The NSW Climate Change Fund will be spending $20 milllion to train up to 20,000 people over four years in energy efficiency skills.
The Energy Efficiency Skills Development Program will aid in stimulating growth of a green economy in NSW and support the NSW Energy Efficiency Strategy. This will provide training opportunities for the NSW workforce and stimulate the demand for new jobs in NSW.
From July, funding will go towards short courses to up-skill tradespeople and professionals in energy efficiency. This will see up to 20,000 people trained in a range of green skills over four years.
This means training plumbers to retrofit houses, electricians to use energy saving fittings and ensuring we have building assessors and energy auditors to monitor progress
The Energy Efficiency Skills Development Program will help the NSW workforce:
- make technology, production processes, buildings and equipment more energy efficient
- help business to adopt energy savings techniques and practices
- reduce the costs in reaching Australia's greenhouse gas reduction targets
- increase awareness and understanding of how to use energy wisely in the community
- help NSW make the transition to an energy efficient, low carbon future.
This training will have an energy payoff for NSW. Buildings are responsible for 23 per cent of our greenhouse gas emissions.
Families will also benefit – a trained 'green electrician' can cut a household energy use by about 14 per cent and a trained plumber with the right skills can help reduce household water usage by about 10 per cent.
To make this work, we need to green skill the trainers. An important part of the program will involve professional development for teachers in universities and vocational education and training organizations so they can provide the training in this important area.
In addition, the program will fund industry projects to trial new ways to implement training and energy efficient measures.
See Green Skills NSW.