Moved by Councillor Davis, seconded by
Councillor Ellsmore -
It is resolved that:
(A)
Council
note:
(i)
the
City’s Net Zero Performance controls that will come into effect from 1 October
2023 are a major step towards carbon reduction in relation to new offices,
shopping centres, hotels:
(a)
the
planning controls, developed over four years, require new office, hotels and retail
developments to reduce energy use through efficiency and renewable energy or be
capable of achieving net zero energy prior to commencing use;
(b)
this
work paved the way for a similar state-wide policy. The new standards are
ambitious but achievable and provide a clear pathway for developers to improve
energy performance and transition to net-zero buildings. They will help the
City achieve our target for net zero emissions by 2035 and will contribute to
the NSW Government's goal of net zero emissions by 2050; and
(c)
however,
the new standards do not apply to residential development. The current BASIX
SEPP, and the upcoming Sustainable Buildings SEPP includes a non-compete clause
that prevents councils from introducing planning controls that set higher
environmental requirements than the state planning policy such as requiring
that only renewable energy be used in new residential developments;
(ii)
that we
know industry can do better and there is an urgent need to make sure that
future residential developments are not locked into using gas; and
(iii)
the
Victorian Government has recently announced that all new homes will be required
to be fully electric from 1 January 2024;
(B)
Council
further note:
(i)
we are
in the middle of a housing and cost-of-living crisis and people are struggling
to pay their increasing energy bills. From July this year, NSW residential
energy customers face gas price increases of as much as 23.7 per cent;
(ii)
all
electric homes, that don’t use gas, are cheaper to run. Recent modelling from
the Climate Council in 2022 shows that homes in Sydney could save $924 a year
on their bills if they switched gas appliances to electric ones;
(iii)
a
report released this month by Energy Consumers Australia states that as more
households switch to all electric appliances and heating and renewable energy,
those that can least afford to get off gas will end up paying more;
(iv)
gas is
also highly toxic to human health. A 2018 study in the Medical Journal of
Australia found that gas cooktops are associated with around 12 per cent of
childhood asthma in Australia. Stanford
University researchers have linked gas stoves and ovens to carcinogenic
chemicals like benzene. Long-term
exposure to benzene is linked to acute lymphocytic leukaemia, chronic
lymphocytic leukaemia, multiple myeloma, childhood leukaemia, and non-Hodgkin
lymphoma;
(v)
350 Australia’s Electrify Your Council campaign is
calling on Councils across the state to change their planning rules to require
all-electric, gas-free new homes with some councils already implementing change
through their planning controls, such as:
(a)
Waverley
Council is banning indoor gas appliances on health grounds by requiring only
electric ovens, cooktops and space heaters are installed in new residential
development; and
(b)
Parramatta
Council is requiring all new residential and non-residential developments in
its city centre to be all electric, and is currently considering further
changes to require all new non-residential buildings to be all-electric; and
(vi)
the
Lord Mayor recently wrote to and met with Penny Sharpe, Minister for Climate
Change, Energy, Environment and Heritage asking the NSW Government to urgently
develop a plan supported by incentives or rebates to transition homes and
businesses from gas to renewable energy;
(C)
the
Chief Executive Officer be requested to investigate the opportunities and
challenges with amending the City of Sydney’s planning controls to require all
new residential developments, and development not captured by the City’s new
Net Zero planning controls, to be all electric and report back to Council via
the CEO Update, including next steps, as soon as possible; and
(D)
the
Lord Mayor be requested to write to Chris Minns, Premier of NSW urging him to
develop a plan supported by incentives or rebates to transition homes and
businesses from gas to renewable energy.
The motion was carried on the following show
of hands:
Ayes (8) The Chair (the
Lord Mayor), Councillors Chan, Davis, Ellsmore, Kok, Scott, Weldon and Worling
Noes (2) Councillors
Gannon and Jarrett.
Motion carried.
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