Antinuclear

 A small Bavarian village run entirely on renewable energy is proving an inspiration for the north-east Victorian town of Yackandandah. As a shining example of the possibilities of renewables, the town of Wildspoldsried is now proving an inspiration for the fledgling ‘Totally Renewable Yackandandah’ (TRY) group.

Members of TRY heard about Wildspoldsried – which produces three-times its total energy needs from renewables – at a community energy congress in Canberra last week. TRY spokesperson, Matthew Grogan, said their hope is that Yackandandah will be producing 100 percent of its own energy needs from renewables by the year 2022.

“We’ve got incredible fossil fuel resources … it’s tried and true technology and there’s a lot of it there,” Mr Grogan said. “But we know the damage that it causes and it’s at crisis point, the damage that that’s causing. “In addition to that brown coal we’ve also got one of the world’s best profiles of solar energy.”

TRY is encouraged by the fact that north-east Victoria receives more solar radiation than Germany, the world’s largest producer of solar energy. The switch to renewables has also brought financial benefits for Wildspoldsried, Mr Grogan said, from “energy tourism” and the sale of excess power back into the grid.

Wildspoldsried made the switch with stunning speed, having aimed for a target of 100 percent renewables within 10 years, but achieved the goal in five years. It’s early days for the Yackandandah group, but a community-owned petrol station and an already-high uptake of solar among residents shows a willingness to look for alternatives.

Yackandandah is not alone in its vision, with around 50 other Australian communities attending last week’s congress.

Mr Grogan said TRY had already approached local supermarkets (the area’s largest energy users) and funding bodies to sell their vision. “We know the technology is out there, we know solar panels are coming down and batteries are coming down as well in price,” Mr Grogan said. “It’s a really exciting phase to be honest, we’re just approaching it with a lot of creativity and taking any opportunities as they arise.”