To encourage the use of green building materials in public infrastructure and property development, the Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry will find ways to reduce their costs.

"We can consider this. I will definitely look seriously at this. For example, the import duties on such materials," said Datuk Seri Peter Chin Fah Kui, Minister of Energy, Green Technology and Water. Chin witnessed the signing of a MOA (memorandum of agreement) between Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (Utar) and property developer Ken Holdings Bhd, for a collaborative research on green technology in housing construction.

Chin noted that the government provides tax reduction incentives to developers who incur additional costs as they submit to accreditation for being eco-friendly, such as the Malaysia's Green Building Index (GBI).

Moreover, the ministry is also promoting the implementation of green projects through the Low Carbon Cities Framework (LCCF), which is among the KPIs (key performance indicators) of the ministry this year. They have identified five key locations namely Pulau Sah Besar (Kenyir Lake, Terengganu), Miri (Sarawak), Hang Tuah Jaya (Ayer Keroh, Malacca), Universiti Malaya and Port Dickson (Negri Sembilan).

There were also efforts to utilise green technology in government buildings.

"Many government buildings are old, and were not designed to comply with GBI. We are trying to implement and retrofit (green elements) and eventually, we may be able to call Putrajaya and Cyberjaya green communities. We have discussed this with Putrajaya Holdings Sdn Bhd and Sepang Municipal council."

Leading efforts for government buildings to go green, the Works Ministry had proposed minimum standards for certification, added Chin.

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