Some conventional building design, construction and maintenance practices create conditions that are capable of causing illness in healthy individuals or exacerbating illness in already sensitized individuals (Small, 2009). There are several factors that contribute to the overall health of a building. These include: cleanliness, thermal comfort, ventilation and air quality, lighting, noise, outside awareness and furniture (Hubbard, Rice and Beamish, 2008). The Bond received many acknowledgements in regards to its design. It received 34 awards along with massive media coverage making the return on its investment far greater than any expectations that had existed. A key change that resulted from The Bond project was the positioning of Lend Lease to take on the role of industry leader to promote development of green buildings across Australia. The sector for office buildings in Australia has its own set of unique criteria. Most office buildings are not owned by its occupants. The majority adopt the net lease system in which the customer pays for the costs of running building. In this system, reductions in the costs of running the building only benefit the tenants. The gross lease system is a system in which the costs of running the building are included in the rent and this is of great interest to all parties to keep costs down (Hubbard, Rice and Beamish, 2008).

Municipalities often use regulations in order to evaluate neighborhood development projects and buildings. The primary reason for these government regulations is to make sure that certain minimum levels of performance are met and to reduce the adverse impacts of expansion to acceptable levels. Many scholars and researchers have argued that this regulatory approach is quite...

In Australia sustainability is seen as a culture change and is being made part of day-to-day practices by builders. In 2007 sustainability became a standard part of Corporate Business Planning and each business unit became responsible for making sure that every project adhered to the sustainability requirements that have been set down (Hubbard, Rice and Beamish, 2008).
There has been some debate over whether or not the sustainably movement in Australia will last. Some critics believe that Land Lease will not maintain their commitment to sustainability. Land Lease admits that designing and creating green buildings is working at a very simple level and that more needs to be done. They are now working on developing a long-term approach to contributing to the development of sustainable cities. They understand that the field is advancing rapidly and they have to be prepared to keep up (Hubbard, Rice and Beamish, 2008).

References

Document Helps Implement Green Building Codes. (2009). Professional Safety. 54(11), p18.

Garde, Ajay. (2009). Sustainable by Design?: Insights From U.S. LEED-ND Pilot Projects.

Journal of the American Planning Association. 75(4), p424-440.

Hubbard, G. Rice, J. And Beamish, P. (2008). Strategic Management: Thinking, Analysis and Action (3rd ed), Australia: Pearson Education.

Neales, Sue. (2007). Beyond the price tag: the costs and benefits of going green. Ecos. 139, p9-

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Small, Bruce M. (2009). Creating healthier buildings. Toxicology & Industrial Health. 25(9/10),

p731-735.

Taylor, Robin. (2009).…