Received my home sustainability assessment report today
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Brodie came out and conducted a home sustainability assessment for the Government's Green Loans scheme a few weeks back. Today the official report arrived in the mail. Read on to hear how it looked, what it contained and an added bonus we weren't expecting.
A few weeks back my wife and I invited Brodie around to conduct a Home Sustainability Assessment of our home under the Government's new Green Loans scheme. It was a pretty straightforward process with Brodie asking a series of questions and filling out an online survey as he goes. In all there was about 20 minutes of direct questions, then Brodie answered a lot of the other questions by walking around the house. He was marking down things like how many lights we had and what types of lights they were, what type of washing machine we used, the type of heating system we had, whether we had insulation or not. In all, it was very relaxed and easy, and afterwards Brodie enjoyed dinner with us .... what a great way to finish the day!
Pretty soon after Brodie emailed through a sample report to us, and it seemed that as a household we'd done pretty well. However, it would be a few more weeks before the official report would arrive.
Yesterday there was a brown reycled A4 envelope sitting on the bench. It had the Australian Government coat of arms on it and looked quite official. My wife and I opened it and found the report inside. On top was a covering letter from Peter Garrett himself (would love to claim that it was personally signed but it was definately a copy). The letter outlined how we're now eligble to take advantage of an interest-free Green Loan of up to $10,000. It also encouraged us to check out the goverments new portal www.livinggreener.gov.au . The suprise, however, was that we're also going to be receiving a $50 Green Reward Card. The card can be redeemed at selected retail outlets to purchase eligible energy or water savings devices. On the back of the letter is a list of suggestions as to what you can buy with the $50 Green Reward Card, the list included aerators for taps, solar garden lights, grey water hose, waterless car wash, downpipe diverter, shower timer, etc. The $50 card definately wasn't something that we were expecting, and we think its a great idea. A great initiative by Peter Garrett and his team to get everyone acting immediately.
In regards to the report itself, it is very similar to the sample report that we received. Its a simple, straight forward report that is only 5 pages long. It gives you a smiley face where you're doing good, and a sad face where you can improve. It also ranks your household against the average house for running costs, GHG and water usage. On page 5 it gives you a list of what items we can use the Green Loan for. We were eligible to claim the Green Loan for:
- Installing ceiling fans
- Installing openable windows for good cross ventilation
- Installing insulation in the walls, under the floor, in the ceiling, etc.
- Replace faulty heating & cooling ducts.
- Modify windows or shading to increase the amount of sunlight in our home during winter and reduce our heating requirements.
- Replace our washing machine with a front loader.
- Install a rainwater tank or greywater treatment system.
- Install photovoltaic panels (solar panels) to generate electricity.
On page 4 of the report it sets out the 4 steps to move forward. They are:
- Choose and cost your recomendations. So effectively decide on what you require (i.e. solar panels) and list a job with Service Central to find a local tradesperson.
- Arrange your finance. So go to www.environment.gov.au/greenloans and choose a participating financial institution.
- Get started. Start your home improvements.
- Track your progress. Keep an eye on your energy bills (electricity, gas, water, etc) and see what you're saving.
The report is very simple to read and straight forward. I would recommend that everyone undertakes a free home sustainability assessment. It doesn't cost anything to do, and as we learnt at bare minimum you receive a $50 gift card from the government. If you choose, you can then use the $10,000 interest free green loan to install great energy saving systems such as solar panels, rainwater tanks, new windows, shading, etc. What a deal!
If you're interested, head to /sustainability/ and request your free home sustainability assessment today.
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