Going Green

Buchan Lee, with one of our favourite developers, recently attended a Capital City Committee forum. It was called "Adelaide As A Sustainable City" and a large number of 'green' topics were canvassed by some excellent speakers.

It started out with an introduction to green transport - using microalgae as biofuel, and the environmental benefits of electric vehicles. Then came a powerful and insightful talk which postulated that there is no point in having smart technology if we aren't smart about using it. For example, where is the real benefit in having a mobile phone which can turn off your air-conditioner at home? The speaker exposed issues around shallow marketing claims regarding sustainability, explaining that using older and simpler (but less 'sexy') technologies such as opening windows can be far more effective in reducing power usage and waste.

The forum then moved on to our area of interest - property. One of the speakers was John Culshaw, the developer of Point Boston - a Port Lincoln project that we were involved in for much of 2007. John explained the sustainable features of this exciting and world class land development. The water recycling technology for this project is truly amazing.

"Green roofs and Green walls" was a topic delivered by Graeme Hopkins that we found of particular interest. Buildings can look stunning when they incorporate plants and grasses as "living" roofs and walls. This is an architectural movement that looks like it is taking off and something that Adelaide should embrace in a big way. Apparently they can reduce energy use, improve air quality, and reduce the summer heat that builds up around a business district while at the same time attracting fauna such as birds and assisting in water recycling. The talk gave us the germ of an idea which we have decided to pursue with Council....watch this space for updates if we pull it off!