How Business is supporting BASIX

There’s money to be made out of NSW’s quest for more sustainable housing, and clever builders and suppliers are constantly creating new energy and water efficient products and developments.

They call us the lucky country for a reason: Australians can now purchase four star toilets. The lucky loos have been awarded the stars as part of the Australian Government’s Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) Scheme. WELS was introduced in July 2006, and labels products like taps, toilets and whitegoods with a “star” efficiency rating. The clear comparison has motivated manufacturers to produce more water efficient products. For instance, Caroma claims that its Smartflush use only three litres of water in reduced flush mode, compared to the 11 litres used by older style toilets.

When thinking of energy efficient companies, the name British Petroleum doesn’t really come to mind. It’s interesting to note, then, that BP Solar is Australia’s largest manufacturer of solar photovoltaic products. In April 2007, BP Solar signed a funding agreement with the Federal Government aiming to make Blacktown, in Sydney’s west, a “Solar City”. As part of this agreement, the Federal Government funding will help BP Solar market well-priced solar power solutions throughout Blacktown, including 800 solar electricity systems and 2100 solar hot water systems.