Circular Economy Slowdown Costs Australia Billions

Australia urgently needs a National Circular Economy Act—not just to meet sustainability targets, but as an investment in the longevity of assets and to safeguard financial investments. This was the clear message at Transform 2025, the Green Building Council of Australia’s sustainability conference, where industry leaders made it clear: policy delays are costing money, wasting resources and holding back progress. The frustration in the room was palpable. Less than 20 minutes into the first panel, Scape chief executive Anouk Darling cut through the corporate politeness, responding to claims policy reform would take time despite the industry’s readiness to act. “Well, f**k that,” she says. Developers know what needs to be done but roadblocks in planning and policy keep getting in the way. Market demand is there but policy lags Industry leaders say the financial case for sustainability is clear—tenants, investors and lenders are demanding better outcomes. Lendlease chief operating officer Dale Connor says capital partners “overwhelmingly” prefer sustainable assets, pointing out net-zero offices deliver 8 per cent higher returns. City of Sydney chief executive Monica Barone frames sustainable construction as a counterforce to misinformation. “When you are building something real, there is no misinformation in that building. You see it. You feel it. You touch it,” she says. Yet despite demand, developers are being slowed by regulatory inertia. “There is capital behind us. We are ready,” Darling says. “But planning and policy are holding us back.” Banks stress-test biodiversity risk The urgency extends beyond climate. The property sector is waking up to a new financial risk: biodiversity loss. EY Global Climate Change and Sustainability Services leader Matthew Bell says some markets have scaled back climate commitments since Trump’s re-election but finance isn’t retreating from nature—because the risks are too big to ignore. “Banks are stress-testing nature risk, and the results are even more alarming than climate-related stress tests,” Bell says. “Some companies aren’t acting out of environmental goodwill—they’re acting because protecting natural assets is a direct financial imperative.” ▲ EY Global Climate Change and Sustainability Services leader Matthew Bell. Australia ranks among the highest biodiversity loss rates in the developed world, with severe species decline and high deforestation. “If the Great Barrier Reef hits 1.4 degrees Celsius warming, it’s pretty much turned off,” Bell says. “We don’t just lose a natural wonder—we lose billions in tourism revenue.” Australia trails on circularity, costing billions A circular economy is a system aimed at eliminating waste and maximising the reuse, repair and recycling of materials to create a closed loop that reduces environmental impact and conserves resources. The construction industry is Australia’s biggest consumer of raw materials, yet circularity remains low. Only 4.4 per cent of materials in circulation are reused, up from 3.8 per cent in 2010, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. It’s well below the EU average of 11.8 per cent, the European Environment Agency says. The lack of material efficiency is costing billions in lost value. To help shift the industry, the GBCA launched A Practical Guide to Circular Procurement for New Buildings and Major Refurbishments at Transform 2025. “The procurement decisions we make today shape the sustainability of buildings and cities of the future,” GBCA chief executive Davina Rooney says. ▲ City of Sydney chief executive Monica Barone, Scape chief executive Anouk Darling and GBCA chief executive Davina Rooney. “The construction industry is responsible for 40-50 per cent of global raw material use, yet only 30 per cent of materials are recycled. “We need to rethink how we source and select materials.” The guide includes case studies such as the Kennett Material Bank, which uses Building Information Modelling to track high-value products for future reuse. At affordable housing project Uniting on Second Bowden in South Australia ( pictured at top ), $3.7-million worth of precast panels were designed for disassembly—showing how embedding circularity early delivers cost and carbon savings. The shift to circular design is also about longevity. Professor John Thwaites, chair of the Monash Sustainable Development Institute and Climateworks Centre, says Australia’s approach to construction has ignored durability for too long, leading to unnecessary demolition and waste. “Buildings should be designed to last 100, 150 years—not just 20 or 30,” he says. “Durability is one of the simplest ways to cut waste and reduce embodied carbon.” Amanda Steele, group executive head of property at ISPT, compares it to the ‘nose-to-tail’ movement in gastronomy, where once-overlooked cuts of meat are now sought after as part of a sustainable food ethos. “In gastronomy, it’s nose-to-tail,” she says. “Once upon a time, you didn’t want to eat the offcuts because that was the cheap stuff. Now, you’re seeking out that nose-to-tail experience. “We need a similar shift in the property space, where we really value repurposed materials rather than seeing them as waste.” ▲ Clean Energy Finance Corporation head of property Michael Di Russo. This aligns with First Nations design principles, which emphasise longevity, adaptability and a deep connection to place, Michael Mossman, associate dean at the University of Sydney and a Kuku Yalanji man, says. Developers call for policy action Clean Energy Finance Corporation head of property Michael Di Russo reinforces the need for procurement reform. “Materials used in construction are a major source of embodied carbon and resource consumption,” he says. “By rethinking selection and sourcing, we can significantly cut waste, lower emissions, and enhance building resilience.” GBCA chief impact officer Jorge Chapa says the market is shifting, with Green Star certification numbers surging from 4550 last year to 5870 in 2025. “Circularity isn’t an optional extra anymore—it’s becoming embedded in how we build and certify places,” he says. A National Circular Economy Act could ensure circularity is no longer voluntary. ▲ CFP Green Buildings founder Bram Adema. Prof Thwaites argues for a national policy to make circularity standard practice. “A National Circular Economy Act is the missing piece,” he says. “Without it, circularity remains a goal, not a requirement.” He says such an Act should include mandatory circularity targets, product durability and recyclability standards and tax incentives for circular procurement—similar to policies in Europe, where regulation has forced market-wide improvements. ‘Australia must lead’ CFP Green Buildings founder Bram Adema flew in from the Netherlands to challenge Australia to stop being modest and lead. “You ’ re the top country for solar and renewables outside of dictatorships,” he says. “You have regulatory innovation. Stop being modest. Be the tall poppy. “In the Netherlands, it became illegal in 2012 to have an office below EPC standards. That forced improvements across the market. “New South Wales’ new NABERS five-star minimum is a good start—but more is needed.” ISPT group executive head of property Amanda Steele says investors—particularly from Europe—are pushing hard for circularity in assets. “European investors are demanding circularity but local investors are lagging. Australia risks falling behind global standards,” she says. With investor pressure mounting, material costs rising and a resource crisis ahead, voluntary action may no longer be enough. Developers know the industry can deliver circularity. The missing piece is policy to make it standard practice—before global markets leave Australia behind.

Exclusive
Vanessa Croll
Wed 26 Mar 25

Circular Economy Slowdown Costs Australia Billions

Dubai’s Shape-Shifting Sobha Brings Transformational Playbook to Australia

From Casino Floor to Lecture Hall: Brisbane’s Biggest Heritage Fit-Out

Productivity Commission Maps Escape from Housing Affordability Dead-Ends

What’s Real, What’s Not: Human-Led Precincts Have the Edge in Age of AI

Frank Developments Joins Gold Coast Surf Park Megaproject

Meet the Makers: Jamie Durie, Jennifer Macquarie and Michael Romano

Behind the Build: The EVE by TOGA with Senior Development Manager James Aspinall

Behind the Build: 25Hours Hotel, The Olympia with TZG Director Tim Greer

Follow the Money: Transaction Activity, Asset Values and The Flow of Capital

Dubai’s Shape-Shifting Sobha Brings Transformational Playbook to Australia

Downsizers Back Pask’s Apartments Gamble at Brisbane’s Rochedale

Queensland, NT Oppose Feds’ Planned Data Centre Energy Underwrite Law

Pembroke Greenlit for Debut 210-Apartment Fitzroy BtR Project

Purpose-Built Student Accommodation Summit 2026

Retirement and Aged Care Summit 2026

Commercial Real Estate Lunch 2026

The Urban Developer Urban Leader Awards 2026

Dubai’s Shape-Shifting Sobha Brings Transformational Playbook to Australia

From Casino Floor to Lecture Hall: Brisbane’s Biggest Heritage Fit-Out

Productivity Commission Maps Escape from Housing Affordability Dead-Ends

What’s Real, What’s Not: Human-Led Precincts Have the Edge in Age of AI

Frank Developments Joins Gold Coast Surf Park Megaproject

ExclusiveVanessa CrollWed 26 Mar 25

Circular Economy Slowdown Costs Australia Billions

Dubai’s Shape-Shifting Sobha Brings Transformational Playbook to Australia

From Casino Floor to Lecture Hall: Brisbane’s Biggest Heritage Fit-Out

Productivity Commission Maps Escape from Housing Affordability Dead-Ends

What’s Real, What’s Not: Human-Led Precincts Have the Edge in Age of AI

Frank Developments Joins Gold Coast Surf Park Megaproject

Meet the Makers: Jamie Durie, Jennifer Macquarie and Michael Romano

Behind the Build: The EVE by TOGA with Senior Development Manager James Aspinall

Behind the Build: 25Hours Hotel, The Olympia with TZG Director Tim Greer

Follow the Money: Transaction Activity, Asset Values and The Flow of Capital

Dubai’s Shape-Shifting Sobha Brings Transformational Playbook to Australia

Downsizers Back Pask’s Apartments Gamble at Brisbane’s Rochedale

Queensland, NT Oppose Feds’ Planned Data Centre Energy Underwrite Law

Pembroke Greenlit for Debut 210-Apartment Fitzroy BtR Project

Purpose-Built Student Accommodation Summit 2026

Retirement and Aged Care Summit 2026

Commercial Real Estate Lunch 2026

The Urban Developer Urban Leader Awards 2026

Dubai’s Shape-Shifting Sobha Brings Transformational Playbook to Australia

From Casino Floor to Lecture Hall: Brisbane’s Biggest Heritage Fit-Out

Productivity Commission Maps Escape from Housing Affordability Dead-Ends

What’s Real, What’s Not: Human-Led Precincts Have the Edge in Age of AI

Frank Developments Joins Gold Coast Surf Park Megaproject

Exclusive
Vanessa Croll
Wed 26 Mar 25