A family in Maroubra has become the 1000^th recipient of a rebate as part of Randwick City Council’s innovative Sustainability Rebates program, Mayor Philipa Veitch announced today.

The Sustainability Rebates program is just one of the many initiatives offered by Randwick Council’s Sustaining our City Environmental Levy. Other activities include water reuse programs, solar panels, environmental workshops, tree planting, community gardens and Coastal Walkway extensions.

“We’re incredibly proud of this program, which creates real change by offering financial incentives for our community to embrace sustainability,” said Mayor Veitch.

“So far residents have saved over $1M on their energy and water bills and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 6,000 tonnes. For every dollar Council has provided in rebates we’ve seen $12 invested in renewable and sustainable household improvements.”

The Lissenden household from Maroubra became the 1000^th home to receive a grant when they were looking to install a solar battery.

“We received around 8% of the total cost to supply and install,” said Richard.

“We had considered installing a battery but initially discounted it because of the costs. The rebate program was ultimately the single factor that tipped us in favour of purchasing one,” he said.

For Richard, the investment was absolutely worth it.

“The return on investment for us is around seven years, but there are other benefits.  When you have greater control over your energy you have much greater engagement and more meaningful conversations,” said Richard.

It offers rebates for EV chargers, hot water systems, induction cooktops, insulation, lighting upgrades, pool pumps, rainwater tanks, solar panels and batteries.

Randwick Council’s Sustainability Projects and Reporting Officer Sam Kelley said the program has been very popular since its inception three years ago.

“We are proud to be one of the only councils in Australia offering rebates for solar, batteries, rainwater tanks, pool pumps, electric vehicle chargers and more,” he said.

“Our feedback shows that Randwick residents love the Sustainability Rebates program, with every applicant so far saying they would recommend it to others.”

The Randwick Council Sustainability Rebates Program is frequently updated to reflect best practice and the latest technologies as they emerge.

KEY POINTS:

• Randwick Council has recently provided its 1000th rebate, after running the program for 3 years.
• The program is funded by Council’s Sustaining our City Environmental Levy.
• The Sustainability Rebates incentivise residents and businesses to implement energy, water and emission saving initiatives.
• The 12 rebates available include electric vehicle chargers, energy assessments, hot water systems, induction cooktops, insulation, lighting, pool pumps, rainwater tanks, rooftop solar, solar batteries, solar health checks and WaterFix®.
• These rebates have leveraged over $6 million of community investment, over 12 times the programs expenditure ($12 community investment for each $1 of Council investment).
• 100% of residents in the program would recommend Sustainability Rebates.
• Over 50% of all rebates are for rooftop solar. 14% of all solar ever installed in the Randwick LGA is part of Sustainability Rebates.
• It’s estimated 6000 tonnes of greenhouse gases have been saved.
• Over $1 million in energy and water bill savings per year.

Rebates used:

• 72 electric vehicle chargers
• 28 energy assessments
• 47 hot water systems
• 22 induction cooktops (launched Feb 2023)
• 69 insulations
• 65 lighting upgrades (1,853 lights)
• 15 pool pumps
• 22 rainwater tanks
• 551 rooftop solar installations (4,538 kW)
• 85 battery installations (1,007 kWh)
• 16 solar health checks
• 8 WaterFix upgrades