The chairman of the Jakarta branch of the Indonesian Real Estate Association (REI), Setyo Maharso, warned the ruling would backfire as it would only burden the business owing to soaring prices if the administration failed to prepare property-related industries.

"The property-related industries should be able to offer cheaper *environmentally friendly* products," Setyo told The Jakarta Post via telephone Thursday.

He said property-related industries included suppliers of building material such as certified wood products, steel, environmentally friendly toilet flushes and sprinklers.

"If the suppliers are not prepared, developers will be forced to import products that in turn raise property prices," he said.

The city plans to require future construction projects meet energy efficiency standards set in the decree, including water and electricity efficiency.

Setyo also urged the administration to show its commitment to enforcing the regulation once it was endorsed.

Jakarta Building Supervisory Agency head Hari Sasongko earlier cited a draft bylaw now being deliberated by City Council that would allow the administration to not issue building permits should developers fail to meet environmental standards.

Hari said his agency would not issue any certificates assessing how "green" a building was, but rather it set certain benchmark ratings.

PT Ciputra Property director Artadinata Djangkar said he hoped the city would not only impose sanctions for violations, but also offer incentives to developers who adhered to the regulation.

"The city can offer incentives in the form of discounts in issuing permits or allow us to add to a building's height," he told the Post.

He said suppliers for a number of building materials were ready to cater to the high demand for environmentally friendly material, but since the supply of several products, including glass, was limited, many developers had to turn to imports.

Artadinata called on the administration to carefully think over the regulation.

He said clear definitions and requirements in the green building regulation should be thoroughly studied prior to its implementation.

"What is important is educating people about the green building concept because this is a new concept to many," he said.

Recently, the Green Building Council Indonesia (GBCI) launched its Greenship building rating system to assess the environmental standards of new buildings.

The system covers six criteria - the use of site, energy, water and materials, indoor quality and environment management.

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