Sydney’s City of Ryde announced on Friday it has acquired two electric vehicles that will be charged using solar energy.
The EVs and accompanying charging stations are part of Council’s efforts towards net zero emissions by 2050.
City of Ryde Mayor Clr Jerome Laxale said climate change impacts have shown all levels of government need to demonstrate leadership on reducing carbon emissions, including embracing new technologies.
“In fact, the Ryde community has told us directly that they want Council to take a leading role on environmental issues – such as reducing carbon emissions – and the purchase of these EVs does exactly that,” said Clr Laxale said.
What’s not mentioned in Council’s release is the type of EVs the new cars are – but they appear to be the Hyundai Kona Electric.
As for the emissions associated with recharging, Council says the charging stations at its Operations Centre will be powered by solar energy generated at one of its facilities. The facility wasn’t mentioned, but among its current installations is Ryde Aquatic Leisure Centre (300kW), the North Ryde Library and Community Centre (32.76kW), Eastwood Community Hall (7.84kW) and West Ryde Community Center (26.15kW).
The likely scenario is the equivalent of the energy consumed in charging the vehicles will be generated by solar panels, so it doesn’t really matter where the charging stations or the solar power systems are located, or when the electricity is generated – the mains grid acts as a battery. Council says it also intends rolling out public EV charging stations in the near future.
The Councillor who proposed acquisition of the EVs, Christoper Gordon, is hoping their introduction to the City of Ryde’s fleet will lead to others following suit and play a role in a more rapid transition to electric vehicles. As with the installation of solar energy systems, Councils across Australia have been playing an important role in the adoption of EVs.
City Of Ryde Aiming For 100% Renewables
Last month, the City of Ryde committed to 100 percent renewable energy for Council’s electricity requirements by 2030. How that will be achieved is yet to be settled – Council has been offered five different scenarios, all of which except one includes more on-site solar PV installations as part of a solution.
A Cities Power Partnership member, Council declared a climate emergency in May last year.
“The City of Ryde will continue to lead the way in implementing policies that will benefit the environment and deliver real action on climate change for the benefit of the local community both today and well into the future,” said Mayor Laxale.
Related:
About Michael Bloch
RSS - Posts
Speak Your Mind