Green lease guide launch

WSP Environment & Energy has launched a simple guide to greening the landlord and tenant Relationship to encourage the adoption of an industry standard for green lease. The guide provides a practical checklist for action between tenant and landlord and covers the key issues to be considered. These include:

• Specification of refurbishment standards, e.g. installation of low energy and water fittings and motion activated lighting
• An effective travel plan for the building
• Clear information to tenants on utility consumption for their floor and the amount of waste recycled
• Rent incentives for reductions in electricity and gas consumption
• Commitments on separating and recycling waste
• Vending and catering services that include seasonal food and Fair Trade products
• Use of renewable energy or onsite renewable energy generation

David Symons, director of corporate services at WSP Environment & Energy, explains the benefit of an industry standard: “Many landlords are already greening their operations, but they can find it difficult to raise their tenants’ performance. A clear, practical and simple agreement on joint responsibilities for environmental issues provides a great way forward. An industry standard would provide this framework.”

Green terms can be included in the lease itself, although a more flexible approach would be to include environmental commitments in a “tenant handbook”, which tenants and landlords agree to follow as part of their lease agreement.