Diesel Generators Noisy, Smelly, Polluting And Cheating

Green Party co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons said that turning on the diesel generators at Parliament yesterday showed a disappointing lack of imagination in responding to the electricity crisis.

"It is an admission of complete policy failure to turn to greenhouse gas-belching machines before there has been any attempt to use people-based solutions," she said.

"It is good to see the floodlighting reduced and the Greens congratulate Speaker Jonathan Hunt on that.

"But there are some 3,000 people working in Parliament Buildings and each of them could improve the way they use power.

"Staff and MPs were only asked this afternoon to make any contribution to energy savings, as a subsidiary to the "first major electricity saving measure" identified as running the diesel generators every working day during the next ten week period."

Ms Fitzsimons said that achieving a major part of Parliament's target savings of 15 percent simply by cranking up the generator is cheating.

"The Minister is talking of asking other New Zealanders to change their behaviour. Parliament should lead the way in conserving energy - not simply switch to smelly, noisy and polluting diesel.

"We have all seen the offices where lights burn for hours on end with no-one inside. We have all seen the computers left on over night or for hours when not in use.

"Our offices have fridges which are not ventilated and heat up very inefficiently. If all except two or three per floor were disconnected in Bowen House, they would be scarcely missed.

"Most offices have TV sets which are never turned off at the wall, only at the remote. It is usually too hot to wear a jacket in the buildings - turning the heat down a degree or two would hurt no-one.

"If staff and MPs can not reach the level of savings required when we have tried everything reasonable, that is time enough to talk about diesel."

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