Energy and the Council

Our Commitment

The Council is proud that it has kept the costs of energy (in dollars per household) at the same level as they were in 1992. Great initiatives and NZ-leading projects, including using biogas from landfill, have reduced power use and power costs.

Our commitment to energy efficiency and innovations have won widespread recognition; our goal is to exercise leadership in energy efficiency.

History

In winter of 1992, a call went out to all electricity consumers in New Zealand to cut their power as much as possible as there was a national shortage. The City Council reduced, cut and spread the electrical load as much as they could and, come year end, found that the simple measures taken had saved the City Council, andthe ratepayers, a million dollars.

These results astounded the councillorsof the time. So little had needed to change and the results were so rewarding! They decided to employ a specialist in energy management so that energy costs might remain as low as possible.

The Council has many facilities including fresh water and waste water pumping stations, swimming pools and recreation centres, libraries, street lights and traffic lights, the art gallery, car parking buildings, parks and botanic gardens, office and service centre buildings, and the waste water treatment plant.

We believe that the Christchurch City Council and its employees should be very proud of the fact that, in spite of significant increases in energy prices over the time, the City Council has managed to keep the costs of energy (in dollars per household) at the same level as they were in 1992.

Another significant achievement is that 50% of all energy consumed by the Council's operations now comes from local renewable energy sources.

Some of the projects are described on the accompanying pages – have a look!

Professional Associations