BESS

The Built Environment Sustainability Scorecard (BESS) is an online open-source tool created and provided by local governments in Victoria, Australia, used to assess energy and water efficiency, thermal comfort, and overall environmental sustainability performance of new buildings and refits.

BESS was created to help builders and developers meet sustainability requirements in the planning permit process.  It can also be used by all community members to assess the design of their homes and find ways to make them more sustainable.

Although developers may use any tool of their choice to complete an environmental sustainable design (ESD) assessment for a planning permit application, use of BESS is recommended for all new applications.