Moreland has always been ahead of the curve supporting their community on energy justice and climate change.
This goes all the way back to the 1920s, when the Brunswick Council fought the State Electricity Commission over electricity tariffs. Brunswick Council had lowered their electricity tariff to 4d per unit to enable them to return profits to the community, but this was not in line with the State’s tariff of 5d per unit. Whilst Council lost that battle Moreland has continued to lead the way on energy and climate change.
In the 1990s Victoria’s first solar panels were installed in Moreland and in 1993 Brunswick Electricity Supply Department worked with CERES to pioneer one of Australia’s first community energy programs – Project Aurora. Under this model the community could purchase ¼, ½ or full solar panels (sited in the CERES energy park), with the money subtracted from their electricity bill.
In 2000 Moreland City Council utilised the proceeds from the sale of the Brunswick Electricity Supply Department to create Moreland Energy Foundation Ltd (MEFL). Since then the organisations have worked together supporting our community to take action on climate change.
What are we doing now?
Building on this strong history and proud reputation, in 2014 Moreland City Council and MEFL developed Moreland’s Zero Carbon Evolution strategy to get our city on track for a zero carbon future.
How did we do this?
We measured where Moreland’s emissions come from and who is responsible for the emissions
In the 2015 Paris Agreement on Climate Change world leaders committed to limit carbon emissions in order to keep global warming below 2°C, and avoid catastrophic climate change. This means there is a finite amount of carbon the world can burn. Our strategy worked out Moreland’s fair share of this.
We then calculated where our emissions need to be at by 2020 in order to achieve our zero carbon future.
We need to work together to achieve this goal – so we analysed what we know about Moreland’s buildings, energy use and people, which measures are most cost-effective to implement and which deliver wider community benefits.
From this we established our five Zero Carbon Evolution key strategies:
- Generating local renewable energy
- Using energy efficiently
- Low-emissions transport
- Minimising urban heat island effects
- Activating the community to reduce emissions
You can read the full Zero Carbon Evolution Strategy here (3MB PDF).
Where do we want to get to?
It’s not just about invisible gases – climate change impacts our health, wellbeing and our economy. Shifting to a zero carbon community will create a prosperous and resilient future for Moreland.
How is the strategy being implemented?
Our goals will only be achieved if everyone plays their part – from households, businesses, schools and community groups to local, state and federal governments.
MEFL are leading delivery of the renewable energy, energy efficiency and activating the community elements of the strategy. Moreland City Council are leading delivery of the urban heat island and transport elements.
What else is Council doing?
When it comes to action on climate change, Moreland is leading the charge. Moreland City Council was the second Victorian local government and the third in Australia to be certified carbon neutral for its corporate operations, first achieving this in December 2012.
To achieve this Council has implemented significant energy efficiency and renewable energy projects as well as investing in electric vehicle charging infrastructure across Moreland.
Click here to find out what Council is doing to reduce its corporate emissions.
Who is Moreland Energy Foundation?
Moreland Energy Foundation (also known as MEFL) is dedicated to tackling climate change. We’ve been working with communities, partners and governments to implement sustainable energy projects since 2000. Our social enterprise Positive Charge provides practical advice and great deals on sustainable energy for households, businesses and organisations.