As local governments continue to face the challenge of delivering more essential infrastructure services to their communities, it’s important for them to prioritise sustainable infrastructure development. By implementing a series of sustainable infrastructure practices, they can minimize environmental impacts and reduce long-term maintenance costs, while providing reliable and effective services to their communities. Here are three big concepts to consider.
Green infrastructure
One way that local governments can promote sustainable infrastructure development is by prioritizing green infrastructure projects. Green infrastructure refers to the use of natural systems such as parks, wetlands, and green roofs to manage stormwater, reduce heat island effects, and improve air quality. By investing in green infrastructure projects, local governments can help to minimize the environmental impact of their infrastructure development projects and create more livable and sustainable communities.
Energy-efficient technologies
Another important consideration for sustainable infrastructure development is the use of energy-efficient technologies. By adopting energy-efficient building designs and technologies, local governments can reduce the energy consumption of their infrastructure projects and lower long-term maintenance costs. For example, the use of solar panels, energy-efficient lighting systems, and smart building technologies can help to reduce energy use and costs over the long term. It can also provide a catalyst for local businesses to follow because local government purchasing helps create the market for these services.
Leveraging the power of data and technology
In addition to promoting sustainable infrastructure development through green infrastructure and energy-efficient technologies, local governments can leverage the power of data and technology to optimize infrastructure operations and maintenance. By investing in asset management systems and predictive maintenance technologies (PMTs), local governments can improve infrastructure performance and reduce the need for costly and disruptive repairs and replacements. The pros and cons of asset management systems and PMTs needs to be carefully considered to ensure the business cases for leveraging these approaches generates financial and economic returns.
Infrastructure that is sustainable reduces or avoids some of the pitfalls of the build-and-forget approach. It better embeds the service delivery ethos required to extact the maximum value for ratepayers and the wider community.
How far along the sustainable infrastructure journey is your organisation?
Lytton Advisory 