Sustainable Business

A Sustainable Business is one that operates in an environmentally and socially responsible way without compromising its commercial viability.

Businesses have a duty of care to the environment and are coming under increasing pressure to report on their environmental performance. In NSW there are several pieces of legislation which apply to environmental protection issues that may result from normal business operations such as noise, air and stormwater pollution.

Canterbury Council is proud to support programs and training courses designed to assist local businesses reduce water and energy use, decrease pollution and save money. Listed below are some initiatives that may be of interest to businesses.

Solar Power Tax Break for Businesses

Small businesses with an annual turnover of under $2 million can claim a tax deduction of up to 50% on a solar power system installed on your business premises under The Small Business and General Business Tax Break legislation. Small businesses will be also able to depreciate 100% of the cost of the system over the life of the system.

Businesses with a turnover of over $2 million are eligible for a 30% deduction on capital assets worth over $10,000 that are contracted to buy pre 30 June (only needs to be paid in full and installed before 30 June 2010). Medium and large businesses will be also able to depreciate 100% of the cost of the system over the life of the system.

Please contact the Australian Tax Office or your accountant to confirm your eligibility.

NOTE: the capital deduction for medium and large businesses will decrease from 30% to 10% from 1 July 2009 and 31 December 2009 so you should act now!

Energy Efficiency for Small Business Program

The NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC) is offering a Energy Efficiency for Small Business Program to businessses that use up to $20,000 in electricity a year.

Part of the NSW Government's $150 million Energy Efficiency Strategy, the Energy Efficiency for Small Business Program offers:

financial support for a personalised energy assessment and action plan
a rebate of up to

$5,000 for businesses that use $5,000-$20,000 a year in electricity or
$2,000 for businesses that use less than $5,000 a year in electricity.

The rebate must be used for implementing energy efficiency improvements as outlined in your action plan, including lighting, heating, ventilation, air-conditioning (HVAC), hot water systems, electric motors, air compressors, commercial refrigeration and boilers.

The rebate is only available for items with a payback period of greater than 2 years.

For more information or to sign up for the Energy Efficiency for Small Business Program contact DECC Business Partnerships by phone: 1300 361 967 or e-mail: sustainbus@environment.nsw.gov.au

Sustainability Advantage

The NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC) is offering companies the opportuntiy to participate in its Sustainability Advantage program.

Participating companies commit to an 18 month involvement and a modest financial contribution. Sustainability Advantageprovides expertise, training, tools and a network of companies working with you towards sustainability.

By participating in Sustainability Advantage, companies recieve an initial management diagnostic to evaluate their current environmental performance and to rank possible initiatives. Over a minimum of 18 months companies work on tailored, flexible projects selected from Sustainability Advantagemodules which includes resource efficiency, supply chain management, environmental risks and responsibilities, climate change and vision, commitment and planning.

For more information on the Sustainability Advantage program, see the DECC wesbite or contact the DECC Business Partnerships by phone: 8837 6000 or e-mail: sustainbus@environment.nsw.gov.au.

Saving Water in Asian Restaurants

Waterless Wok - Dynasty Chef Sixty-seven (67) million liters of Sydney's water has been saved by 23 Asian restaurants replacing their water guzzling, traditional wok stove with a waterless wok stove, saving an average of 50% of the water used in the kitchen.

The 'Saving Water in Asian Restaurants' project, conducted by the Ethnic Communities Council of NSW (ECC) supported by local government and funded by the NSW Climate Change Fund, aims to reduce the use of potable water in Asian style cooking restaurants. Canterbury Council was pleased to support the 'Saving Water in Asian Restaurants' project.

In Phase 1 of the project, participating restaurant owners received a subsidy to replace the old stoves with 'waterless' wok stoves. A condition of the subsidy required old stoves to be sent to metal recyclers for dismantling. Education about the new waterless woks and other water saving techniques was provided to restaurant staff by the ECC.

Dynasty Chinese Cuisine restaurant, located inside the Canterbury Bulldogs Club, participated in Phase 1 of the project. Management at Dynasty Chinese Cuisine were concerned by the volume of water used by the restaurant and viewed the project as a way to reduce water consumption, save money and educate staff. Since installing the waterless wok stoves, Dynasty Chinese Cuisine has reduced the amount of water used by their stoves by 86.5% and is now saving $11,000 per annum. Staff awareness of water saving has greatly increased, leading to other water saving practices being adopted by the restaurant. Management were pleased with the waterless woks and have installed them in their two new sister restaurants.

The full case study for Dynasty Chinese Cuisine restaurant can be downloaded as a PDF in either Chinese or English.

Dynasty Chinese Case Study - Chinese (2.16MB)
Dynasty Chinese Case Study - English (295KB)

For more information about the Saving Water in Asian Restaurants project, including fact sheets and a quicktime movie demonstration of the waterless wok stove see the Ethnic Communities Council of NSW or contact Helen Scott, Coordinator of the project by e-mail: wok@eccnsw.org.au or phone: 0425 833 892.

Smart Rinse Program

Sydney Water is running a Smart Rinse Program. The program replaces pre rinse spray valves with a water efficient Smart Rinse valves for free. By participating in the program, you'll get at least $300 worth of the newest products and plumbing services.

To qualify you must:

already have a pre rinse spray valve and
have read and met the terms and conditions listed in the Smart Rinse Brochure.

For more information or to make a booking, please see the Sydney Water Smart Rinse Brochure, visit the Sydney Water website or call 1800 622 695.

Green Lease Guide for Office Tenants

The Green Lease Guide explains what a green lease is, provides commercial office tenants with a guide of what to consider when choosing a building or designing an office fit out and provides tips on choosing equipment.

Supporting the Green Lease Guide is the Green Lease Schedule. The Schedule contains a series of checklists that indicate the landlord's and tenant's 'green lease' commitments. The completed Schedule accompanies the lease between the landlord and tenant.

The Green Lease Guide and Schedule can be downloaded in PDF format.

Green Lease Guide (1.57MB)
Green Lease Schedule (598KB)

The Green Lease Guide was produced by a partnership between the Department of Environment & Climate Change, the City of Melbourne, the City of Sydney, the Institute for Sustainable Futures at UTS and Investa.