green policies into tangible actions that capture the potential for GHG reduction. Yet, many infrastructure clients lack developed methodologies regarding green procurement practices. Designing more efficient solutions for green procurement requires an evaluation of the current initiatives and stages of development. A mapping of the current GHG reduction initiatives in Australian public road procurement is presented in this paper. The study includes the five largest Australian state road authorities, which cover 94% of the total 817,089 km of Australian main roads (not local) and account for 96% of the total A$13 billion annual major road construction and maintenance expenditure. The state road authorities’ green procurement processes and tools are evaluated based on interviews and a review of documents. Altogether 12 people, comprising 1-3 people of each organisation, participated in the interviews and provided documents. An evaluation matrix was developed for mapping the findings across the lifecycle of road construction project delivery. The results show how Australian state road authorities drive decisions with an impact on GHG emissions on the strategic planning phase, project development phase, and project implementation phase. The road authorities demonstrate varying levels of advancement in their green procurement methodologies. Six major gaps in the current green procurement processes are identified and, respectively, six recommendations for future research and development are suggested. The greatest gaps remain in the project development phase, which has a critical role in fixing the project (GHG reduction) goals, identifying risks and opportunities, and selecting the contractor to deliver the project. Specifically, the role of mass-haul optimisation as a part of GHG minimisation was reviewed, and mass-haul management was found to be an underutilised element with GHG reduction potential.

Post occupancy evaluations relating to discomfort glare : a study of green buildings in Brisbane

Glare indices have yet to be extensively tested in daylit open plan offices, as such there is no effective method to predict discomfort glare within these spaces. This study into discomfort glare in open plan green buildings targeted full-time employees, working under their everyday lighting conditions. Three green buildings in Brisbane were used for data collection, two were Green Star accredited and the other contained innovative daylighting strategies. Data were collected on full-time employees, mostly aged between 30 and 50 years, who broadly reflect the demographics of the wider working population in Australia. It was discovered 36 of the 64 respondents experienced discomfort from both electric and daylight sources at their workspace. The study used a specially tailored post-occupancy evaluation (POE) survey to help assess discomfort glare. Luminance maps extracted from High Dynamic Range (HDR) images were used to capture the luminous environment of the occupants. These were analysed using participant data and the program Evalglare. The physical results indicated no correlation with other developed glare metrics for daylight within these open plan green buildings, including the recently developed Daylight Glare Probability (DGP) Index. The strong influence of vertical illuminance, Ev in the DGP precludes the mostly contrast-based glare from windows observed in this investigation from forming a significant part of this index. Furthermore, critical assessment of the survey techniques used are considered. These will provide insight for further research into discomfort glare in the endeavour to fully develop a suitable glare metric.

Greener workplace: An examination of Green HR initiatives adoption through the theory of planned behaviour lens

The goal of this article is to propose the model of green human resource initiatives adoption. Based on innovation management and psychology literatures, attitude, pressure and controllability are key drivers for organizational change. Data were collected from 210 organizations in Australia. Results indicated that attitude, pressure and controllability significantly influenced the firms’ adoption of green HR initiatives. Attitude and resource availability especially had greater impacts than pressure. Limitation, implications and future researches are also outlined.

A Sustainable Community for Older People : Case Studies of Green Retirement Villages in Australia

In Australia, the proportion of the population aged 65 years and over reached 13.5% in 2010 and is expected to increase steadily to around 20% by the year 2056 [Australia Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 2010], creating what has been regarded as a looming crisis in how to house and care for older people. As a viable accommodation option, the retirement village is widely accepted as a means of promoting and enhancing independence, choice and quality of life for older people. Recent research by Barker (2010) indicates that the current and potential residents of retirement villages are generally very conscious of resource consumption and would like their residences and community to be more sustainable. The aim of this study was to understand the perception of older people toward sustainability ideas and identify the sustainable practices involved in retirement villages to improve the wellbeing of residents. Multiple research methods, including content analysis, questionnaire survey, interviews and case studies were conducted for the research purpose. The results indicate that most retirement village residents understand and recognize the importance of sustainability in their lifestyle. However, their sustainability requirements need to be supported and enhanced by the provision of affordable sustainability features. Additionally, many retirement village developers and operators realize the importance of providing a sustainable retirement community for their residents, and that a sustainable retirement village (that is environmental-friendly, affordable, and improves social engagement) can be achieved through the consideration of project planning, design, construction, and operations throughout the project life cycle. The clear shift from healthcare to lifestyle-focused services in the recent development of retirement villages together with the increasing number of aged people moving into retirement villages (Simpson and Cheney, 2007) has raised awareness of the need for the retirement village industry to provide a sustainable community for older people to improve their life quality after retirement. This is the first critical study of sustainable development in the retirement village industry and its potential in addressing the housing needs of older people, providing a contribution towards improving the life quality of older people and with direct and immediate significance to the community as a whole.

How public owners communicate the sustainability requirements of green design-build projects

The design-build (DB) system is regarded as an effective means of delivering sustainable buildings. Specifying clear sustainability requirements to potential contractors is of great importance to project success. This research investigates the current state-of-the-practice for the definition of sustainability requirements within the public sectors of the U.S. construction market using a robust content analysis of 49 DB requests for proposals (RFPs). The results reveal that owners predominantly communicate their desired level of sustainability through the LEED certification system. The sustainability requirement has become an important dimension for the best-value evaluation of DB contractors with specific importance weightings of up to 25%. Additionally, owners of larger projects and who provide less design information in their RFPs generally allocate significantly higher importance weightings to sustainability requirements. The primary knowledge contribution of this study to the construction industry is the reveal of current trend in DB procurement for green projects. The findings also provide owners, architects, engineers, and constructors with an effective means of communicating sustainability objectives in solicitation documents.

Chroma Key Theatre : an examination of similarities and divergences in the use of Green Screen in two experimental theatre works

This paper examines the frame as it contributes to the debate on contemporary intermedial theatre and performance practices in light of increasing astriction between filmic and theatrical discourses. Informed by Auslander (1999), Lehmann (2006), and Giesekam (2007), and through an extrapolation of the tenets Eckersall, Gretchen and Scheer identify in the theory of New Media Dramaturgy, it will analyse two recent works of experimental theatre-making. RUFF (2013), a New York produced solo performance by one of the world’s leading female performers, explores her experiences of having a stroke. Total Dik! (2013), produced in Brisbane, Australia, is an interdisciplinary collaborative performance that examines aspects of dictatorship. They are clearly very different works yet there are a number of significant theatrical similarities in their use of Chroma Key technology and live compositing as material scenic devices. These works overtly and evocatively draw on the cinematic technique and technology of Chroma Key to augment and reveal the tensions and overlaps in their production processes.

The darker side of green : plantation forestry and carbon violence in Uganda

In recent years, there has been a significant trend toward land acquisition in developing countries, establishing forestry plantations for offsetting carbon pollution generated in the Global North. Badged as “green economic development,” global carbon markets are often championed not only as solutions to climate change, but as drivers of positive development outcomes for local communities. But there is mounting evidence that these corporate land acquisitions for climate change mitigation—including forestry plantations—severely compromise not only local ecologies but also the livelihoods of the some of the world’s most vulnerable people living at subsistence level in rural areas in developing countries.

An archival analysis of green information technology: The current state and future directions

This thesis provides a review of 199 papers published on Green IT/IS between 2007−2014, in order to present taxonomy of segments in Green IT/IS publications, where the segments are later used for multiple analyses to facilitate future research and to provide a retrospective analysis of existing knowledge and gaps thereof. This research also attempts to make a unique contribution to our understanding of Green IT/IS, by consolidating papers it observes current patterns of literature through approach analysis and segmentation, as well as allocating studies to the technology, process, or outcome (TPO) stage. Highlighting the necessity of a consolidated approach, these classification systems have been combined into a TPO matrix so that the studies could be arranged according to which stage of the Green IT/IS cycle they were focused on. We believe that these analyses will provide a solid platform from which future Green IT/IS research can be launched.

Understanding the performance of green commercial buildings: a Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre (SBEnrc) briefing report

Efforts to reduce carbon emissions in the buildings sector have been focused on encouraging green design, construction and building operation; however, the business case is not very compelling if considering the energy cost savings alone. In recent years green building has been driven by a sense that it will improve the productivity of occupants,something with much greater economic returns than energy savings. Reducing energy demand in green commercial buildings in a way that encourages greater productivity is not yet well understood as it involves a set of complex and interdependent factors. This project investigates these factors and focuses on the performance of and interaction between: green design elements, internal environmental quality, occupant experience, tenant/leasing agreements, and building regulation and management. This paper suggests six areas of strategic research that are needed to understand how conditions can be created to support productivity in green buildings, and deliver significant energy consumption reductions.

Transmission loss analysis of rectangular expansion chamber with arbitrary location of inlet/outlet by means of Green's functions

Transmission loss of a rectangular expansion chamber, the inlet and outlet of which are situated at arbitrary locations of the chamber, i.e., the side wall or the face of the chamber, are analyzed here based on the Green's function of a rectangular cavity with homogeneous boundary conditions. The rectangular chamber Green's function is expressed in terms of a finite number of rigid rectangular cavity mode shapes. The inlet and outlet ports are modeled as uniform velocity pistons. If the size of the piston is small compared to wavelength, then the plane wave excitation is a valid assumption. The velocity potential inside the chamber is expressed by superimposing the velocity potentials of two different configurations. The first configuration is a piston source at the inlet port and a rigid termination at the outlet, and the second one is a piston at the outlet with a rigid termination at the inlet. Pressure inside the chamber is derived from velocity potentials using linear momentum equation. The average pressure acting on the pistons at the inlet and outlet locations is estimated by integrating the acoustic pressure over the piston area in the two constituent configurations. The transfer matrix is derived from the average pressure values and thence the transmission loss is calculated. The results are verified against those in the literature where use has been made of modal expansions and also numerical models (FEM fluid). The transfer matrix formulation for yielding wall rectangular chambers has been derived incorporating the structural–acoustic coupling. Parametric studies are conducted for different inlet and outlet configurations, and the various phenomena occurring in the TL curves that cannot be explained by the classical plane wave theory, are discussed.