The City of Sydney council has banned gas appliances for all new homes and businesses built from January 2026.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore’s council on Monday night unanimously adopted the motion banning gas from all new residential builds from December 31 to wean homes and businesses off the fossil fuel.
The council said the move would save each household up to $626 on their power bills every year.
The change would see an update to development control rules for the use of electric stoves, ovens, heaters and coolers in all newly built apartments and houses.
Gas hot water systems will still be permitted under the current regulations.
‘We remain in a climate crisis, which means we need to pull every lever we have in order to keep reducing our emissions,’ Clover Moore said.
‘To rely on gas means a continued cost for our hip pocket, a continued cost for our health and a continued cost for our planet. It is a price that we simply cannot afford to pay.’
It joins six other NSW councils which have already banned indoor gas appliances in new builds, while seven other councils are also working towards the same regulations.
The City of Sydney also proposed a ban on gas appliances in other developments including serviced apartments, new offices and hotels.
Councillors voted on gathering public feedback on a plan which would ‘require’ the use of renewable energy in the developments if a ban on gas is passed.
The City of Sydney council has banned indoor gas appliances including stoves (pictured), ovens, heaters and coolers for any new homes and businesses built after December 31
The council hopes to phase out gas appliances in all new homes, offices, hotels and serviced apartments by 2027.
The progression to fully electric new builds will eventually include a switch from gas to electric hot water systems in houses and apartments.
Greens councillor Matthew Thompson, who voted in favour of the gas ban, claimed the motion would not only save households money but also residents’ lives.
‘These changes are an easy step we can take right now to save lives and save families money,’ Thompson said in a statement on Monday.
Thompson also likened the use of gas stove ovens for cooking to smoking cigarettes ‘in an enclosed room with your child’.
Meanwhile, Liberal councillor Lyndon Gannon, who also backed the ban, claimed the move would ‘not kill the family barbecue’ as it did not restrict households from using gas bottles.
The council takes in Sydney’s central business district and surrounding inner-city suburbs, covering a resident population of more than 210,000 people.
It comes as the City of Sydney has pushed for the banning of gas in new homes since August 2023 after it passed a motion to ‘investigate’ developing rules.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore’s (pictured) council voted unanimously to adopt the motion banning gas
At the time, eight out of 10 councillors passed the motion which pushed for new homes and businesses within the council area to be all-electric and gas-free.
The move received widespread backlash with many calling for NSW Premier Chris Minns to block the council from unilaterally imposing bans on gas appliances.
Lord Mayor Moore conceded that the state government had the ultimate jurisdiction to block or allow the ban.
In 2023, Minns rejected a statewide ban on new gas connections.
The NSW government has the power to implement planning rules which would override those instituted by council.
Campaign Manager for Electrify Your Council James Conlan congratulated the City of Sydney for it’s ‘bold’ ban on gas appliances.
‘We congratulate the City of Sydney for taking bold climate leadership and taking action where the state government is falling behind,’ Mr Conlan said.
‘Gas is a dirty fossil fuel that has no place in homes. Stopping new gas connections is a no-brainer for cutting emissions and making sure our homes aren’t making us sick.’
Prince of Wales Hospital neurologist Shaun Watson said it was a smart move.
‘Burning gas in the home releases carbon dioxide which is heating the planet. Gas used in the home also releases nitrogen dioxide, benzene and formaldehyde which are known to trigger childhood asthma,’ Dr Watson said.
‘City of Sydney has set a great precedent for other councils in NSW to follow.’
