OUTDOOR LIVING CUTS POWER USE

New figures show decks and outdoor living areas help reduce power usage for Queenslanders living in the tropics (including Cairns and Townsville) and sub-tropical coastal areas (Gold Coast to Mackay, including Brisbane).

Deputy Premier Paul Lucas said a survey commissioned by the State Government showed outdoor living areas cut the use of air-conditioners.

“Decks have always been part of the Queensland way of life, this shows they will be an important part of our future as well,” said Mr Lucas.

“Nearly 70 per cent of people living in the tropics and sub-tropical coastal areas turn off their cooling systems—including air-conditioners— when they’re outside.

“As a result, householders with outdoor living areas tend to rely less on artificial cooling.

“Nearly 90 per cent of homes in the tropics and about three-quarters of homes in the sub-tropics have at least one air-conditioner.

“Throughout Queensland, the energy cost savings attributed to the use of outdoor areas—and the reduced need for air-conditioning—is conservatively estimated at between $140 and $315 per household a year.

“The statewide reduction in greenhouse gas emissions is estimated at between 940,000 tonnes and 2.1 million tonnes a year—equivalent to taking between 188,000 and 420,000 cars of the road per year.

“The McKinsey Report on climate change says the building sector, both commercial and residential, provides the lowest-cost opportunity to reduce Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions.”

The survey found more than 85 per cent of homes in the state’s tropics and sub-tropical coastal areas had at least one outdoor living area, such as a veranda, deck or patio.

Seventy per cent of householders in the tropics and subtropical coastal areas used outdoor living areas frequently, particularly in summer.

“Many outdoor areas are used several times a day—at breakfast, lunch, after school, at dinner and into the evening,” said Mr Lucas.

“In the State’s western regions, people tend to use outdoor living areas less and are more inclined to leave their internal cooling systems on when outdoors.”

Other survey findings:

·most houses are single-storied detached dwellings

·much of the housing is relatively old, with almost half being built before 1980

·the majority of houses have three bedrooms or less

·most homes have relatively lightweight walls, for example weatherboard or fibro

·most homes have metal roofs, with many insulated but rarely ventilated

·around half the houses in the subtropical and warm temperate zones have a northern orientation. This drops to 1 in 3 houses in the tropical and hot arid zones

·most households have electric storage hot water systems and intend to replace them with more energy-efficient systems such as solar, when the times comes.

The State Government is now considering the survey results, along with public feedback on the Improving sustainable housing in Queensland discussion paper.

Ninety per cent of respondents supported a key proposal in the discussion paper that all new houses be built to a 5-star (out of 10) energy equivalent rating from early 2009.

Media Contact: Robert Hoge 0419 757 868