Town of Cottesloe - Better Use of Resources

Better Use of Resources

The overall goals of sustainability in cities and towns are to reduce the use of natural resources and production of wastes (thus reducing human impact on the natural world), while improving liveability so that it can better fit the carrying capacity of local, regional and global ecosystems. Liveability is defined as "the human need for social amenity, health and well being".

Earth Hour 2009

Earth Hour is about people all around the world switching off their lights to reduce energy use and in turn, greenhouse gas emissions… tackling the challenge of climate change.

Earth Hour began in Sydney in 2007, when 2.2 million homes and businesses switched off their lights for one hour. In 2008 the message had grown into a global sustainability movement, with 50 million people switching off their lights. Global landmarks such as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Rome’s Colosseum, the Sydney Opera House and the Coca Cola billboard in Times Square all stood in darkness.

In 2009, Earth Hour is being taken to the next level, with the goal of 1 billion people switching off their lights as part of a global vote. Unlike any election in history, it is not about what country you’re from, but instead, what planet you’re from. VOTE EARTH is a global call to action for every individual, every business, and every community. A call to stand up and take control over the future of our planet. Over 74 countries and territories have pledged their support to VOTE EARTH during Earth Hour 2009, and this number is growing everyday.

We all have a vote, and every single vote counts. Together we can take control of the future of our planet, for future generations.

VOTE EARTH by simply switching off your lights for one hour, and join the world for Earth Hour.

Saturday, March 28, 8:30-9:30pm.

TravelSmart

The Town of Cottesloe has been designed as a walkable precinct, well served by public transport. We are proud to be part of the TravelSmart program which fosters sustainable transport. Cottesloe’s natural beauty makes it a great location to walk and cycle. To encourage people to take advantage of this the Town of Cottesloe in conjunction with TravelSmart have produced a walking and cycling guide and a facilities and access guide.

Over dependence on the car leads to air pollution, traffic congestion and lack of physical exercise. By replacing a couple of car trips each week with more active transport you can save money, get fit and help the environment. So why not take the TravelSmart challenge and change one return trip per week from the car to walking, cycling or public transport?

Eliminating the need for short car journeys will assist in conserving fossil fuel resources.

To find out more about Perth's hydrogen fuel cell bus trial, and the exciting potential of this technology for "zero emissions", click here.

More information can be obtained from Travelsmart Officer, Christie Downie at : cdownie@nedlands.wa.gov.au

Waste Management and Recycling

Our kerbside recycling programme is locally operated, a process which retrieves items from the waste stream, allowing them to be reused instead of sourcing virgin material.

Waste management and recycling is undertaken in the Town of Cottesloe, as follows:

Kerbside recycling facilities for residents.
Foliage prunings are used for dune preservation projects.
Recycling facilities provided at most public facilities.
Sustainable office practices within internal administration such as: double sided printing, paper recycling, computer shutdown outside office hours and utilisation of natural light during the daytime.

Cities for Climate Protection

Global climate data indicates incremental warming and gradual drying of our planet beyond natural variability. The acceleration of this process is widely believed to be a result of human induced increased greenhouse gas concentrations.

The Town of Cottesloe is committed to greenhouse gas reduction policies throughout the municipality. We have reached Milestone 5 as part of our commitment to the Cities for Climate Protection greenhouse reductions based framework and signed a commitment to Cities for Climate Protection Plus.

Potential areas for greenhouse gas reductions were identified in the Town of Cottesloe's Greenhouse Action Plan as part of Milestone 3.

Current abatement actions include:

earth friendly streetlighting,
the "Cott Cat" shuttle bus service,
purchase of 100% "Greenpower' for the Council's administration building,
recycling strategies that result in less waste going to landfill,
low energy compact fluorescent lighting,
carbon neutral emissions offsetting all employee travel to and from the workplace.

For further information on climate change, refer to the Australian Greenhouse Office publication "Climate change - an Australian guide to the main facts and uncertainties regarding climate change" at: www.greenhouse.gov.au

Energy Efficient Housing

Importantly, we aspire toward/encourage proactive, rather than reactive, greenhouse abatement strategies such as solar orientation of public and private buildings, use of low energy building materials, installation of energy efficient appliances, use of insulation and building design to capture cooling sea breezes.

For a guide to energy efficient housing in Western Australia, visit www.sedo.energy.wa.gov.au

Greensmart WA House of the Year Award goes to Cottesloe residents
The Town of Cottesloe congratulates talented local couple Garry Baverstock and Julia Hayes, whose new home has been awarded the 2005 Housing Industry Association Greensmart WA House of the Year and Energy Efficiency Award. To find out more about this award winning design, click here.

Measuring Our Ecological Footprint

How much productive land and water is required to support your lifestyle? Despite our technological, economic, and cultural advances, understanding the very basis of sustainability requires an understanding of ourselves as ecological entities, dependent on energy and material resources extracted from nature.

Measuring our ecological footprint enables us to calculate the area of productive land and water required to provide the resources consumed by a household, city or nation. The concept of ecological foot printing was developed by Drs Wackernackel and Rees, as a tool to illustrate the relationship between population and environmental impact.

To measure your ecological footprint, click on the footprint below and help us as a community to develop an appreciation for sustainable practices, so we can secure the wellbeing of generations to come.