A new eco-friendly product range is set to make "green" buildings commercially viable and easier to build, according to the Green Building Council of Australia.
Announcing the launch of Green first, the country's first range of products that support the Green Star rating tools, Laminex Group Marketing Manager, Robert Frazer, said Green first was not only important news for the environment but provided a major breakthrough for those in the business of creating "green" environments.
"It is common knowledge the building industry creates large environmental impacts - OECD figures reveal buildings consume 32 per cent of the world's resources, 40 per cent of energy, 12 per cent of water, and are responsible for 40 per cent of emissions into the air", Mr Frazer said.
"In Australia, commercial buildings produce almost nine per cent of the national greenhouse emissions", he said.
"It's for this reason the building industry must assume responsibility for sustaining a healthy environment and not simply rely on governments to drive change. Until now, creating ecologically sustainable buildings has often been a difficult and costly process.
"The Green first range addresses those problems by creating commercially viable products that are easy for specialists including architects, designers and furniture manufacturers to achieve Green Star ratings without losing any of their creative design flexibility", he said.
Green first products have positive environmental attributes that achieve higher Green Star credits. The Green Star environmental rating system was created by the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) to help the property industry reduce the environmental impact of buildings.
Attributes of the Green first range include:
- Materials with high eco-preferred content and durability;
- Lower product emissions for better indoor air quality; and
- Operations with environmental management systems and ISO14001.
Mr Frazer said that Green first was borne out of the Laminex Group's long-term commitment to Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD), which several major long-term environmental projects including wood recycling and bio-energy generation programs.
"This will lead to a significant reduction in landfill material, fewer vehicle movements and reduced greenhouse emissions. Also, the wood used to make our panel products comes from state government plantations that practise effective renewable resource management", he said.
"We believe the Green first range will deliver significant environmental benefits, but perhaps more importantly, encourage other companies to make a commitment to sustainable development and a healthier environment for everyone."
