At a Committee for Sydney briefing by the NSW Planning Minister Rob Stokes on Wednesday 17 November 2021, he made a series of major announcements regarding net zero and planning policy: 

• New large commercial buildings designed from next year will be required to operate at net-zero. And embodied energy will need to be measured in all new houses and buildings.
• A net zero cities action plan will be developed, with BASIX standards lifted to drive emissions further down – saving another 150,000 tonnes a year and helping to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
• Following the example set in Wilton in Sydney’s southwest, dark rooves will be off limits – with lighter, cool rooves to help reduce heat impacts.
• Government procurement will help speed adoption, e.g. to support adoption of green concrete, bringing prices down to make it more affordable for everyone.

Gabriel Metcalf, CEO of the Committee for Sydney, welcomed the announcements: 

“Minister Stokes made a series of major announcements today that will propel NSW even further into a leadership role on climate action.

“Of all the things that can be done about the problem of living with extreme heat in Western Sydney, the easiest is requiring light coloured roofs. This makes all the sense in the world.

“Requiring developers to provide a real backyard that has room for a tree is going to make life for the future residents so much better, so we’re very happy to see that too.”

Watch the Minister’s presentation in full here: