Energy efficiency push

Age
Tuesday 1/6/2010 Page: 2

GOVERNMENTS at all levels waste $450 million of taxpayers' money a year on inflated energy bills due to inefficiencies in public buildings, an adviser to the Rudd government has found. The advice comes as the federal government looks to energy efficiencies to fill the void left by the delay of its emissions trading scheme. Its pre-election commitments are expected to include policies to improve industrial and building energy efficiency, based on options proposed by the Prime Minister's Task Group on Energy Efficiency this month.

Task group member Rob Murray-Leach found that improving public building stock could save hundreds of millions of dollars while cutting greenhouse gas emissions by about 1% a year. Mr Murray-Leach, the chief executive of industry group the Energy Efficiency Council, said governments had done little to improve energy efficiency despite advice it was the fastest and cheapest way to cut emissions without a carbon price. Mr Murray-Leach recommended investment of a quarter of the cost of government energy bills over five years to cut costs over time. The Energy Efficiency Council analysis, based on data collected by ClimateWorks Australia, found that 32% of potential efficiency savings in buildings were in public buildings - offices, schools, hospitals, post offices, libraries and museums.