NEWS DESK
Greens power up for schools
Libs’ pathway to
Neil Walker neil@baysidenews.com.au
Neil Walker neil@baysidenews.com.au
GREENS candidate for Carrum Henry Kelsall has already begun work on his election pledge to have all schools in the electorate have solar panels installed to save on power bills. Mr Kelsall, a teacher at Patterson River Secondary College, invited United Solar Energy to talk the school’s decision makers about the company’s Solar Saves Schools package. United Solar Energy has teamed up with National Australia Bank to offer a no upfront costs way for schools to install solar panels. “It would have been very tough to convince schools that are already on a very tight budget to outlay funds to pay for a solar scheme, no matter what the advantages were,” Mr Kelsall said. United Solar Energy pays all initial installation costs and leases 30 kilowatt panels to schools for ten years. The panels are then “bought” outright by a school for a nominal $100 fee at the end of the ten-year period. United Solar Energy business development manager Richard Vargas told The News schools “can save between up to 80 to 90 per cent of their electricity costs” by switching to solar power. “Schools mainly need electricity in the daytime which is ideal for solar,” he said. NAB provides finance for the school to lease the solar panels by paying a monthly fee. Mr Vargas said “the funder for the program assesses
A LONG-RUNNING mystery over exactly who should pay for the upgrades and maintenance of Carrum access pathways at Patterson River has been partially solved. The state government has finally put its hand up to take on some responsibility for eight tracks, including timber and gravel pathways which can be eroded after heavy rains, by promising to make Patterson River “accessible to all”. Nearby Patterson Lakes residents have spent more than 20 years trying to find out who is responsible for the upkeep of pathways accessed from Valetta, Tennyson, Westley, Dahmen streets and True and Riversdale Avenues (‘Pathways impasse drags on’, The News 12/6/13). The pathways, known locally as “goat tracks”, are on Melbourne Water land and managed by Parks Victoria. State governments, Kingston Council, Melbourne Water and Parks Victoria have, at various times over the past 20 years, seemingly ‘passed the buck’ on who should shell out to maintain them. Planning Minister Matthew Guy and Liberal MP Donna Bauer said on Tuesday that a re-elected Coalition government would spend $500,000 on ensuring the pathways are suitable for disabled and elderly residents visiting the banks of the river near Launching Way. Mr Guy said the promise “is another example of how this government works hard to meet the needs of all Victorians so that everyone can enjoy
Solar scheme: Greens candidate for Carrum Henry Kelsall, left, with renewable energy lecturer John Flanders at Patterson River Secondary College.
every school that applies” and solar panels will only be installed if it can be proven there will be cost savings. Mr Vargas said schools can monitor “real life savings” once the panels are installed. He said United Solar Energy is just one of 13 solar power companies nationwide “approved” by the Clean Energy Council for its “integrity” and the company had been working on its Solar Saves Schools program since July this year. The first solar panels as part of the program would be installed at a school soon, according to Mr Vargas. United Solar Energy, which has offices in South Melbourne and Hallam, had been in business for six years and installs solar panels in residential and commercial premises. Solar advocate and renewable
energy lecturer John Flanders, also a representative for United Solar Energy, said “schools joining this program become leaders for their community in bringing about environmental reform”. He said that every kilowatt hour produced by solar energy equates to a reduction of 1.37kg of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere. “Climate change is a real and frightening prospect for future generations and carbon dioxide emissions are a major part of this. Australia with its droughts, floods and bushfires is particularly vulnerable to climate change,” Mr Kelsall said. “Schools with large flat roofs and heavy power usage during daylight hours are in the perfect situation to embrace this sustainable technology.”
more of the state’s many natural attractions”. Mrs Bauer said residents and visitors had complained about the poor condition of the tracks for years. “These paths are, at times, difficult for able-bodied people to access the river and its amenities, let alone those with a disability,” she said. “I first raised the matter in Parliament on behalf of the Carrum-Patterson Lakes Village Community as far back as June 2012, then in 2013 and again in May this year. As a result, the government has listened and I am pleased to now have this welcome pledge.” Mr Guy said management of Patterson River and its amenities was a shared responsibility. “Melbourne Water owns the land, and Parks Victoria manages many of its assets, including the 10 access tracks to the river – seven on the southern side and three [including a vehicle access track] on the northern side,” he said. A disabled persons’ toilet will also be installed at Launching Way as part of the $500,000 disability package, and a disability fishing platform will be built on the river. Its site is yet to be determined.
Big step forward: Carrum MP Donna Bauer and Planning Minister Matthew Guy at the Riversdale Rd ramp to be upgraded for disabled access. Picture: Gary Sissons
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Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News 12 November 2014