Doorstop interview, Australian War Memorial

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
DOORSTOP
AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL
TUESDAY, 8 OCTOBER 2024

SUBJECT: Switching on the Australian War Memorial’s Geothermal System

MATT ANDERSON, DIRECTOR AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL: I pay my respects the traditional custodians, the lands on which we meet, and their elders past and present, and as we do every night at the Australian War Memorial, we honor those who have served, those who are still serving, and the families who love and support them, which is particularly relevant here at the Australian War Memorial, and this project, because we have enjoyed and benefited from over 50 veterans who have been actively engaged in the Development to this point in time. My job today is very, very simple. I have the honor of acknowledging the attendance and the presence of the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs and the Minister for Defence Personnel, Matt Keogh, and the Minister for Climate Change and Minister for Energy in Minister Bowen. So the program this morning, quite simply, is, I'll ask the Minister say a few words, we'll get him to push a button, and we'll take some questions.

MATT KEOGH, MINISTER FOR VETERANS’ AFFAIRS AND DEFENCE PERSONNEL: Thanks very much, Matt. We're here at the Australian War Memorial, which is the national center of commemoration for those who have served in Australia's uniform and fallen, but also the national place of reflection, as well as a place for people to come and learn about Australia's involvement in conflict over more than a century, and making sure that the Memorial is able to properly reflect that story, the story of so many Australians that have worn our uniform, we are undertaking a large expansion of the War Memorial to make sure it's able to undertake that very important purpose properly. As part of that project, we've now reached a very significant milestone today, where we come to turn on the new geothermal system as part of the War Memorial Expansion Project. This geothermal system will provide the heating and cooling for the expanded Australian War Memorial, and it will do that in a way that relies on the heat and the temperature of the ground, instead of having to use gas and other forms of energy to provide that heating for the Australian War Memorial. What that means is that we'll be saving something like 1400 tonnes of carbon emissions through using geothermal as the heating and cooling source for the Australian War Memorial, instead of more traditional methods. And this is a significant milestone for the War Memorial. This project here, this geothermal project, started in 2022 we're now in 2024 and we're about to turn it on. We've moved rapidly in implementing what is one of the largest geothermal projects in the world, with over 200 holes sending water into the ground to make sure that we're getting that heating and cooling effect from the ground. 128 kilometers of piping as part of this project, which will see an ongoing saving of running costs for the heating and cooling of the War Memorial of a million dollars a year. So this is a significant project when it comes to the green credentials of this project, making sure we're saving carbon emissions. It's a significant milestone when it comes to cost saving for the ongoing sustainability and operation of the Australian War Memorial as we move towards the completion of the expansion of the War Memorial to be able to properly reflect Australia's involvement in conflicts, especially across the 21st century to date. So it's a really important milestone we're here for today, as you can see around us some incredible technology that's been brought to bear on a huge scale, and it means that the War Memorial becomes an exemplar of what can be done when we talk about public buildings and public spaces in this country, this geothermal project here will be an example of what new build and expansion build for museums, galleries, large public spaces can be, making sure that we're saving carbon emission by using what's in the ground and available for heating and cooling through using geothermal technology. And this will be part of a broader project where we're not just using geothermal, but as part of the expansion project, we're also seeing a massive solar array going on the roof to make sure that we're harnessing the sun for energy here at the War Memorial as well, and the harvesting of rainwater so that we're able to use that on the gardens and across the War Memorial precinct to make sure that this really is one of the most sustainable projects moving forward as well. I'm now going to get Chris Bowen to say a few words about where the project sits and what the Australian Government is doing more broadly in this space. Thanks Chris.

CHRIS BOWEN, MINISTER FOR CLIMATE CHANGE AND ENERGY: Thank you very much Matt. Well, it's always an honor to visit Australia's most sacred building, but a different part today than usual, I want to congratulate the War Memorial, congratulate Matt and Matt on this very significant investment. Of course, our Government’s committed to being net zero in the public service by 2030 and this is an important part of that journey. And this is a particularly innovative project, because in Australia, our solar and wind are so cheap that normally geothermal doesn't play such a role. It plays a big role in other countries, particularly Nordic countries around the world, but not so much in Australia. But we need to make every post a winner, and to take every opportunity to reduce emissions and the fit for purpose solution for the War Memorial was and is geothermal, and as Matt said, supported by the other more traditional technologies. So this is a good day. The emissions reductions equivalent to 87,000 school children visiting the War Memorial from Canberra, from Sydney to Canberra. So that's no small thing, of course. It reduces the running cost of the War Memorial by reducing electricity bills and reduces emissions. And it's appropriate that our most important and sacred building is part of our journey to net zero by 2030 the public service, which is our commitment, and again, I just want to congratulate the War Memorial and Minister Keogh for not only embarking on this journey, but delivering it so quickly and so efficiently. And to all the team involved that are here today, well done, because, we don't have the luxury of leaving some parts of our Government or some parts of our country out of our journey to net zero. It is absolutely essential that we make every post a winner, and that's what the War Memorial is doing today. So thank you. I'll hand back to Matt to steer questions.

JOURNALIST: Matt Anderson, can you tell us a bit more about the veteran involvement?

ANDERSON: Yeah, sure, the veteran involvement certainly is one of the things I've been most proud of as part of the entire tender process. When we evaluate a tender for the Development, we have actually put in basically a pricing of about 10 per cent of the value, the net value of a contract that we award goes to those who can demonstrate a veteran engagement strategy. So it's a very, very important thing for us. We want our veterans to be involved in this. And I often think that perhaps one of the proudest moments in the entire development for me has been at the very front of the building. When we were at our lowest point in terms of physical excavations at the front of the building. We had some veterans who were involved in the construction spoke to their regiment, and their regiment came along, and what they wanted to do was place in the footings of the southern entrance at the very, very ground, their challenge coins from their regiment because they wanted to be involved in this building from the ground up. And that's been the case ever since. We've been engaging veterans, we've been engaging veteran owned businesses, just to ensure that that they have a very, very real, meaningful and sustainable, part of the development. So very proud of it.

JOURNALIST: What was the initial setup cost for this technology?

ANDERSON: Just over $10 million and we hope to pay that back over 10 years, which is remarkable. And just to put that into perspective, $1 million allows us to run the annual Last Post ceremonies. $1 million allows me to take the collection on the road to have traveling exhibitions that will go all over this country, because we are a national institution, not just a Canberra based institution, and I need to take the collection on the road. It allows us to have education projects. It allows us to digitise things. It's a terribly important saving for the Memorial that can be realised by delivering what it is, which is leading the nation's commemoration and understanding of the Australian experience of war. So it's, it's a very, very real, has a very real and sustainable impact on the operations of the Memorial as well.

JOURNALIST: And how important is it for our future generations?

ANDERSON: Well, it's, it's funny, I am proud dad of my daughter in military, and she said to me when she visited over the long weekend that whilst what were the space that we're creating to tell the stories is terribly important, it's the message that this sends to our veterans, that we not only have an eye on the past, we have an eye on the future. We’re preserving the past, we're telling the stories of the past and the present in terms of the ADF deployments. But most importantly, this institution, our most significant national institution, has a very, very clear eye on the future and a sustainable future at that.

JOURNALIST: Amazing and we're expecting a Royal visit soon. How are plans going for that at the moment?

ANDERSON: Perfectly. Obviously you'd appreciate that we don't telegraph these things in advance. We're very honored that their Royal Highnesses have chosen to visit the Australian War Memorial. We shouldn't be surprised by that, because of the very, very deep connection the Royal Family have with military service and sacrifice. He's no stranger to the Australian War Memorial, and we will be honored to host him here when he visits Australia in late October.

JOURNALIST: King Charles is a huge climate advocate. Do you think he would appreciate this project is on?

ANDERSON: I'm quite sure he'll appreciate this project. He's, in that sense, he's been very much a visionary, and I think I look forward to briefing him on this project as part of the visit. Can I also acknowledge, I mean, in my introductions, I should have acknowledged that we have two of our Council Members here who were pivotal in the driving of this decision. So we have Glenn Keys and we have Greg Melick, and both of those serve on Council, both of those were intimately involved in the decision and the direction that the Memorial undertook. And I just want to acknowledge them and thank them for being here today and for your personal interest and leadership.

END

Open Arms – Veterans & Families Counselling provides 24/7 free confidential crisis support for current and ex-serving ADF personnel and their families on 1800 011 046 or the Open Arms website. Safe Zone Support provides anonymous counselling on 1800 142 072. Defence All-Hours Support Line provides support for ADF personnel on 1800 628 036 or the Defence Health Portal. Defence Member and Family Helpline provides support for Defence families on 1800 624 608