Murdoch University has partnered with Master Builders WA, the building and construction industry association, to tackle real-life construction waste issues on building sites. [ + ]

University of New South Wales (UNSW) researchers have improved a standard remediation practice in order to speed up the degradation of toxic industrial chemicals in contaminated groundwater.

CSIRO scientists have designed and installed a solar thermal field - a half-acre plot of land consisting of 50 special mirrors called heliostats - for a research institute on the island nation of Cyprus, Europe. [ + ]

Infratech Industries has launched a floating solar system that will generate an estimated 57% more power than fixed land-based systems. [ + ]

Power and automation company ABB has been awarded a contract for the supply and installation of an electric vehicle (EV) charging solution for the Australian Energy Research Institute.

International design practice HASSELL is overseeing architecture, interior design, urban design and landscape architecture for a $120 million development at a disused flour mill. [ + ]

Sustainability-focused property consultancy Viridis Australasia has become the first organisation in Australia - and the 13th worldwide - to be awarded JUST certification. [ + ]

University of Queensland start-up company TenasiTech has received more than $3 million in investor support for the development of scratch-resistant and environmentally sustainable acrylic glass, suitable for use in the computer, electronics and automotive industries. [ + ]

Building materials supplier Hanson recently hosted a site tour at its Lytton concrete plant for students from Queensland University of Technology (QUT). There, the students witnessed a combination of complex production processes and sound environmental management in practice. [ + ]

A University of Queensland PhD candidate has developed a cheap and simple technique allowing scientists to better adapt grain crops such as wheat to drought conditions, which are predicted to become more frequent and severe due to climate change. [ + ]

Glass-fronted office buildings are some of the biggest energy consumers, and regulating their temperature is a big job. Now a facade element developed by Fraunhofer researchers and designers for glass fronts is to reduce energy consumption by harnessing solar thermal energy. A demonstrator version will be on display at Hannover Messe. [ + ]

Property group Stockland has selected Todae Solar and Canadian Solar to install a 1.22 MW rooftop solar system on Stockland Shellharbour Shopping Centre in the Illawarra region of NSW. Once completed, the system will be Australia's largest single-building rooftop solar system. [ + ]

An applicator of Rhino Linings Australasia recently won the tender to repair the inside and outside of the 80 metre-diameter, above-ground, steel potable water storage tank located at the Hospital Hill Reservoir in Murwillumbah, NSW. [ + ]

Four Monash University graduates have worked with the Vinyl Council of Australia (VCA), PVC manufacturers and recyclers to find solutions for recycling PVC-coated polyester fabric into new product. [ + ]

Researchers from Michigan State University (MSU) have revealed that several additives that claim to break down polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate simply don't work in common disposal situations such as landfills or composting. [ + ]