Australia has long been known for the delicious wines created there, and lovers of the grape will be delighted to learn that the winemakers in this part of the world are also doing their part for the environment. Three wineries in particular – Pernod Ricard, Wirra Wirra, and Kay Brothers – have been recognised for their environmental efforts, using everything from solar panels to improved refrigeration in order to leave a smaller carbon footprint on the planet, and all without reducing the quality of the wines that they produce. There is a huge housing area south of Caloundra, Sunshine Coast that is also being set up in an environmentally friendly manner.
The three wineries partnered with Green Industries SA to come up with a plan of action that would help them be more environmentally friendly. Each used a different technique to reach their goals: Pernod Ricard slashed their CO2 emissions by over 8500 tonnes per year, which is basically the equivalent of taking 1800 exhaust spewing vehicles off the road. Kay Brothers uses solar panels for 70% of their energy use, while Wirra Wirra invested in a new commercial refrigeration set-up that is much more friendly to the environment than what they were using previously.
The changes made are just the tip of the iceberg for these winemakers, as they have environmental strategies in place that will be rolled out over the next few decades. In order to make all this happen so quickly, changes had to be made to the wine making process, but anyone who regularly drinks the wines made by these winemakers will probably find that there has been zero reduction in quality, and that the wines being produced now may actually be of a higher quality. It is certainly going to be interesting to see how the wine drinkers of the Sunshine Coast react to these changes, and how it may affect how other winemakers do business.
The fact of the matter is that consumers are now actively seeking out companies that do their part for the environment. We are more aware than ever before of the damage that we are doing to the planet, and we need to make a change before we reach the point of no return. Government regulations concerning C02 emissions are being put in place all over the world, and many companies, including these three winemakers, are trying to get a head start on those new rules before they become stricter.
The addition of new refrigeration units is certainly good news for those companies who build, install, and maintain commercial refrigeration units in Australia and the Sunshine Coast. While the new units are more efficient than those of old, they still need to be maintained and repaired so that they can do the job that they were designed for. It’s a good time to be a refrigeration mechanic, and it’s probably only going to get better as more and more companies are forced to re-think their commercial refrigeration set-up in order to stay on the right side of new and upcoming regulations.
