Top of the list in Jodie Lawson's search for a market garden property were soil, rainfall & a robust community. So when she found all of those in Apollo Bay at 'The Green Acre', with the bonus of its own solar system, she was hooked.
"I loved the fact that it had its own power infrastructure. Central to my business approach is to minimise waste & act generally to benefit the environment. I had always bought green energy and so solar power fitted perfectly with my values”
With ground level panels, cleaning is easy but hedge trimming & mowing become important for maximising power generation. Jodie's all electric property has 2 fridges, a stove, electric instantaneous hot water, heating, pumps, etc. and was never going to be powered fully by her 10 y.o. 1.7kW system. Nevertheless, “The solar cuts my bills in half and because my business income is quite seasonal, the lower bills help with cash flow in the winter months”
“Upgrading my system would further reduce my costs but my main interest is the connectivity that a micro-grid would allow. Local trading builds and supports community and that is at the foundation of my personal and business philosophy.”