Solar panels on public housing could save tenants $750 a year: report | JoshDye91
Emily Brooks’ electricity is being disconnected on Friday because she can't pay the bill. The single mother, who lives in public housing in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, says it’s a “never-ending” struggle to afford her energy costs.Social housing tenant Emily Brooks and her daughter Isabella.Ms Brooks is one of hundreds of thousands of tenants who would benefit if governments installed rooftop solar panels on Australia's public housing stock.
While Australia leads the world with rooftop solar uptake, the senior renewable energy researcher at UNSW said unequal access risks leaving poorer people behind. Poorer households such as Ms Brooks' are more affected by energy bills because the expense is a higher proportion of a smaller income. Social housing dwellings are also usually older and less insulated.
"Our flat gets super hot in summer ... We’re better off under a tree in a park than in our unit, or in the garden where there's a little bit of a breeze." In choosing which dwellings get rooftop solar, the government is prioritising homes in hotter parts of the state and homes with wood-fired heaters and old gas heaters.
NSW Planning and Homes Minister Anthony Roberts said: “Used wisely, the free solar power delivered by the panels can save tenants up to $1000 a year on their energy bills, and we know that, for social housing tenants, every dollar counts.”
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