An innovative program that has helped small to medium sized Sydney businesses save more than 80 Olympic pools of water and more than $800,000 in annual bills is being expanded to slash energy and waste.
The Smart Green Business program, an initiative of the City of Sydney, will launch phase 2 on 1 August to enable businesses with less than 200 staff to audit and better manage energy, water and waste.
The Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the program was all about delivering results for both the environment and the bottom line.
“Cities are the biggest emitters of greenhouse gas emissions, so if we’re serious about carbon reduction we need to make our offices and business premises more energy efficient, “ she said.
“Our Smart Green Business program is a smart way to help all businesses become more sustainable by reducing their carbon footprint and operating costs at the same time”.
A total of 123 city businesses who participated in the pilot program which focussed on water, saved on average 2.4 megalitres of water per annum and $6,400 annually on water bills.
“The success of the trial has encouraged the City to include electricity and waste in phase 2 of the program as part of our commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 70 per cent by 2030 and divert 66 per cent of waste to landfill by 2014.
”We estimate this extension will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2,000 tonnes through energy efficiency improvements, and cut energy bills by $200,000,” the Lord Mayor said.
