Melbourne's Greenest Landlord

Alternative Technology Association Shane Merrick is not your typical cost-saving landlord. He has gone out of his way to turn his investment property in Hampton into a model of sustainability. Shane has installed a greywater system that feeds water from the shower and roof into the garden, a rainwater tank, solar hot water system, energy-efficient lighting, and insulated the roof and walls, including double insulation in the attic. He has won the Green Landlord Award from the Alternative Technology Association (ATA) after a competition in its magazine, ReNew. The ATA is Australia's leading not-for-profit organization promoting renewable energy, water saving and sustainable design in the home. Shane is proud his tenants have free hot water during Melbourne's sunnier months thanks to the solar hot water unit he installed. "My wife and I are very keen to help the environment as much as possible where we can," he says. "We decided to reduce the footprint of our Hampton investment property for future tenants." Jacinta Cleary, editor of ReNew, says the number of landlords going green is increasing. Some are spurred on by strong environmental awareness, while others are attracted by incentives like tax breaks, rebates or increasing the overall value of their property. "Either way it's good news for tenants struggling with utility bills and a great step towards making all properties more environmentally friendly." Jacinta says Shane is a worthy winner of the Green Landlord Award due to the range of energy-saving measures he has put into his investment property. "A lot of them are just commonsense. The most important thing he did was install insulation so the tenants don't need to use the heater as much. This is what everyone should do first." < Prev   Next >