Help green the planet

Coffs Coast Advocate
Saturday 8/12/2007 Page: 73

NIMBIN'S Rainbow Power Company is on the cusp of a boom that's been 20 years in the making. The company formed in 1987 at a time when the greenhouse effect was, to many people, mere catch phrases of the green movement and the prospect of climate change was hotly debated. "Carbon emissions were not in the popular language then, but we knew we had to get smarter on how we're treating this planet, and it's unfortunately all come to fruition," Rainbow Power Company administration officer Karen Welsh said. "We'd be much better off if we'd introduced the sorts of policies we're trying to introduce now 20 years ago." Not that they haven't been trying.

The Rainbow Power Company sells a broad mix of green energy systems, ranging from solar panels, small hydro- electric systems and wind turbines through to appliances such as a solar cookers, water-powered fans, and environmentally-friendly toilets. The company not only sells locally, but exports as well. It has been involved in a number of renewable energy programs around the world, such as setting up solar powered water pumps in Papua New Guinea, solar powered communications equipment in Somalia, setting up hydro- electricity for a village in Ecuador, and solar powered electric fences in France.

But it's the Australian rebates for renewable energies that is driving the new boom. Rebates introduced in July provide up to $8000 for households setting up renewable energy systems and up to half the cost of setting up those systems for remote properties. The new Labor Government went to the election pledging low-interest loans of up to $10,000 per household to set up renewable energy systems. That means the Rainbow Power Company is expecting a surge in business and is now recruiting a new sales person and a new solar installer.

Ms Welsh said the company expected to open up still more positions in the new year. From an employee's point of view, Rainbow Power Company is a bit different. Export manager Dave Lambert said the company modelled itself on a workers' co-operative, adopting many of the practices of such co-ops. Those practices included a standard base-rate of pay for everyone in the company regardless of their position, although people in specialist positions did get allowances; for example, a solar panel installer gets a $15 per day tool allowance.

All workers at the company were encouraged to buy shares and take an active role in its growth and direction; only people working in the company - who were also shareholders - were able to vote at company meetings; and every voting shareholder had an equal voice, regardless of the number of shares they owned.