March 4, 2022
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Bald step for cancer Two Bellarine Community Health staff are going above and beyond to do their part for the health and safety of the community. Alexandra Mrak and Kathleen Mangan are taking a stand against blood cancer by taking the ‘bald’ step to shave their hair as part of the Leukaemia Foundation’s World’s Greatest Shave. The World’s Greatest Shave aims to raise funds to support people diagnosed with blood cancer. “As we both work in the health sector, we see the impact that cancers have on families and we both felt it would be great to contribute towards a cure by raising funds to help with research,” Kathleen said. The duo are actively fundraising from the community but they’re also donating their own pay packets to the cause. Between them, the ladies are cashing in a week’s annual leave as a donation. The ‘big snip’ will take place outside Bellarine Community Health’s Point Lonsdale site from 11.30am on Thursday, March 17. Alexandra Mrak and Kathleen Mangan. (Supplied)
Hydrogen drives Geelong By Ash Bolt Geelong could be serviced by hydrogen-powered buses and garbage trucks within two years under a new project announced by Viva Energy. Viva Energy on Tuesday announced it would develop a New Energies Service Station at its Geelong refinery to kick start a shift to hydrogen power for heavy vehicles. The service station will be Australia’s first publicly accessible commercial hydrogen refuelling station and is expected to begin operations in late 2023. It will also be a key component of Viva Energy’s Geelong Energy Hub. The $43.3 million project will incorporate a
two-megawatt electrolyser for the generation of green hydrogen using recycled water from Barwon Water’s Northern Water Plant. The dispensers will be able to fill up 10 heavy vehicles in 90 minutes. Viva Energy managing director Scott Wyatt said it was designed to facilitate the commercial deployment of hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles in industries that couldn’t be easily decarbonised, including road freight, public transport, municipal waste management, water treatment and general fleet. “This project puts hydrogen-powered vehicles on the road to prove their value in day-to-day commercial operations while reducing the carbon footprint of the heavy vehicle transport
we rely on every day,” he said. “At Viva Energy we believe that hydrogen has a key role to play in decarbonising heavy transport by replacing diesel with hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric vehicles. “Hydrogen carries energy which is made from green electricity and water and is converted back into electricity as it is consumed by the vehicle. As a result, it is lightweight, has enough energy for long distance travel and can be refueled much more quickly than traditional battery electric vehicles. “Hydrogen, in our view, is therefore ideal for heavy vehicle commercial applications where payload, distance and availability are critical. “The need to replace and recycle batteries is
eliminated and the drivers refueling experience is very similar to filling the truck with diesel.” The project has received support from the federal government through a $22.8 million grant from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency’s (ARENA) Advancing Renewable Programs. The state government have also contributed $1 million to the project. Viva Energy will work with several organisations locally to initially introduce a fleet of 15 hydrogen-powered vehicles which would be refuelled at the station. ■ Continued:
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