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Leading the Charge
Some of Hong Kong’s major commercial developers are turning green and showing the government how it’s done
| Text : Elizabeth Kerr | Photo : www.thinkstockphotos.com |
Afew issues back, we asked how green Hong Kong’s residences were and wondered how many residential developers in Hong Kong were actually facilitating sustainable homes. Not that many as it turned out. The next question immediately became, “Why?” While it is often up to government to make policy that is “good” for us, the only official criteria regarding sustainable construction or operation applies to government buildings. It was time to ask the big commercial development players who were — or weren’t — building green where they fit in the bigger picture.
To grade the sustainability policies of every single developer in the city would take more pages than this magazine has (and would be decidedly un-green). But a sampling of the biggest players indicates it’s a mixed bag. Henderson Land (IFC, Miramar Shopping Centre) boasts a policy of Sustainability and Environmental Education. Its website states, “As a leading property developer, we are committed to sustainability and to making the world a better place to live in. We always look for ways to work together with our stakeholders to promote environmental education.” Henderson lists its past activities — support of Earth Hour, Green Power, Friends of the Earth’s energy conservation campaign, its staff involvement in a New Territories tree planting and conservation initiative — but offers no further details. Hongkong Land (The Landmark, Prince’s Building) has no information on its website on any green or sustainability policies; same for Cheung Kong. (Neither Henderson nor Hongkong Land responded to requests for a comment. Hongkong Land cited insufficient time.)
Causeway Bay behemoth Hysan Development, however, recently won an award for its environmentally progressive planning, and states on its website, “Hysan has worked to achieve significant energy savings through optimisation of operations schedule and implementation of more efficient systems, as well as taking energy conservation into account when it comes to full life cycle maintenance progress.” Hysan is aggressively cutting its own energy consumption, and specifies its sustainability policy in its 2009 Corporate Responsibility Report, available online.
Further east, Swire Properties is currently setting the gold standard for corporate sustainability policy. Its 2009 report is also available online, as is a full breakdown of its policies, goals, expected supplier code of conduct, impact studies, and operating consumption patterns among other information. Swire’s sustainability policy was formalised in 2008, but Sustainable Business Manager Alanna Miles claims Swire has been practising sustainability since its incorporation in 1972 when Swire owned the Tai Koo dockyards. Sustainable development, Miles points out, means responding to the community and creating an environment that grows organically. The idea is to, “Create value for our stakeholders and that in turn creates value for us,” she states. In other words, it equates with profit? “Exactly. ‘Profit’ is difficult to derive, but there is a value there in the long run.” Consistent investment in the area has created Island East, a mini-Central and a place people want to live.
Whether it’s figures or figurative, maximising profits is big business’ ultimate goal, and the cost of building green is still too high for many developers’ tastes. Miles calls that a misconception born of a lack of information and even hesitates to use the term “green” as a blanket. “We’re very conscious about defining [terms]. ‘Green’ means so many things to so many people. A sustainable building factors in environmental and social considerations,” she clarifies. “It’s not just about the environmental features. We take the view that we need to integrate our developments within the community and invest in the communities because that will add value to our portfolio.”
Hysan CEO Gerry Yim admits, “Tenants in Hong Kong have become increasingly aware of global and local environmental issues, and this trend is continuing. We believe that tenants are more likely to prefer properties that are more environmentally sustainable. This is not only beneficial for the Hong Kong community in general but creates a more pleasant living or working environment for tenants, and saves on long and short-term costs too.” So it can in fact be good for the bottom line. Miles says sustainability is often a factor in leasing LEED green certifications are increasingly important. “It is a consideration, absolutely, especially with multinationals. They want to know this information because it’s coming form overseas. That’s great because it changes the market.” Environmental certifications are seen as a mark of quality, and the likes of Swire and Hysan could, “close the door on certain tenants if you don’t have it.”
So if sustainability can go hand-in-hand with profit, or value, why are so few developers going green? “I suppose every business model is different but it goes back to a lack of awareness … Business is geared to take a short-term view — one year, five years — so it can be quite difficult,” Miles theorises. Big Business has economic obligations that reach beyond sustainable buildings too (under the Swire umbrella are Cathay Pacific, Taikoo Sugar and dozens of others). “It’s about taking small steps in the right direction. You can’t put yourself out of business by creating the most sustainable green building in the world … It sounds trite but it’s about balancing the environmental, the social and the economic,” she reasons.
So whose job is it to ensure we don’t build ourselves into extinction? Isn’t it government’s agreements, and agrees that HK-BEAM or job to set standards and lead business by example? “I’d argue that’s not necessarily case. The role of government is to set the floor, and the role of business is to set the ceiling, to continually innovate,” and raise awareness Miles says. It’s a shared duty. But the perception that big development has government under its thumb isn’t going away. “I can’t comment on the reality of that,” Miles states, “But what I would say is that the government has a range of stakeholders — not just developers,” pointing at frustrating red tape that often makes initiatives nearly impossible. “There are some systemic issues that need to be ironed out. That’s probably where you get this, ‘It’s all too hard’ idea. If developers can actually see a business case here, they’ll do it.”
Yim agrees with Miles that it’s up to developers to be good corporate citizens. “With environmental issues and questions surrounding sustainability so prevalent today, it is important for industry leaders to set a precedent in this field. LEED and HK-BEAM play an key role in encouraging green design, and it is important that developers like Hysan set the agenda for achieving a more sustainable community in Hong Kong.”
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