This afternoon I joined Peter Garrett, the Minister for Environment Protection, Heritage and the Arts, as well as Mike Symon, the Federal Member for Deakin, in observing the new co-generation plant at Ringwood Aquatic Centre.

The co-generation plant was jointly funded through a $250,000 Federal Government grant complementing Council funding of $200,000. The plant includes two 70kW gas generators, which creates enough electricity to run the centre and to maintain heating for the pools at the Ringwood Aquatic Centre.

The co-generation plant will be stored off-site during the construction of the proposed multi-purpose Ringwood Leisure and Aquatic Centre and will be returned to the site once the new facility is operational.

The speech I delivered during the visit is included within this post:

In the spirit of Reconciliation, we acknowledge that we are meeting on land for which the Wurundjeri people have been custodians for many centuries, and on land which the Indigenous Australians have performed age old ceremonies.

We, Maroondah City Council, accept, respect and have shared with the Wurundjeri people in their customs of welcome.

The Wurundjeri people support the coming together of all people, respecting their individuality to focus on a unified and cohesive nation.

I would like to acknowledge the presence of Mike Symon, Federal Member for Deakin and the Honourable Peter Garrett, the Minister for Environment Protection, Heritage and the Arts, as well as Helen Croxford, Director Community & Leisure Services and Phil Turner, Director City Development.

The co-generation plant at the Ringwood Aquatic Centre was jointly funded by the Federal Government in January as part of the Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program.

The $450,000 project saw funding of $250,000 from the Federal Government with $200,000 allocated from Council’s sustainability budget initiatives. The co-generation plant enables the aquatic facility to generate heat and power simultaneously, and from a single fuel source.

Specifically, the plant runs on two 70kW gas generators which we expect will create enough electricity to meet the needs of the entire centre as well as contributing to the water heating requirements of the three pools. This results in an economic saving of approximately $110,000 this year on gas and electricity bills as well as reducing 917 tonnes of greenhouse emissions.

This project demonstrates another example of local government working in partnership with the Federal government to build and improve community infrastructure.