Green Renters joins One Million Homes Alliance

This election year, a strong alliance of organisations is forming in support of the One Million Homes campaign. This campaign aims to get political parties to commit to comprehensively retrofit one million Victorian concession card holder’s homes over five years for energy and water efficiency. That’s half of Victoria’s housing stock and would go a long way to reducing residential emissions, saving water and increasing the affordability of utility bills.

The founding partners of this important initiative are Environment Victoria, Victorian Council of Social Services, Alternative Technology Association, Moreland Energy Foundation Ltd., Brotherhood of St Laurence, Victorian Local Governance Association, Uniting Church in Australia, Just Change, Friends of the Earth, Kildonan Uniting Care and the Consumer Utilities Advocacy Centre. Together we will be sending a strong message to Government that energy and water efficient homes are crucial to the sustainability of the community.

The One Million Homes program will involve:

1. A house visit and energy audit, including an assessment of the most effective energy and water efficiency measures; guidance for householders on how to use energy and water more efficiently; and referral to other relevant programs and efficiency opportunities.
2. A suite of retrofit measures including efficient lighting, weather sealing, insulation, solar water heating, low-flow showerheads, tap-flow controllers and dual-flush toilets, and fridge upgrades as needed to complement those already in place in homes.
3. Delivery by trusted organisations and businesses with the skills to work with households to ensure the safety and efficacy of the program.

The program will result in:

• A green makeover for one million homes with a comprehensive set of energy and water efficiency measures
• Greenhouse gas emissions reductions of roughly 2.38 million tonnes per year
• An estimated 32.5 billion litres of water savings each year
• Approximately 3000 to 6700 new direct jobs. Over 40 percent of these will be semi-skilled providing opportunities for disadvantaged job seekers.
• Savings to household energy and water bills of roughly $296 per year (average) per household, and $296 million to the Victorian community at current energy and water prices
• Increased householder protection against heatwaves and the coldest days in winter
• Support for low income households and those suffering from energy hardship.