The Australian Instituteof Architects called on the federal government in its pre-budget submission to allocate $1 billion to decarbonize the built environment.
The submission outlines the need for infrastructure investment, with specific measures to improve accessibility and resilience to disasters.
The Institute argued that $1 billion should be committed by the government over four years to help accelerate the construction of low carbon developments.
Tony Giannone, National President, said that such an initiative is essential if the government is going to achieve its goal of net-zero emission by 2050.
The Australian Government has committed to net zero by 2050 but leaders have not been clear on how we will achieve it, said Giannone.Decarbonizing the built environment is an important way to achieve these critical goals, given it contributes about one-quarter of our [national] emissions.
According to the submission the investment would be managed and delivered by the Clean Energy Corporation.
The Institute has proposed $6 million additional funding for the Australian Building Codes in order to upgrade the requirements of Australia’s National Construction Code. This will support low-energy buildings and their integration.
The submission also recommends that First Nations housing be given high priority. The Institute proposes a $4 billion fund to build 8,000 new social housing units to address the ongoing underfunding and shortage of housing for Indigenous communities.
Giannone said that housing is a fundamental human right. We must do more to ensure equal opportunities for First Nations peoples. This includes providing safe and secure housing.
Federal budget recommendations also include $50 million for funding the Australian Climate Services to create national datasets, detailed maps of natural catastrophes and climate events, and to mitigate future impacts.
This is likely to happen more often due to climate change. Giannone said that investing now in our future will save millions of dollars in damage and heartache down to the end.
Click hereView the complete 2022-23 prebudget submission.