Regional Sustainability & Street Lighting - August 2013

By: Regional Projects Coordinator, Daniela Gambotto...

The FNQROC Sustainability Group met up by teleconference this month. This was the first time the group has convened for some time and high on the agenda was of course ... street lighting!

Since my update last month, the street lighting scene has changed yet again. Any plans to push for an LED trial in the FNQ region are now gone.  Ergon Energy staff have informed us no funding is available for any trials or pilot programs at the moment, and this is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future. Instead, Ergon Energy will focus its efforts on developing an Energy Efficient Street lighting Strategy. This will include a desk top review of LED trials in Australia and internationally to inform any future action on LED technology in this region. Ergon Energy staff have indicated they are keen to work with us on the development of this strategy and we will continue to provide feedback where possible.

Of key concern to Local Government, however, is the potential reinstatement of Alternative Control Service Charges (or maintenance charges). Prior to 1 July 2012, Local Governments had been paying this charge. However, the State Government stepped in last year and fully subsidised it. Recently, Ergon Energy staff have indicated this waiver could potentially be lifted in the future, and Councils will be again be liable to pay a portion of the maintenance charge.

With this in mind, it is of critical concern that a Service Level Agreement (SLA) be put in place before maintenance charges are possibly reinstated.  This way we can be clear about exactly wha we are paying for in terms of maintenance. Given there are more than 4000 luminaires in the region that are more than 20 years old (and thus at the end of their economic life), we should already be questioning what our previous maintenance charges had been paying for.

In regards to the development of an SLA between Ergon Energy and the region, it has been recommended we initially liaise with Ergon Energy's Bulk Lamp Replacement contractors. This should provide us with a better understanding of how this program operates and give us an indication of how maintenance charges are being spent.  I will be following this up with Ergon Energy staff sooner rather than later.

In the meantime, I will be working on developing some figures to identify the possible savings if the 4000+ end of life luminaires are replaced with energy efficient equivalents (including factoring in imminent maintenance charges).  This will help to determine if it is worth pushing ahead with a program to retrofit those luminaires.

On a lighter note, Ergon Energy is finalising its street lighting audit for the State. Adrian Stephenson will visit Local Governments in the coming months to finalise these data sets and iron out any issues which may remain.