Mitigating Our Emissions

A committee of the Southern Tasmanian Councils Authority, the Regional Climate Change Initiative was established in 2010. The Regional Climate Change Initiative aims to provide leadership, and facilitate collaboration on and coordination of climate change activities across the Southern region.

Examples of previous projects include the Home Energy Audit Toolkit (still available for loan by residents), bulk purchase programs of household energy efficiency products, and the Regional and Municipal Community Energy and Emissions Profiles. Current projects include the Southern Regional Coastal Hazards Strategy, the Regional and Municipal Council Climate Profiles and the Regional Climate Change Strategy and Council Action Plans.

Huon Valley Council is an active participant and contributor to the Regional Climate Change
Initiative.

Council joined the Cities Power Partnership in July 2017. The Cities Power Partnership is a program of the Climate Council specifically for local government. Council was an ‘early adopter’ of this program, signing up in Round 1. Currently, over 100 councils in Australia have joined, including four in Tasmania. Councils who join make five pledges in renewable energy, efficiency, transport or working in partnership to tackle climate change.

Huon Valley Council has been running an internal energy efficiency program for a few years now, with some major projects on the board. For example, the Port Huon Sports Centre lighting has been converted from metal-halide to LED, and at the Huonville Pool the energy efficiency has been substantially improved by the installation of a reverse cycle water heater. Huon Valley Council have an employee-led carpooling program, and run environmental projects out of the NRM unit.

Addressing global warming is crucial to sustaining a healthy and safe community and environment in the Huon Valley. Huon Valley Council hope to contribute by reducing organisational greenhouse gas emissions through practical and cost-saving measures such as energy-efficient fit-outs and supporting electric vehicles. Strategic planning will play an important role in promoting active transport. Huon Valley Council also aim to empower and support the community in an uncertain future.

Huon Valley Council looks forward to networking with other Cities Power Partners, and working cooperatively to achieve outcomes. Gaining knowledge and learnings from other local governments will assist regional/rural municipalities to apply initiatives in the best way possible.

In January 2018, Council confirmed the first five pledges:

1. Ensure Council fleet purchases meet strict greenhouse gas emissions requirements and support the uptake of electric vehicles.
2. Provide fast-charging infrastructure throughout the city at key locations for electric vehicles.
3. Adopt best practice energy efficiency measures across all Council buildings, and support community facilities to adopt these measures.
4. Public lighting can use a large proportion of a city’s energy budget – roll out energy efficient lighting (particularly street lighting) across the municipality.
5. Install renewable energy (solar PV and battery storage) on Council buildings for example childcare facilities, libraries, street lighting, recreation centres, sporting grounds, and Council offices.

Council has undertaken a number of energy efficiency retrofits over the past decade. These include an upgrade in 2013 of the heating system at the Huonville Swimming Pool from an inductive 132kW direct element heating system to two heat pumps that are supported by a solar collector thermal system that heats the pool water during sunny days. The element heating system was costly to operate and failed frequently. The new system has an automated thermostatically controlled system that turns the heat pumps off at 26.5°C thus maximising the solar collector thermal system.

The recent renovation at the offices at 23 Main St in Huonville had a skylight and LEDs installed, with energy efficiency a priority. Other lights in Council buildings have been replaced with LEDs, and there is a general commitment to preference energy efficient options where viable when fixtures and appliances are due for replacement.

In 2017, the Local Government Association of Tasmania (LGAT) commissioned Ironbark Sustainability to review the business case for councils in the Southern region to replace streetlights. The report found that there were 577 streetlights in the Huon Valley area that were of a type where more energy efficient replacement options were available. Two scenarios were compared:

1. Council immediately funding the conversion of lights to LED before the end of their asset lives;
2. TasNetworks funding the conversion to LED as lights fail.

Scenario one had a substantial upfront capital cost, lower on-going maintenance and electricity costs, and saved approximately 505 t CO2-e over 20 years.

Scenario two had a zero upfront capital cost, greater maintenance and electricity costs, and saved approximately 462 t CO2 -e over 20 years.

It should be noted that energy prices are difficult to forecast and are predicted to increase. Currently, Council is subscribed to scenario two, a decision that was largely based on the significant upfront cost of scenario one.

This report also earmarked that more lights are expected to become available as LED technology improves, as well as technology relating to light control and data management.

A solar photovoltaic system was installed on top of the Huonville Town Hall and Council Chambers in 2019. The system has a maximum output of 43kW and has approximately a five-year payback period. For this installation, Council was required to carefully consider the best location for the panels and ensure the heritage values of the Town Hall were not impacted.

Council has investigated the viability of installing solar photovoltaic systems on several other Council buildings. These include the Council Depot and the Huon Valley Hub at 23 Main St. Current challenges to these installations include poor payback periods for sites that use comparably less electricity (electricity generated cannot be transferred to another meter), and complications with roof design. Other Council sites that have high daytime energy usage are flagged for future considerations for solar photovoltaic systems.

Council was accepted into the ‘Smarter Fleets Program – Electric Vehicles in Local Government’ on 28th August 2018. This program was an initiative of the Department of Premier and Cabinet’s Tasmanian Climate Change Office and was delivered by Sustainable Living Tasmania. The program provided Council with tailored advice and support, including an analysis of the current fleet and a personalised Electric Vehicle Integration Plan with recommendations (received 25th March 2019).

In February 2020, Council purchased its first fully electric fleet vehicle – a Hyundai loniq. While this purchase cost more than an equivalent combustion engine car at the time, it is expected to cost less to run and maintain. These cost savings on fuel and maintenance can bring the overall cost of an electric vehicle closer to that of an equivalent combustion engine car the longer the electric vehicle is retained in the fleet. Council also sees this purchase as an important step to consider operational factors, train staff in the use of electric vehicles and to take the lead in moving away from combustion engine vehicles.

Currently, the viability of a fast transition to electric vehicles is limited by the availability of specific plant equipment, ability to tow, capital cost and fringe benefit tax considerations. However, the range of models available is expected to rapidly expand over the next five years, with costs reducing as the market expands. Council will be well placed to expand on its transition to electric vehicles with the experience gained through the current vehicle and the establishment of local charging infrastructure.

Council received a $5,000 ChargeSmart Workplace Grant in 2018 for the installation of a 22kW electric vehicle charger in Huonville. This charger is situated in the public carpark behind 23 Main St. and is available for staff use as well as public use.

In 2019, Council was successful in an application for a $50,000 ChargeSmart Fast-charging Grant. This grant partially funded a 50kW public electric vehicle fast charger in Geeveston which became operational in 2020.

In 2020, a greenhouse gas inventory for Huon Valley Council operations was completed by Sustainable Living Tasmania. This data is critical to understanding the sources of GHG emissions from Council operations and subsequently where mitigation actions should be targeted. A number of recommendations have come from this inventory, of which many are incorporated into this mitigation plan.

The key findings include:

• Total GHG emissions for the 2018-19 financial year were 963,407 kg CO2-e.
• GHG emissions were 5% lower than the previous year (2017-18) due to a reduction in fuel use.
• Fuel use (Scope 1 GHG emissions) accounted for over 77% of emissions, with road works using the most fuel.
• Electricity use (Scope 2 GHG emissions) was the next greatest contributor, with street lights, sports facilities (such as swimming pools) and the Huonville offices using the most energy.
• Some potentially significant sources of GHG emissions that were not included in the inventory require further investigation – including those related to refrigerants, landfill sites, roads, and additional Scope 3 GHG emission sources (i.e. indirect sources excluding electricity use from the grid).
• Tasmania generally enjoys a low emission factor14 compared with mainland Australia for electricity use, due to the majority of electricity being hydro-generated. However, some of Tasmania’s power demands are met by imported electricity that is generated by burning coal, and the use of natural gas at the Tamar Valley Power Station15. When considered cumulatively across Council’s electricity use, the associated GHG emissions are still significant.

When compared to the annual community GHG emissions total for 2016-17, Council’s GHG emissions for 2018-19 represent approximately 0.6% of that total.

In 2018, Council participated in the Southern Tasmania Regional and Municipal Energy and Emissions Project. This project was funded by the STCA through the RCCI. It looked at the source of GHG emissions in the community (relating to energy use; excluding methane from wastewater and agriculture, carbon from land clearing, and scope 3 GHG emissions) for the Southern region and participating councils. This data is critical to understanding the sources of GHG emissions in the broader community and subsequently where education or advocacy efforts should be targeted to support a reduction in the community’s emissions.

Key findings for the Huon Valley included:

• Solar is popular, with over 1,200 solar photovoltaic installations and 400 solar hot water systems.
• Industry accounted for 45% of GHG emissions.
• Energy use for transport has reduced by 21% but still accounts for at least a third of community emissions.
• A high percentage of vehicles over 10 years old (67%) and high emissions intensity vehicles.
• Increasing energy use in the residential, commercial and agricultural and forestry sectors contributed to higher overall emissions.
• Electricity use in the commercial sector doubled between 2006-07 and 2016-17.
• Residential wood use decreased 32% but still accounts for over a third of residential energy use.
• Energy efficient products and behaviour are helping to slow the increase in overall energy use.
• GHG emissions increased by 9% from 142,832t C02-e in 2006-07 to 156,841t CO2-e in 2016-17.

While the STCA study focused on energy use, it is important to consider the contribution of land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF), methane from wastewater and agriculture, and scope 3 GHG emissions. Whilst we do not have local data to quantify the exact contributions of GHG emissions from these sectors, it is clear that the combined contribution for agriculture and forestry is greater than the 7% shown below. Changes in the LULUCF sector have a major impact on Tasmania’s GHG emissions and carbon sequestration. Between 1990 and 2017, GHG emissions from LULUCF reduced by 172%. However, between 2016 and 2017, Tasmania’s GHG emissions increased by 1.20 Mt CO2-e, with lower rates of sequestration and re-growth in previously harvested forests and plantations responsible for 66% of the change.

The Community Energy and Emissions Profile is a project of the Regional Climate Change Initiative –
an STCA committee that Council has participated in for several years. The project provided a regional
summary of municipal level energy use and greenhouse gas emissions for each of the 12 southern
Tasmanian councils. The summary report for the Huon Valley can be found here on The Southern Tasmanian Councils Authority STCA website.