Opportunities for Solar power in Bethania
Bethania, named after the biblical town of Bethany, is a suburb of Logan city situated about 4 miles to the southeast. Bethania is the subject for our study on the feasibility of solar power in the suburb,
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Location – Bethania is about 20 miles Southeast of Brisbane central business district. The Beenleigh railway line, which eventually runs to the Goldcoast line, has a station in this locality. The northern western and eastern boundaries of this locality entirely run on the Logan River. Its bordered by Loganlea, Meadowbrook, Waterford, Tanah Merah and others.
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Real Estate – Bethania was home to many farms which opened between mid to late nineteenth centuries. Rapid urbanization occurred when the cities of Gold Coast and Brisbane become larger regional hubs. Median prices for homes with small backyards hover around 250,000 Australian dollars. Near the south of the locality there is a dense population of houses which were developed owing to land being released. Land releases do happen quite often here. There are industrial estates in Bethania as well.
River front houses to the north and west of this locality are sought after due to the scenic view. They are also priced lower than quite a few other suburbs. It is no surprise that most of this area has been quite well developed and land release if any will be very little as there isn’t much free land to allocate. There are a few farm properties which may be recycled if the owners would want to give them due to value appreciation.
Despite the growth, Bethania is at risk of floods due to its proximity to the Logan River and the Brisbane River. In the past floods have inundated the area and caused a fair amount of damage. It is one of the reasons for property prices being lower compared to other areas around it.
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Potential for solar power – Solar power on an industrial scale would be difficult in this locality and fraught with risks. There is very little land left to develop and hence solar power In Bethania will have to develop mostly around the homes. There are quite a few homes that have taken advantage. However majority of households remain completely connected to the grid.
Proactive steps would have to be taken in order to develop solar power in this locality as it is a well settled suburb. Some of the newer properties that may come up can be encouraged to offer solar power pre-installed. Prospective customers won’t be averse to the idea because paying a little extra in the beginning with the property would translate to a lot of savings in power consumption in the long run.
For commercial entities, smaller arrays could be installed to power functions like electronic device usage and lighting, cutting down their electricity costs.
Another area of potential for solar power in Bethania would be public infrastructure. A densely populated suburb, which requires street lighting and other civic amenities could definitely benefit from solar power. The local government would have to be proactive to make sure that they are able to assess this and then take action.