Energy
Students can take an active role in managing their school’s energy consumption. They have the potential for becoming the leaders for energy conservation in the school and the wider community. They already take an active role being among the best users of public transport.
Australians are the leading producers, per capita, of greenhouse gases. Most of these gases come from burning fossil fuels and produce the 'enhanced greenhouse effect' or global warming.
It is estimated that Victorian schools contribute over a third of a million tonnes of greenhouse gases annually through direct energy use, particularly electricity, natural gas, LPG, and heating oil. An even larger contribution comes from the use of transport fuels in accessing the school.
The EPA (1994) measured greenhouse gas emissions from Victorian schools as:
- 33% from travel to school;
- 27% from heating, cooling and hot water;
- 18% from lights, classroom, office and canteen electricity;
- 15% from paper, packaging and material use; and
- 7% from food wastes.
Annual benchmarks developed by the Sustainable Energy Authority Victoria (SEAV) and its Energy Smart Schools (ESS) program have calculated energy per primary student as 1.8 gigajoules, $39.00 and 321 kilograms of carbon dioxide, and per secondary student as 4.2 gigajoules, $65 and 628 kilograms of carbon dioxide.
What can Sustainable Schools expect to achieve?
Sustainable Schools can expect the following outcomes from the Energy theme:
- Engage students to be leaders in energy conservation
- Students provide solutions for energy school energy issues
- Review schools current energy consumption.
- Reduce energy use in schools by 15% in the first year.
- Decrease greenhouse gas emissions from the school by 15% in the first year.
Sustainable Schools facilitators will help schools to:
- Develop authentic learning energy conservation programs focusing on the school’s energy consumption.
- Plan and undertake an energy audit.
- Develop an energy strategy for implementation considering possible OH&S risks.
- Develop costings for implementing the strategy and any retrofitting the school wishes to undertake.
Inspiring Schools
There are some excellent examples of sustainable schools that have excelled in the energy theme. For example, Pinewood Primary School saved $8700 by encouraging students to adopt energy saving behaviours and pratices and undertaking simple retrofitting. Camberwell Anglican Girls Grammar students raised over $10 000 for solar energy panels for the school. Princes Hill Secondary College recently received a grant of $50,000 to install new solar technologies which are expected to save the school up to $1,700 on its energy bills every year and reduce greenhouse pollution by 12 tonnes per year. To visit our Case Studies, click here.
Resource Links
These resource links can provide a boost for your school's work on energy:
- Visit the interactive Futurescapes website to find out how your lifestyle choices impact on energy consumption and greenhouse gasses as well as other resources
- EPA's free online Australian Greenhouse Calculator
|
|
Click to View Video – Student leadership in energy reduction.
Student describes how he designed a poster to remind students and staff to turn off light switches and save energy.
Click to View Video – Using data from installed solar panels.
Camberwell Girls Grammar School students can download data from their solar panels to study the energy savings they are achieving.
|
Printer friendly version
Email to a friend
Send feedback
Contact us (email)
The Victorian Sustainable Schools pilot was developed and delivered by Gould League and CERES Community Environment Park with major funding support from the Federal Department of Environment and Heritage and additional funding provided by the Victorian Government and Philanthopric Trusts.