Warrnambool Standard
Friday 16/3/2007 Page: 1
ALMOST one in 10 Warrnambool residents are buying more expensive green power and preventing at least 587 tonnes of carbon emissions every year, according to Sustainability Victoria.
Nine per cent of Origin Energy consumers are opting to use the environmentally-friendly green power, which is more than the state average. Each year 537 Origin clients save 375 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, by choosing electricity from renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, biomass and hydro power.
TRU Energy green power users save about 212 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions each year. Sustainability Victoria program manager Kim Barnett said about eight per cent of the state's population had switched to green power. "Of the 5700 Origin customers in Warrnambool, 537 people and 12 businesses are using green power," Ms Barnett said.
Colac lags behind Warrnambool with only 6.7 per cent of users signing up to the renewable source. Colac is saving 121 tonnes per annum.
When choosing green power, customers allow the energy company to buy renewable energy from renewable sources rather than coal-fired power stations. Origin customers have the option of selecting 100 per cent wind or solar energy or a combination of 20 per cent wind and 80 per cent hydro power. For one dollar a week, Origin customers can opt to have 20 per cent of their energy supply come from renewable sources.
The south-west is home to two wind farms and 13 more have been proposed. Five of the 13 have received approval. State Government figures show twice as many Victorians are paying for the renewable source compared to all other states.
Minister for Energy and Resources Peter Batchelor said the number of Victorian users had doubled from 80,000 in December 2005 to more than 157,000 in December last year. In the past year, Victorians have cut greenhouse gas emissions by 188,489 tonnes, the equivalent of removing 43,520 cars from Victorian roads.
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