New research has shown that one in every two Australian households are considering making the switch to solar water heating over the next two years, due to a combination of Government rebates, the financial squeeze of rising electricity prices and concerns about the environment.
The Newspoll survey of 1,062 home-owners aged 18 to 64, showed that 55% of home owners were likely to consider installing solar water heating over the next two years, which is a significant increase on the 8% of households who currently have it installed.
The combination of State and Federal rebates provides eligible home-owners with between $1,600 and $2,800 back on solar hot water systems when replacing an electric water heater. These rebates are on top of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) worth around $1,000 (depending on system selected and the market price of the RECs).
Environmental expert Tim Flannery said the results were exciting.
"Australians are among the highest greenhouse polluters on a per capita basis in the developed world, caused largely by the burning of fossil fuels for energy. All Australians have a role to play in reducing carbon emissions and it's promising to see that people are keen to take action," said Mr Flannery.
“Electric water heaters are a major contributor to the problem, accounting for roughly a quarter of household energy consumption. By comparison, using a solar water heater saves about 3 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions every year,” he said.
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