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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-05-17 Daily Xml
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ABORIGINAL COMMUNITY HOUSING

Ms BEDFORD (Florey) (14:49): My question is to the Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy. Can the minister inform the house how the government is improving living conditions in Aboriginal community housing?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Minister for Manufacturing, Innovation and Trade, Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy, Minister for Small Business) (14:49): I thank the honourable member for her question and her keen interest in improving the lives of South Australian Indigenous communities. This government is committed to improving living conditions in remote Aboriginal communities, and I am pleased to advise the house that the Department for Manufacturing, Innovation, Trade, Resources and Energy has recently contributed to the installation of 89 solar hot water systems in Aboriginal community housing at Marree, Coober Pedy and the APY lands.

These new systems, installed and co-funded by Housing SA at no cost to residents, will benefit residents by reducing energy use, greenhouse gas emissions and, importantly, cost of living and running costs. The remaining funding for this project was provided by the commonwealth government through the Renewable Remote Power Generation program which is administered in South Australia by DMITRE.

The Renewable Remote Power Generation Program dedicates $900,000 in funding to energy efficiency initiatives in South Australian outback communities, with over $284,000 allocated to this project. This project demonstrates how a collaboration between this state government and the commonwealth government can deliver significant benefits to remote communities. I am pleased that DMITRE could play a role in assisting residents in outback communities to reduce their carbon footprints and, most importantly, their power costs.

The remaining funds will be spent over the coming months. Over half a million dollars has been allocated to subsidise energy audits for large commercial enterprises and for procurement of energy efficient technologies recommended out of these audits. Madam Speaker, it will be of interest to you that residents of Coober Pedy will also benefit from subsidies to replace inefficient appliances with modern, efficient equivalents.

This government believes that climate change has contributed to damaging our environment and we are committed to helping South Australian residents and businesses to implement initiatives to transition to a low emissions economy. Our federal Labor government ought to be commended for making funds available for this important cause, and I also commend Housing SA and DMITRE staff for their work in administering the Renewable Remote Power Generation Program and delivering this solar hot water project. Having an efficient and reliable source of hot water will no doubt benefit the tenants in these houses as we enter the cooler months.

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