Member for Gippsland East, Tim Bull, discusses Licola Wilderness Village’s sustainability measures with Operations Manager Adam Wake

Member for Gippsland East, Tim Bull, has announced that 25,000 has been allocated to Licola Wilderness Village to help them reduce costs and be more environmentally friendly by conserving energy and reducing waste.

“This funding will help Licola Wilderness Village put in place more environmentally friendly measures that help reduce operating costs, boosts productivity and reduces their environmental footprint,” Mr Bull said.

Licola Wilderness Village Operations Manager, Adam Wake, said the $25,000 grant from Sustainability Victoria has acted as a spring board for us in our commitment to put in an additional $40,000 of our own funds to further our goal of greater energy efficiency.  

“As we are not connected to the grid we presently rely on monthly diesel deliveries to fuel our three generators supplying approximately 75% of the town's power needs.

“We plan take make a number of changes including;
•    A new gas fired combination oven replacing an existing electric oven,
•    Rebuilding our 88Kva generator increasing fuel efficiency from 30% to 36% and the reprogramming of the diesel control system for further savings,
•    An electricity metering display and monitoring system,
•    Replacing a number of lights to LED sensor lights,
•    Changing the water treatment/ delivery pump to a variable speed pump.

“Just these changes alone are expected to net an annual saving of around $30,000 with further savings attributable to habit or operational changes,” Mr Wake said.

Mr Bull said this funding is part of the Victorian Coalition Government’s Smarter Resources Smarter Businesses program that has provided 69 Victorian businesses a share of $1.8 million in funding.

“Businesses receiving funding are located across Victoria and come from a range of sectors including manufacturing, retail, food and beverage, agriculture, tourism and aged care and it’s great to see Licola Wilderness Village receiving a boost from these sustainability grants

“This is another example of how the Napthine Government is supporting small to medium sized businesses to implement measures that will ensure they remain competitive in today’s market,” Mr Bull said.

“Across the three rounds of Smarter Resources Smarter Businesses grants, the Coalition Government has invested over $3.8 million to help Victorian businesses operate in a modern economy, whilst reducing environmental impacts.”
 
For more information on the Coalition Government’s Smarter Resources Smarter Businesses program visit www.sustainability.vic.gov.au/srsb