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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Energy Consumption and GHG Calculation Guide | DABv1.1 | April 2023 | 15 - Greenhouse Gas Emissions | Greenhouse Gas Emissions | Link |
|
Approved Ruling: Clarification of the Energy Consumption and GHG Calculation Guide v1.1, on the scope of loads to be included in the Energy Model: Section 6.1.1 defines the Scope of Energy End Use Inclusions, including among others, ‘All water supply and treatment systems…’ and ‘systems provided as part of the services engineer’s scope of works…’ Table 1, Item 18- Other Energy Consumption states ‘All services required for the operation of the project’ for the Proposed Building and ‘None’ for the Reference Building.
This discrepancy would reduce the energy use reductions by including standard systems within the Proposed Building but not the Reference Building, which is not the intent. The only systems that are to be included in the Proposed but not Reference Building, are those that are specifically added to provide sustainability benefits to the project such as rainwater pumps and filtration systems. Any other system which is ‘provided as part of the services engineer’s scope of works’ (BMS, Security, etc.) is to be included in both the Proposed and the Reference Building. |
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