Street lights

THE City of Casey is one step closer to receiving energy-efficient lighting on local roads, but still requires additional funding before all the lights are changed.
Premier John Brumby recently announced a commitment of $15 million, over three years, to support councils in their efforts to replace inefficient street lighting technology.
The Premier said the State Government would work with distributors to make it easier for the changeover to occur and to put downward pressure on costs.
His remarks follow promises made during the Federal Election, when the Gillard Government committed to a new $80 million Low Carbon Communities program, which will provide grants of up to $500,000 to assist councils with energy efficient street lighting upgrades.
City of Casey deputy mayor Shar Balmes said the city welcomed the announcement, but added more funds were needed to ensure the program gets off the ground.
She said the latest announcement demonstrated that all levels of government were committed to lowering Victoria’s emissions and were working together to alleviate the effects of climate change on local communities.
More than half of Casey’s 20,000 80W mercury vapour street lights, which are installed in local streets across the municipality, are suitable for conversion to energy efficient lights through bulk lamp conversion programs now, Cr Balmes said.
“By converting to new technology fluorescent lights, councils will generate an energy saving of around 70 per cent (per lamp) compared to the 80W mercury vapour lamps presently in use,” she said.
“However, as each new light fitting and installation costs between $350 and $450, it would cost the council between $4.5 million and $5.9 million to change over the 13,000 local road street lights suited to this new technology.
“This cost is prohibitive for us and for ratepayers, so it’s good news that other levels of government have committed funding to support the changeover. Now, we must ensure the funds available are sufficient to guarantee the outcome we are all aiming for – 70 per cent more efficient street lighting for Victoria.”
Under the Premier’s initiative, councils will have access to grants of up to $500,000 to put towards projects such as street lighting upgrades that demonstrate emission reductions. These funds will be matched dollar-for-dollar by contributions from the Commonwealth under the Low Carbon Communities program.
Cr Balmes said that as the maximum amount of assistance available from the state and federal programs combined left a shortfall of at least $3.5 million for Casey, the council would require additional support to implement this massive program.
The City of Casey will continue to work with the Municipal Association of Victoria’s (MAV) to advocate for additional funds.
The City of Casey has been an active participant in the MAV campaign to achieve a $45 million combined investment from the Commonwealth and Victorian governments over four years to contribute to the up-front costs of a street light changeover.
This is about $150 per light, or one-third of the up-front costs associated with the plan to give Victoria’s streets the green light.