URA

CORPORATE SUSTAINABILITY 39 Green Finance To support “green sustainability”, the URA has taken its first step toward investing in Green Bonds, the proceeds of which are used to fund environmentally- friendly projects. CARE FOR OUR ENVIRONMENT Environmental sustainability interweaves the various stages of urban renewal and is a tenet that drives our strategies and operations. The URA aims to spearhead green-and-smart buildings development and innovative urban design in Hong Kong to create high-quality and vibrant homes for residents. Promoting Green Buildings With planning objectives aimed at creating low- carbon neighbourhoods, green building is an essential practice to reduce the environmental impacts on the built environment and improve quality of life. The environmental impacts associated with our urban renewal projects are more substantial and far-reaching than those from our operations and managed properties. In Hong Kong, building-related activities account for 90% of the city’s total electricity consumption compared to a global average of 40%, and they account for 60% of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions. Green buildings are therefore critical to achieving energy savings in Hong Kong, whilst high environmental standards are required for both our self- developed and joint-venture projects to successfully promote green buildings with our partners. With the combined efforts of the URA and our partners, we have attained the final BEAM Plus rating for two more projects during the year up to June 2018, making a total of 14 projects with a Hong Kong BEAM Platinum rating, plus one project with a BEAM Plus Platinum rating, and one project with a BEAM Plus Gold rating. At the same time, 18 other projects in the design or construction stage have already received a provisional BEAM Plus rating. The Kai Tak Development has attained the Hong Kong BEAM Plus Platinum rating.