News

Capital cities commit to 41% emissions cut by 2020

5 November 2009

Australia's capital cities have committed to building retrofits, clean energy rollouts and transport improvements projected to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 57 million tonnes a year by 2020.

The commitment by the cities' Lord Mayors follows a report by consultancy Kinesis on the abatement potential of Australia's capital cities.

The commitment encompasses initiatives to reduce emissions in commercial and retail buildings, homes and from transport.

Activities outside the direct control of city managers - such as freight and industrial emissions - are excluded.

The commitments amount to a 41% reduction on projected business-as-usual emissions and would make a major contribution to meeting the Federal Government's emissions reduction target.

Actions to be taken by cities include:

• residential and commercial building efficiency retrofits - a 40% reduction in lighting electricity consumption by 2015 through the introduction of more efficient lighting technology, and a 10% reduction in appliance electricity consumption through minimum energy performance standards by 2020;
• district combined cooling heat and power (CCHP) - using gas-fired cogeneration systems to generate electricity and provide heat for 11% of homes , 13% of non-residential buildings in urban core areas and 6% of non-residential dwellings in non-core areas by 2020;
• waste to energy technology - divert ing50% of the non-recycled residential and non-residential waste stream from landfill by 2015 and using the methane to generate electricity;
• street lighting efficiencies - converting 100% of the urban area's street lighting to high efficiency LED lighting by 2020;
• transport improvements - reducing emissions through improving public transport, encouraging the uptake of cycling, improving private vehicle fuel efficiency by approximately 50% and converting a proportion of vehicles to sustainable energy by 2020;
• employee density/residential density - reducing the commercial floor area per employee by 20% by 2020 and increasing population density to moving people closer to services; and
• renewable energy - replacing 100% of low-density residential, 80% of multi-unit and 30% of commercial building hot water systems with solar hot water and using renewable energy to generate 25% of the remaining electricity used by homes and businesses in urban areas.

The cities announced their commitment ahead of the Climate Summit for Mayors in Copenhagen next month, with Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore MP, and Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Robert Doyle set to attend as Australia's delegates.

"If these bold commitments can encourage government and industry to follow suit, Australia will be well on the way to meeting sustainable targets," said Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore MP.