Solar success for CFA brigade

THE treasurer of Maiden Gully Fire Brigade said other local CFA stations could benefit from solar and battery systems like theirs.

The brigade received its 6.6-kilowatt system about 12 months ago, resulting in a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from about six tonnes to just over two.

Electricity bills have been reduced by 85 per cent, down from $1550 to $250 a year.

“The CFA pays the power bill, but it’s still community money and it’d be better to have that money go to fire trucks and better equipment,” treasurer Andrew Howlett said.

“The most obvious benefit is that when the power goes out, we don’t lose power. We can still open our doors and our computer systems don’t go down, so we’ve still got our maps.”

Mr Howlett said over the 12 months there have been at least 15 outages due to storms or maintenance work, but the solar battery keeps the power on.

He also said the project was an example of CFA brigades’ community leadership.

“We should be showing we’re responsible citizens,” he said. “We might fight fires and do all that critical stuff, but we’re also trying to do the right thing in terms of carbon.

“We understand about climate change because we see it, we’ve seen it for many years.”

The solar panels and battery were funded in part by a $12,500 Federal Government grant.

The rest of the funding, some $7200, was raised by the brigade with help from Maiden Gully IGA and Bendigo UFS Pharmacy’s healthier communities program.