RECENT data from Powercor shows the Ballarat area\u2019s installation rates of solar rose by 18.78 per cent last year.<\/p>\n
In 2019, 5254 solar systems were installed. Mary Debrett, the president of Ballarat Renewable Energy and Zero Emissions, BREAZE, said this uptake \u201cspeaks to the success\u201d of the State government\u2019s Solar Homes Program.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a fantastic result. The program\u2019s been a wonderful thing and highly effective, driving this amount of uptake across this region, and it\u2019s done wonders across the state,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt gives people a subsidy, a grant to get solar, and it\u2019s available to homeowners and renters if their landlords consent and they meet the criteria. It\u2019s brilliant.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe uptake of that has been 50-50 across the under 50s and over 50s age groups, and across the board in terms of household incomes. Regardless of income, people are seeing the no-lose benefits of investing in solar.\u201d<\/p>\n
Paul Gilbert installed a five-kilowatt solar system at his Ballarat property this year. Having explored sustainable energy options, solar was his first port of call.<\/p>\n
\u201cI compared systems and installation companies, including Melbourne, and settled on a local firm,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey, along with the generous Federal and State government subsidies enabled me to start the first of a few initiatives I will undertake.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel the use of solar energy, especially in the domestic application, should continue to be pushed and supported by governments.\u201d<\/p>\n
With such low operation costs, Ms Debrett said a transition to solar, like Mr Gilbert\u2019s, is a no-brainer, as BREAZE works to reduce the release of greenhouse gases across the region, and reach zero emissions by 2030.<\/p>\n
As the host of Ballarat\u2019s Community Power Hub, BREAZE received $1.1 million last month from the State government for shovel-ready solar projects around the city.<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout seven projects across Ballarat received $450,000 in total, and that\u2019s going to be a lot of solar. A brilliant result.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll we can do is think global and act local, and that\u2019s what BREAZE is dedicated to. We\u2019ve only got a decade left, so we\u2019re committed to doing whatever we can,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot everyone can afford to make the jump to solar, but it is a great first step. People need to do whatever they can to reduce their carbon footprint.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
RECENT data from Powercor shows the Ballarat area\u2019s installation rates of solar rose by 18.78 per cent last year. In 2019, 5254 solar systems were installed. Mary Debrett, the president of Ballarat Renewable Energy and Zero Emissions, BREAZE, said this uptake \u201cspeaks to the success\u201d of the State government\u2019s Solar Homes Program. \u201cThis is a […]<\/p>\n