Carbon Neutral Adealide
Carbon Neutral Adealide
Department for Education
Why Department for Education is supporting Carbon Neutral Adelaide
The Department for Education is uniquely placed to support the transition to a low carbon economy in South Australia by providing curriculum opportunities to educate the next generation on new technologies, environmental sustainability and a low carbon future. The Department believes that this transition is vital to meet state, national and international climate change mitigation targets while fostering economic growth in emerging sectors and technologies. The Department supports Carbon Neutral Adelaide, believing that this transition will require coordinated strategies and partnerships that underpin the efficient use of energy, increase the uptake of renewable energy, and target behaviours associated with carbon emissions. The Department is also committed to reducing carbon emissions and is investing long term resources to implement environmental programs that shift from carbon intensive practices to low carbon alternatives and environmentally sustainable practices.
What Department for Education is doing to reduce carbon emissions
The Department for Education is implementing a number of programs to reduce carbon emissions, improve energy efficiency, install renewable energy technologies, reduce waste to landfill and further embed environmental sustainability and climate change adaptation in the curriculum as per the cross curriculum priority of ‘sustainability’ in the Australian Curriculum. Current programs include:
- the $15 million Sustainable Schools Program involving 240 schools that will see large scale solar PV systems of 100kW per school installed, totalling 4MW, and LED lighting upgrades
- the Low Carbon Schools Pilot that includes energy audits, a trial of building management equipment to track energy consumption and provide an online portal for schools to access, and waste audits to identify improvements to reduce waste to landfill
- the Waste Management Project and KESAB Wipe out Waste Partnership to reduce waste to landfill, undertake waste audits at 60 schools and preschools and implement changes across waste contracts
- the Recycled Water Connections project that is connecting schools to recycled water for irrigation to reduce dependence on the River Murray and Murray Darling Basin and reduce water costs.