Off the blocks to save energy

Southbank residents living in high-rise apartments have access to a new online tool, encouraging them to save energy.

The City of Melbourne, in conjunction with a number of other partners, launched the Smart Blocks website last month (www.smartblocks.com.au), and is hopeful the program will be taken up by Southbank building managers and owners corporations.

The website’s major focus is saving energy and money in common areas of high-rise apartment dwellings, so often a cause of friction among residents in these buildings.

At the launch of the program, Cr Aaron Wood said it was a particularly important program for Melbourne, given the rate of growth in high-rise living.

“We need to be smart about the way we develop in the future, but we also need to make our existing buildings more efficient. This is a critical step to reaching our ultimate goal of becoming a carbon neutral city,” Mr Wood said.

The program partners included Strata Community Australia, City of Sydney, Owners Corporation Network of Australia, Green Strata and the City of Melbourne.

Given that the 2011 census claims 97.5 per cent of Southbank homes are apartments, it’s a program certain to be of interest to most of our population.

Cr Aaron Wood with Strata Community Australia’s CEO Mark Lever at the Melbourne launch of Smart Blocks.