The City of Sydney has expanded its roll out of solar projects across its community facilities, with an 80-year-old recreation centre in The Rocks set to become the 18th site to go solar.
As part of the largest solar project of its kind in Australia, the City-owned King George V Recreation Centre has been fitted with 222 new solar panels. The 82,215-kilowatt per annum system covering 362.65 square metres of roof will save 87 tonnes of carbon emissions a year.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the City’s solar project is an important investment in a clean energy future for Sydney that will slash carbon pollution by around 3,000 tonnes a year. The solar panels on the roof of the King George V Recreation Centre will provide pollution-free electricity, unlike coal-fired power, which is responsible for 80 per cent of the city’s carbon pollution.
He adds that the City plans to reduce their carbon pollution by 70 per cent by 2030 to help reduce their contribution to climate change. Along with energy efficiency in buildings, parks, pools and streets, clean energy is a big part of making that reduction possible.
The City’s solar installation project has passed the halfway mark, with around 2,050 panels installed across 18 sites so far. Over the last 12 months, the solar rollout has covered Ultimo Community Centre, Redfern Oval Grandstand, Bourke and Epsom Road depots and a heritage building at 343 George Street.
The panels can produce nearly 1,953,440 kilowatt hours of electricity a year and are expected to reduce the City’s annual carbon pollution by around 2,073 tonnes, about five per cent of the City’s total electricity use.
When the project is completed, solar panels will be installed on around 30 buildings and will cover a combined area of more than 12,000 square metres – nearly twice the area of a regulation-sized football field.
The City’s Renewable Energy Master Plan outlines how 100 per cent of the City’s electricity, heating and cooling can come from renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind and energy from waste, by 2030.
