CITY of Fremantle has earmarked 2025 as the year they will become fully reliant on renewable energy.
Working alongside a consortium formed by Josh Byrne and Associates, InfraNomics and Merz Consulting, the City has created a Corporate Energy Plan that outlines the steps needed to make all corporate operations run on 100 per cent renewable energy in the next eight years.
Actions outlined in the eight-step plan include continually reduce energy consumption in buildings, maximising local renewable production without increasing the City’s energy costs, updating street and park lights to LED and setting up an emissions-per-kilometre target for council vehicles.
Fremantle strategic planning and project director Paul Garbett said their One Planet Strategy’s Zero Carbon principle outlined the need for energy efficient buildings and having power generated from 100 per cent renewable sources by 2025.
“The council recognised that in order to achieve the target contained in its One Planet Fremantle Strategyof having all of the City’s own buildings and facilities powered by 100 per cent renewable energy by 2025, it needed a more detailed plan to guide decisions about what specific action needed to be taken over a number of years,” he said.
“The Energy Plan forecasts a progressive change over a number of years in the source of energy used by the City, so that by 2025 approximately 80 per cent of all energy used is ‘green’ energy supplied through the Western Power grid and 20 per cent is provided from solar panels on the City’s own buildings.
“Reducing reliance on energy generated from non-renewable fossil fuels is a major way the City can play its part in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the consumption of non-renewable natural resources such as coal and gas.
“As a relatively large organisation, the City hopes that by demonstrating leadership in environmental responsibility it can encourage others to do the same.”
Mr Garbett said this push for a high level of energy efficiency was already incorporated into their new administration building.
“The design includes features such as passive ventilation for heating and cooling, which will mean that for much of the year air conditioning should not need to be used, and the installation of a large number of solar panels on the roof of the building,” he said.
Fremantle Mayor Brad Pettitt said it was going to be one of the most low carbon, energy efficient buildings of its size in Australia.
Councillors will vote whether to accept the plan on September 27.
This article was first published in the Fremantle Gazette on 19 September 2017