Green Thumbs Up For $5bn Caloundra Community

Simon Warner, CEO SEQ Catchments Ltd; Jill Chamberlain, QLD Wildlife Preservation Society President, Sunshine Coast; Mark Stephens, Stockland Senior Development Manager

The Green Building Council of Australia [tweet_dis](GBCA) has endorsed Stockland’s master plan for the $5 billion, 2,310 hectare Caloundra South community on the Sunshine Coast[/tweet_dis]. It has accredited the project with a 6 Star Green Star – Communities rating, Australia’s highest standard for design excellence, economic prosperity, liveability and environmental responsibility.

The highly coveted 6 Star Green Star - Communities rating signifies world leadership in the design of the master plan, which sets the highest possible standards for the community’s long-term economic prosperity, ‘liveability’ and environmental responsibility during, and well after construction is completed and the community is established.

[tweet_dis]Caloundra South is the largest mixed use development ever undertaken under single ownership in Australia and the largest project ever undertaken by Stockland[/tweet_dis]. The new city will be developed by Stockland over the next three decades and will grow to a similar size and scale to that of Maroochydore, Hervey Bay or Gladstone, and ultimately be home to around 50,000 people.

The GBCA’s Chief Executive Officer Romilly Madew, said: “Stockland’s 6 Star Green Star accreditation for Caloundra South demonstrates that it is possible to undertake a development of unprecedented scale and achieve world class environmental and social outcomes.”

[tweet_box]#Caloundra South city will be developed by #Stockland over the next three decades and will grow to a similar size and scale to that of Maroochydore, Hervey Bay or Gladstone, and ultimately be home to around 50,000 people.[/tweet_box]Stockland Managing Director and CEO Mark Steinert, said: “Our team on the Sunshine Coast has spent more than four years working with Australia’s leading urban planners, environmental scientists and consultants and a large number of local environmental groups on the coast to develop the most detailed master plan for any project we’ve ever undertaken.

“The 6 Star Green Star Communities rating is a glowing endorsement for the soon-to-be developed Caloundra South project from the leading national and internationally-recognised body for assessing and accrediting green building design, construction and operational practices. This accreditation is important because it considers the social and economic sustainability and environmental performance of communities, not just during construction but in perpetuity.”

The Green Star Communities rating tool relies on scientific and holistic analysis, which has been peer reviewed and ratified by more than 1,000 industry and sustainable development experts.

Romilly Madew, added: “Stockland has done an outstanding job to formulate a world’s best practice approach to water treatment, purification and management and environmental conservation and rehabilitation for its Caloundra South Master Plan, while also demonstrating inspirational thinking around social inclusion that will enhance the ‘liveability’ of this new community.

“Through the application of the GBCA’s Green Star - Communities rating tool, Stockland and other industry partners will help to set new, higher, national benchmarks for community development that stand the test of time for many generations to come.”