South West residents reduce carbon footprint by using energy trackers

Pearl Forss, Channel NewsAsia 9 Nov 08;

SINGAPORE: Ever heard of an energy-saving workout? Well, the MPs and some 400 residents of the South West District did just that during their Clean and Green Carnival.

They got on bikes to generate electricity needed for the carnival and spread the energy efficiency message at the same time.

Since 2006, the district has started several green initiatives.

Its "Change A Bulb" programme saw the installation of 5,850 energy-efficient bulbs, resulting in savings of S$125,204 last year.

Dr Amy Khor, Mayor of South West District, said: "What we hope to do in the long term is to get all households in the South West district - 220,000 odd households - to change to efficient light bulbs. Assuming that each household changes to energy-efficient bulbs for at least two of the bulbs, that will translate to S$4.8m of savings in electricity consumption."

The district's "Cash for Trash" programme saw two million kilogrammes of household waste recycled in the past year and a half.

This year, a pilot project to use Etrack, a device to track electricity consumption, will be pushed out in 100 households to encourage residents to mind their energy use.

- CNA/ir