Efficient buildings could save millions of taxpayer dollars

Improving the energy efficiency of its building portfolio could cut the federal government’s energy expenditure by more than $35 million per year, the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) says. To do this, the government needs to improve the energy efficiency of its building portfolio.

“As the election campaign heats up, the GBCA is calling on all political parties to outline their policies to improve the energy efficiency, and cut the emissions and costs, of all federal government buildings,” said the GBCA’s COO, Robin Mellon.

In 2011-12, more than 6.2 million GJ of electricity was used to power federal government facilities, generating approximately 1.67 million tonnes of CO₂. The GBCA has calculated the cost of this electricity at $205 per MWh, amounting to an annual power bill of more than $350 million.

A 10% improvement would save more than $35 million a year in energy costs, Mellon says, and would reduce carbon emissions by 167,000 tonnes - the equivalent of taking 46,000 cars off the road.

“We have solid evidence that Green Star-certified buildings across the country consume 66% less energy and produce 62% fewer greenhouse gas emissions than average Australian buildings, so a 10% improvement is entirely achievable,” Mellon said.

The GBCA predicts the federal government’s power bill, if it continues to consume electricity at the same rate as 2011-12, will exceed $440 million.

“Clearly we cannot afford to spend $440 million a year simply to power our federal government buildings. This makes improving the energy efficiency of our government buildings a national priority. A commitment to improving these buildings is just one way the Australian Government can lead by example while saving taxpayer dollars,” Mellon said.

The Victorian Government reportedly aims to reduce energy use by 40-50%, saving up to $2 billion over 20 years. It has also committed to a minimum of 5 Star Green Star and 5 Star NABERS Energy-rated office spaces for new leases, which is helping to deliver energy and water cost savings and more productive working environments.

“We call on each political party to outline how they plan to save money, energy and greenhouse gas emissions with policies that set out clear targets, pathways and incremental improvements,” Mellon said.

“A commitment to using the Green Star Performance rating tool for all government-owned, -operated and -occupied buildings will help the incoming government to benchmark the performance of all building types and identify opportunities for incremental improvement.”