Taipei 101 Mall has reduced its annual carbon emissions by 3,532 tonnes and cut its power bill by nearly 10 percent after adopting “green” measures, including installing LED lighting, figures released by the mall's engineering team show.
The mall spent NT$119 million (US$4 million) on electricity bills in 2008. However, after adopting green measures, it shaved 9.6 percent, or about NT$10 million, off its bills, said Sheu Jau-fa (許招發), head of the mall’s engineering operations management.
These green measures include changing over to energy-saving lights in the parking lot and installing LED lighting and infrared sensors to control brightness, he said.
Sheu made the remarks at an activity the Ministry of Economic Affairs organized yesterday to promote the work of its energy conservation and greenhouse gas emissions reduction service team.
The team was formed in May as part of the administration’s efforts to synergize the resources of various government agencies to provide a one-stop shop for energy conservation matters.
The agencies include the Bureau of Energy, the Industrial Development Bureau, the National Science Council, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of the Interior.
The team has six divisions covering sectors such as educational institutions, small and medium businesses, manufacturers and green construction.
“In the past, various agencies had similar initiatives to encourage energy conservation, but the resources were scattered,” said Steven Wu (吳志偉), a section chief at the Bureau of Energy.
With the establishment of the team, it is able to combine different agencies’ know-how to better address the needs of the private sector, Wu said.
The team has consultants that can conduct on-site inspections if requested by companies and offer advice and solutions on conserving energy and reducing carbon emissions.
The ministry said the team conducted 3,141 on-site inspections last year, and its analyses showed that those projects could reduce carbon emissions by 735,000 tonnes a year.
Taoyuan-based Yuan Ze University has also employed the team’s services.
The university’s dean of general affairs, Wei Jung-tzung (魏榮宗), said the school was trying hard to reduce its utility bills, which amounted to about NT$60 million a year.
“That amount took up half the annual subsidy from the Ministry of Education,” he said.
Yuan Ze decided to install solar systems to heat water and supply electricity to the campus and dormitories, among other measures.
Now it enjoys savings of about NT$20 million in annual utility bills, Wei said.
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