We want buildings in Yarra to work for people and the environment. Learn about our sustainable design assessment process and what it means for your project.
Sustainable design ensures that our cities remain liveable in the future. It protects our environment, enhances our wellbeing and shields our community against rising costs for energy, water and waste.
Whether you plan a minor renovation or large new development, information on the sustainability of your design should be included in your planning application.
Prepare a sustainable design
The size of your development project determines what sustainability information you need to include in your planning application.
Small developments need to include Environmentally Sustainable Development (ESD) features in plans and drawings as part of your planning permit application.
You can refer to the Sustainable Design Fact Sheets for more information on ESD features.
Get in touch if you have any questions. We have specialist advisors who can guide your ideas. Our ESD adviser can also come to your pre-application meeting.
A Sustainable Design Assessment (SDA) is a simple report that tells us how your project will meet our best practice standards for sustainable building design. You can prepare the SDA report yourself.
Requirements
Your SDA report needs to show how your project will meet planning scheme objectives and best practice standards in each of the 10 key sustainable building categories.
Download our free sustainable design assessment template [ DOCX, 158.21 KB] . This will help you understand what you need to show in your report. You can write your SDA straight into this template.
Architectural drawings
Make sure all your architectural drawings and design plans reflect sustainable best practice.
BESS report
Complete the built environment sustainability scorecard (BESS), a free tool to test how sustainable your design is.
Attach the BESS report to your planning application.
STORM rating
Use the free online STORM calculator to measure how well your design complies with our stormwater guidelines.
Attach the STORM report to your planning application.
Energy rating of appliances
Tell us the energy rating of all appliances you want to install, for example, a washing machine or air-conditioning.
Visit the energy rating website to understand rating labels.
Water rating of appliances
Tell us about the water efficiency of your taps and fittings
You can look up products in the water rating database.
Light efficiency details
Tell us about the light fittings you want to install – are they incandescent, compact fluorescent or LED?
Renewable energy details
Tell us if you are planning to install solar panels or any other renewable energy devices.
NatHERS home energy rating (for residential developments only)
The nationwide house energy rating scheme (NatHERS) can predict the energy needs of new homes.
Get a NatHERS assessment for your design.
Attach the NatHERS rating to your planning application.
Expected NABERS rating (for commercial developments only)
The national Australian built environment rating system (NABERS) can estimate the environmental performance of your building.
Use the prediction tool that is relevant for your building type.
Attach the predicted NABERS rating to your planning application.
Section J report (for commercial developments only)
Some commercial buildings must meet specific energy efficiency targets. These targets are listed in the National Construction Code (NCC).
Get a section J report from an environmentally sustainable design consultant or other professional.
Overview
A Sustainable Management Plan (SMP) demonstrates best practice in the 10 key sustainable building categories and provides a:
- detailed assessment for Yarra City Council (you may use relevant tools such as BESS and STORM or an alternative assessment approach to prepare the detailed assessment).
- identifies achievable environmental performance outcomes having regard to the objectives of Clause 22.17 (as appropriate)
- demonstrates that the building has the design potential to achieve the relevant environmental performance outcomes, having regard to the site’s opportunities and constraints
- documents the means by which the performance outcomes can be achieved.
Requirements
Your SMP must explain in detail:
- how your project will respond to all 10 key sustainable building categories
- what sustainability targets or performance standards you will achieve
- how you want to reach your targets
- how you will minimise your project’s negative impact on the environment
Your architectural drawings must demonstrate and annotate the sustainable design initiatives you mention in your SMP.
You can read our SMP reference document [ PDF, 278.13 KB] to understand information you need to include.
How to prepare your SMP report
You should engage a sustainability specialist to prepare your SMP. Your SMP should be sent as a separate report with your planning application.
You may want to use the free online tool BESS to prepare your sustainable management plan.
We define small, medium and large developments as follows.
Small developments
- A single residential building, or
- a single commercial building with a gross floor area under 100m2.
Medium developments
- 2 to 9 new dwellings, or
- commercial buildings with a gross floor area between 100m2 and 1000m2.
Large developments
- 10 or more dwellings, or
- commercial buildings with more than 1000m2 of gross floor area.
Learn from a selection of recently approved and completed developments outlining their key sustainable design commitments.
Learn from recent zero carbon developments, or visit our dedicated page on zero carbon development.