Located between Western Port Bay and the Yarra Ranges on the outskirts of Melbourne, Cardinia Shire Council has officially gone green with the completion of an energy efficient street lighting program across the Shire. Over 2,000 streetlights have been replaced with environmentally friendly options.
This follows lighting retrofits of Council’s Offices and other public buildings, such as the Cardinia Cultural Centre.
Council targeted a 20 per cent reduction in its greenhouse emissions, and replacing streetlights was a major part of this commitment.
Council’s Manager Sustainable Environment Martin Teplik said Cardinia was taking action on a number of fronts to reduce its carbon footprint.
“In 2005–06, public street lighting in Cardinia Shire produced a total of 2,576 tonnes of carbon dioxide – more than 40 per cent of our total greenhouse gas emissions,” he said. “By introducing more energy efficient lighting technology, there will be significant savings for the environment and in the cost of providing street lighting.”
Cardinia Shire’s electricity distribution company SP AusNet was responsible for the delivery of the energy efficient lighting project in partnership with Council.
SP AusNet’s Central Region Manager Craig Velt said the light maintenance program was brought forward to help offset the cost of the project.
“We trialled a range of energy efficient lights to find one with an equivalent light output to that of the old lights because community safety is always the key priority when considering different street light options,” he said.
