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 Green Star Technical Clarification Rulings

Technical Clarifications for Green Star represent our answers to Technical Questions submitted by projects, and provide further guidance and reference to others. The list is regularly updated.  

There are two types of Technical Clarifications listed in the table below:

General Clarifications

These are extensions to the guidance provided in the Submission Guidelines. They clarify and sometimes supersede the original Credit Criteria or 
Compliance Requirements. General Clarifications set precedent for future project teams to follow. Should a project team wish to apply a general clarification to its project, there is no requirement for further Technical Questions to be submitted. NZGBC Assessors will also use them as precedents to assess submissions.

Project Specific Clarifications

These are published as references for other projects but, unlike General Clarifications, they do not set precedent. They often relate to special 
situations where multiple prerequisites exist for a particular project and are less likely to reoccur to another project. Therefore, rulings set for Project Specific Clarifications are often conditional and will likely vary for other projects. Each project still needs to submit its own Technical Questions and provides evidence relating to its own building in order to have a similar ruling approved for that specific building. 

Should you wish to apply any Technical Clarification for legacy rating tools to your projects, please submit a Technical Question to the NZGBC to 
explain why and how it applies. You can access the online Technical Question form here

Technical Question Title Tool Version Date Released Credit Name Sub-credit Name TC Link
Climate Zones DABv1, INTv1 November 2020 14 - Thermal Comfort Thermal Comfort
Approved Ruling:
The current clause regarding applicable climate zones for Prescriptive Thermal Comfort Requirements refers to NCC (the Australian Building Code) Climate Zones. As a clarification for New Zealand projects, the following amended clause will replace the original clause on page 148 for Design and As Built and page 126 for Interiors. “This option can be applied in climate zones 1-3, as identified on the climate zone map in NZS 4243.1:2007 Figure A1 – Climate Zones, except for the following regions which are required to demonstrate compliance via thermal modelling: • The central plateau of the north island • Queenstown lakes, Mackenzie, Western Waitaki, Central Otago”