Melbourne to replace 15,000 street lights

The City of Melbourne will replace more than 15,000 street lights with energy-efficient LED bulbs as part of an Emissions Reduction Fund project.

The $14.4 million project is expected to create 10,000 tonnes of carbon abatement each year, said the chair of the City of Melbourne’s Environment Portfolio, Cr Arron Wood.

“We’re pleased to have our first project registered under the Emissions Reduction Fund. Public lighting accounts for nearly half of the City of Melbourne’s energy use, so we expect to save more than $1 million a year on our electricity bills,” said Wood.

The Public Lighting Upgrade Project has been registered under the commercial and public lighting method. The method credits emissions reductions from projects that improve the energy performance of lighting systems in commercial and industrial buildings or, as is the case with the City of Melbourne, in public areas. By improving existing lighting systems, less electricity is consumed and emissions associated with the generation of electricity are reduced.

The street lighting upgrade is part of a $30 million program of initiatives the City of Melbourne is undertaking using finance from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation. “This project is just one of the initiatives we are undertaking to help fast-track progress towards our municipal goal of zero net emissions by 2020,” said Wood.

Councils should be considering the range of opportunities now available under the Emissions Reduction Fund, said the chair of the Clean Energy Regulator, Chloe Munro.

“Prospects for councils are broader than just energy efficiency with methods available that can credit certain improvements in transportation and waste management.”