Urgent action on sustainability required – DTZ
DTZ says its new European sustainability guide confirms that urgent action is required on sustainability practices, as only 5% of current office stock has a “green” rating. The guide, which provides property investors, occupiers and developers with an overview of sustainability practices across the EU property industry, looks at the key indicators of sustainability – energy cost per country, most widely implemented “green” ratings, and the number and volume of green buildings. It also considers the role of building regulations, the definition of low-energy buildings, EPCs and the implementation of green leases and ratings.
Investors and occupiers should consider two different aspects of sustainability, says Paul Brown, head of health, safety and sustainability at DTZ: the first relates to the legal adoption of stricter building regulations on a country by country basis, based on the EU’s Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), which is obligatory to all member states. “The standards vary but the impact of the legislation should not be underestimated,” he says, “with 44% of the EPCs undertaken by DTZ in the UK suggesting urgent action if these properties are to be occupied after 2018”. The second, voluntary, aspect is the use of rating tools such as BREEAM, DGNB, LEED and HQE, among others, he says.
DTZ’s guide includes a summary of the main tools in Europe for measuring buildings’ energy performance, to enable investors and occupiers to apply the right process for obtaining a “green” certification. A new definition of ‘prime’ buildings has recently come into force as high energy efficiency has started to spread across Europe: seven of the 22 countries covered by the guide – the Nordic countries, France and the UK – have already witnessed this development. However, DTZ highlights that buildings with green certifications only account for around 24m sq m across Europe, which is less than 5% of overall stock. There is not yet any clear differentiation in terms of pricing between low-energy buildings and non-low-energy buildings in most European countries, DTZ’s analysis has found. Magali Marton, head of CEMEA research at DTZ, says however that some countries are now showing increased evidence of higher pricing in green buildings.
The DTZ report also highlights the impact that the emergence of green buildings is expected to have on relationships between tenants and landlords. In half of the countries covered by the analysis, some leasing contracts now require an appendix focused on the sustainable use of the buildings; such trends are expected to accelerate as each member state gives legal effect to the EPBD.
