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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 9 Hansard (4 September) . . Page.. 3074 ..

MRS CARNELL (continued):

(3) For the year prior to the commencement of the decentralised hot water project (April 1996-March 1997) the hospital consumed an average of 9,076 GJ of gas per month. As the three boilers are not metered separately consumption on a per boiler basis is not possible.

(4) In the five months (April-August 1997) since the commencement of the decentralised hot water project the average monthly gas consumption was 11,799 GJ. This compares with the average monthly consumption of 11,703 GJ for the period April-August 1996. As the hospital has continued to operate throughout the implementation of the project, the gas usage during the construction phase is marginally higher due to the requirement to operate the old and new systems concurrently.

(5) When the project is completed it is conservatively estimated that the hospital's gas consumption will reduce by at least 1,000 GJ per month. This equates to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of 588 tonnes CO₂ per annum.

(6) (a) For the financial year 1996/97 the average gas consumption was 9,110 GJ per month.

(b) The hospital consumes gas for heating and domestic hot water and steam production. The steam is currently used for cooking, a minor amount of sterilisation and production of heating and domestic hot water. The majority of the gas usage is required for the production of domestic and heating hot water.

(7) (a) The redevelopment project made various modifications to the existing heating systems in the hospital and, where necessary, installed additional heating systems to provide appropriate levels of heating for the clinical and administrative areas of the hospital.

(b) Through the redevelopment project new heating systems were installed in the new buildings established on the hospital campus. This includes the Maternity, Diagnostic and Treatment, Administrative and Psychiatry buildings. Heating in each of the new buildings is based on small direct fired boilers which service the individual buildings. In some areas reverse cycle air conditioning has been provided for both heating and cooling.

(c) The modifications to the hospital's heating systems throughout the hospital redevelopment were necessary to deliver appropriate environmental conditions to the wards, clinical treatment and administrative areas of the hospital.

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