Learning Centre » Greenhouse Strategy

Greenhouse Strategy

Our Greenhouse Strategy provides the framework to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, energy use and waste.

This includes an aspirational target of zero net emissions and 75% renewable energy use by 2018.

We've planted more than 60,000 trees at the Black Rock environmental precinct.

We've planted more than 60,000 trees at the Black Rock environmental precinct.

The need to reduce our emissions

We're delivering our most ambitious capital works program in history, investing in new infrastructure to meet demand, future growth and the address climate change. This level of construction requires significant energy.

Water and sewage are heavy; their treatment and distribution are energy-intensive processes.

The water sector is among the top 20 electricity consumers in Australia.

Our current emissions are more than 52,000 tonnes (CO2 equivalent) a year, equivalent to that created by 12,000 cars.

If we don't act, our emissions will double by 2050, due to demand alone.

 

Progress so far

Since 2004, we've conducted a yearly environmental footprint assessment.

A number of energy avoidance and reduction actions have reduced our emissions by 5% a year. Strategies include:

  • energy audits
  • pump upgrades
  • switching vehicles from petrol to LPG
  • installing solar powered monitoring systems.

We also operate a mini hydro-electric power station at the Montpellier basin and a wind turbine at the Black Rock environmental precinct.
 

The future

Our strategy establishes 5 greenhouse gas abatement programs:

  1. Avoiding emissions with innovative new infrastructure design.
  2. Optimising efficiency of our systems.
  3. Switching to alternative and renewable energy and recovering waste energy.
  4. Maximising carbon sequestration from our plantations and revegetation.
  5. Purchasing carbon offsets.

  

More information


Page last updated Monday 17 May 2010

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