Lake Macquarie City Council
Council is committed to reducing greenhouse gases in Lake Macquarie. Greenhouse gas emission reductions have been achieved in our own day-to-day operations and by educating and encouraging the community to make reductions in their homes. We continually demonstrate our commitment to this cause by increasing the energy efficiency of our facilities and buildings. The CCP program has provided us with the framework to measure our results and achievements to justify the allocation of funding to greenhouse programs . Council will continue to recognise the importance of this issue for the future benefit of the Lake Macquarie community.
Lake Macquarie is a City with a coal powered power station and surrounded by two others in neighbouring Council boundaries. As a City, we need to reduce our reliance on non renewable energy sources and seek cleaner sustainable energy.
Council will continue to recognise the importance of reducing greenhouse gas emissions for the future benefit of the Lake Macquarie community.
A word from the Mayor
Actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
Community
- Community Waste Diverted to Worm Farm - Green waste is brought to the site typically by garden contractors. Waste is recycled through worm farming, composting and mulching at the site.
- REFIT Program - REFIT kits containing energy and water saving devices were sold to residents. REFIT is a joint program between Hunter Water, Energy Australia, and a number of Hunter Region Councils.
- Community Education - Numerous community education programs incorporate energy reduction messages.
- Green Waste Diverted from Landfill - Paper recycling and food waste is collected from the Administration Building only, and diverted to the worm farm.
- Energy Audit Program for Business - Council conducted reviews of 10 businesses (seven small and three large) at various locations throughout the City.
- Methane Flared Gas from Landfill - Council has engaged a proponent to install a gas to energy system at the Awaba Waste Management Facility.
- Sustainable Living Workshops- workshops focus on educating individuals about green building design, solar energy, rainwater tanks and biodiversity.
- Preparation of Sustainable Home Guide. The Guide contains practical information on actions to reduce water and energy consumption, minimise waste and encourage backyard biodiversity.
Travel
- Car pool program for Council staff
- Extension of cycleways in the City
- Hybrid Vehicles (Toyota Prius') have been made available to staff as an option on the leaseback vehicle list.
- Biodiesel use in Diesel Fleet - Biodiesel was used for four months during 2004 in all 502 units of plant and diesel powered vehicles.
- Inline Fuel Filtration - Fuel filtration devices installed at the diesel bowsers to increase fuel efficiency. A 1 per cent improvement in efficiency effectively saved 15,000L of diesel a year.
Corporate
- Climate Change Task Teams- Council established two specific approaches to climate change within our City- Adaptation and Mitigation Climate Change task teams. Each task team aim to strategise our climate change response, develop action plans and coordinate tasks.
- Set new emission targets- Council is currently setting strict new corporate emission targets to reduce our emission footprint. A new 30 per cent reduction in emissions by 2018 was recently proposed as a corporate target.
- Solar Heat Pump - A solar heat pump was installed at the Wallsend Swimming Centre. This action is part of a number of future actions to be implemented.
- Human Resources - Council funded the positions of Environmental Auditor (2 per cent), CCP Officer (28 per cent), Projects Officer (75 per cent), and Fleet Manager (1 per cent), to assist in reducing its corporate emissions.
- Retrofit of the Administration Building, Works Depot, Depot Office, Toronto Library, Speers Point Library and Bush Fire Control Centre.
- Swansea and Morisset Public Swimming Pools - Installation of heat pump hot water systems.
- Sustainable Purchasing Policy - Council introduced a Waste Reduction and Procurement Policy in 2000 and is currently revising its policies to incorporate cleaner and greener goods and services throughout operations.
- Computer Replacement and Energy Saving Initiatives - Council has been steadily replacing computer screens, hard drives and laptops every four years with energy efficient rated systems. A script that will automatically shutdown all PC's after 6:00pm has also been implemented, resulting in further energy savings.
Future greenhouse abatement actions
Short Term
- Increase the community uptake of green power ;
- Set clear Council priorities for Co2 equivalents;
- Implement new emission reduction targets;
- Implementation of actions from Energy Savings Action Plan, Lake Macquarie Greenhouse Action Plan and 10 year energy plan within the Milestone 5 report;
- Work through Cities for Climate Protection (CCP) Australia Plus program;
- Continue Climate change community education;
- Continued implementation of LEP 2004, DCP No. 1 which promotes a greater use of public transport in the City and the construction of energy efficient buildings, under BASIX legislation;
- Work closely with Commercial and Industrial sectors to identify barriers and opportunities to reduce energy consumption and subsequent greenhouse gas emissions, eg. energy audits;
- Reduce Council's reliance on non-renewable resources;
- Reducing the size of the current vehicle fleet, reducing the size of engines and replacing six cylinder vehicles with four cylinder vehicles;
- Engage and empower Council departments to consider energy usage.
- Provide appropriate management structure for best practice greenhouse management;
Long Term
- Document a citywide 30 per cent decrease in energy production by 2018;
- Document a Corporate 30 per cent decrease in energy production by 2018;
- Develop a sustainable transport policy;
- Develop a green purchasing policy;
- Utilise more efficient street lighting for the City, eg Solar and LED technologies;
- Reintroduction of renewable fuels (biodiesel or ethanol), and hybrid vehicles, will provide large emission reductions;
- Catalyse the development of green energy production;.
More information
Contact: Rod. Ingersoll
Web Address: www.lakemac.com.au
Updated: November 2007
CCP Facts
State: New South Wales
Date joined:
November 2000
Current Milestone:
Milestone 5