The ACT Government needs to restructure their incentives for energy and water efficiency initiatives if it is serious about fostering more sustainable housing.

For two years GCC has been pursuing more equity in the incentive scheme, which unfairly excludes everyone building homes in new estates.

I recently wrote to Mr Stanhope again on this issue, pointing out the strong turnout we had at our home for Sustainable House Day, and how surprised people were to find out that new home builders are effectively excluded from benefiting from incentives available to other Canberrans.

I also pointed out the stunning success Brisbane has had with its non-discriminatory rainwater tank incentive scheme with 20% of homes now having tanks, and average water consumption down to just 122 litres per person - lower than their drought-restricted targets.

Dear Jon

I thought you might be interested in this article from Brisbane.

I have written to you previously about the inequitable situation whereby residents of greenfield suburbs cannot access any assistance when installing tanks over and above the mandatory minimum requirements.

Clearly the Brisbane City Council has implemented far more successful measures.

I urge you to reconsider the limiting factors on this and the other housing sustainability initiatives the ACT Government currently offers.

I also invite you to visit our new home in Wells Station, which was designed by me and features a large tank, grey water capture, improved glass, solar hot water, low external thermal mass, high insulation levels, passive solar design, and an overall 6-star plus energy efficiency rating.

Some 200 people toured our home two weeks ago during Sustainable House Day. They were intrigued to learn that everything we did with our design was done without one cent of assistance from the ACT Government.

Mr Stanhope has replied, with much of the same non-committal ministerial reply words we often get from the ACT Government. However, he has agreed to at least refer the Brisbane article to TaMS for further investigation. Unfortunately the reply also puts forward some arguments that are just not correct.

It says that black water and grey water treatment systems are more expensive. Black water certainly is, and we never proposed promotion of such systems. But greywater systems range from very expensive to quite affordable, with the sort of system installed in our home around the $2000 mark - money well spent when drought hits and a garden can be maintained rather than having to be replaced after dying off.

It also asserts that tank installation is cheaper in new homes rather than retrofitting in old homes - meaning "for the same outcome". This is only partially correct - tank installation in new homes offers opportunities for far better use of tank water with piping to all toilets, the washine machine, and all external taps easily achieved during construction, and resulting in far greater use of tank water. The simple reality is that a tank installed in a new home can have a far greater impact on water consumption over the life of the home than a retrofit can.

GCC hopes that the ACT Government, and hopefully the Greens in the balance of power, will give this whole issue a much more open-minded and comprehensive assessment.