Energy conscious Latrobe Valley residents will become informed energy users following workshops held across the region.
The ‘Understanding Home Energy’ workshops have already commenced and are working their way, week-by-week, across Morwell, Traralgon and Moe.
As part of the program, a ‘Home Energy Toolkit” is loaned to participants to use in their home to monitor energy consumption of specific appliances to determine how much it is costing them on average per year.
“The aim of the Home Energy Toolkit sessions is to educate, and provide support and information to residents who wish to take control and influence their domestic power consumption,” Latrobe City Council manager of natural environment and sustainability Deirdre Griepsma said.
“The result of these workshops should be that residents can make informed choices about their power use and have the knowledge to reduce their consumption and costs.”
Catering for 10 people per session, Ms Griepsma said each workshop gave participants a hands on opportunity to see how the energy watch monitor contained in the toolkit works.
Marking the anniversary of the introduction of the carbon tax, Latrobe City Council hoped to help its residents by informing them about usage, especially due to the expected five per cent increase in energy costing across the board effective from now.
“By becoming aware of exactly how much it costs to operate various domestic electric appliances, residents can make informed choices in reducing usage at certain times of the day, therefore saving money,” Ms Griepsma said.
“Residents can take steps to reduce their energy consumption when they are equipped with the right knowledge.”
Workshops will be held tonight at Moe Library, 15 July at Morwell Library and 22 July at Traralgon Library.
Bookings can be made by phoning 1300 367 700.
