#2.1 Renewable Energy

Supporting renewable energy in new subdivisions helps reduce emissions, manage peak electricity demand, and build resilience to climate change. It also enables communities to transition to a low-carbon future through local energy generation and storage.

The Victorian Planning Provisions include the following objectives for renewable energy:

  • To encourage arrangements that support renewable energy generation and use at the lot or neighbourhood level (56.09-2).
  • To create urban structures that minimise peak electricity demand and support technologies such as microgrids and batteries (15.01-3S).
  • To support resilient energy infrastructure that enables on-site renewable energy generation and storage (19.01-1S).

BESS rewards subdivisions that support renewable energy by:

  • Installing energy-efficient streetlighting powered by renewable sources. [https://staging.bess.net.au/admin/sd_engine/sddocumentationmodel/49/change/]
  • Providing renewable-powered infrastructure in public spaces, such as lighting, irrigation, or BBQs. [https://staging.bess.net.au/admin/sd_engine/sddocumentationmodel/50/change/]
  • Establishing local energy networks, such as microgrids or virtual power plants. [https://staging.bess.net.au/admin/sd_engine/sddocumentationmodel/51/change/]
  • Installing shared battery storage systems to support local energy resilience and maximise renewable energy use. [https://staging.bess.net.au/admin/sd_engine/sddocumentationmodel/52/change/]