1,036 solar installations registered with the Clean Energy Regulator · ranked top 50% in Queensland · data current as at 2026-08-15
Based on last week's Queensland grid mix (avg 810 gCO₂/kWh), Cairns's 1,036 solar systems typically avoid around 6.42 tonnes of CO₂ every hour during peak generation.
Grid intensity data: Open Electricity (openelectricity.org.au) · 7-day average · updates monthly
Cairns ranks 224th in Queensland for solar installations — in the middle tier of 449 postcodes tracked by the Clean Energy Regulator across the state. 70 new systems were installed in the past 12 months, a 13% increase on the previous year — steady growth consistent with continued community uptake.
The combined impact is substantial: Cairns's solar community avoids an estimated 10,255 tonnes of CO₂ every year — equivalent to taking 4,883 cars off the road or powering around 2,051 average Australian homes with clean electricity. This is estimated using Queensland's average grid emissions intensity of 810 gCO₂/kWh, sourced from OpenElectricity, applied to an average system size of 9kW.