Response to:

Huon Valley Council

Draft Climate Change Strategy - Part A, Mitigation Plan

Contents:

1. Overview and appreciation of progress

2. Understanding the sources of emissions

3. Key principles

4. Recommendations

5. How can Circular Economy Huon assist

6. References

"A circular economy is based on the principles of designing out waste and pollution, keeping products and materials in use, and regenerating natural systems." Ellen Macarthur Foundation

Document prepared by Circular Economy Huon

Contact:

Gerry White, Public Officer, Cradoc

1. Overview and appreciation of progress

We appreciate Huon Valley Council (HVC) taking a leading role in developing a community plan for mitigation of Climate Change and later for Climate Change adaptation.

We believe that these plans are important and urgent for our Community and that the process of developing them is as important as the final plans. Our ability to work together to solve problems and adapt to changing circumstances will underpin our resilience as a community in the future.

There has been a groundswell of community interest for the Council to take action on Climate Change. Circular Economy introduced HVC to the Cities Power Partnership program and we have been involved in running three Climate Change Forums. Around 120 people attended the last forum in June 2019. A petition to declare a ‘Climate Emergency’ with over 760 signatures was presented to Council in mid May 2019. Reference to the community support for climate action should be mentioned in the Part A Mitigation strategy.

It is good that Plan A refers back to the UN Sustainable Development Goals that set a global context for a range of actions including mitigation plans on climate change. We agree that climate mitigation falls into Goals 11, 12 and 13 of the UN Sustainable Government Goals. It is also important that we engage with many other Goals to achieve equality of opportunity for the community and the development of a circular economy.

We recognise and appreciate that Council has signed up to the Cities Power Partnership and the other recent work the Council has undertaken in Climate and sustainability related initiatives. We also think that the research undertaken at the instigation of the STCA through RCCI is especially good as it has provided Huon Valley Council with a solid foundation for the formulation of robust climate change plans and policies.

We acknowledge that as this is the first climate change strategy document that Huon Valley Council has produced it is particularly challenging. We also expect that the author(s) also have other responsibilities to perform within council at the same time as penning this document. But we also need to remember that many other councils have been working in this space since as early as the mid 90’s there is a fair bit of ground to make up. Fortunately the early adopting councils have a string of documents which can be analysed and where applicable adopted for the Huon Valley.

Our approach in commenting on the draft document has been to try and take a holist perspective. We would like to suggest a different way of viewing the source of emissions in the Valley and apply general principles that will enhance the document. We trust that this approach adds more value than trying to rewrite the specific actions, milestones, timeframes and responsibilities as we realise that so much effort has already been put in to these. As the final document develops we would welcome the opportunity to be involved in contributing to further details about various aspects of the strategy.

In preparation for responding to the Huon Valley Council (HVC), Climate Change Plan (Draft) Part A – Mitigation Plan Circular Economy Huon (CEH) have consulted widely. We have referred and reread climate change strategy documents from a variety of councils including Hobart City, Darebin, Moreland, Strathbogie and the reports from the organisation Beyond Zero Carbon. We have talked to the following people:

- CEH members who are scientifically conversant with CC issues,

- Councillor Rob Prince with responsibility for Climate Change,

- A person who was part of the Council’s Consultative group,

- Dr Tom Remenyi who is a UTAS based climate specialist advising STCA, and

- Data analyst, Alison Johnson

2. Understanding the sources of emissions

The data and pie charts included in the Strategy provide a thorough overview of available data. To further clarify the sources of emissions we have prepared the following diagram that lists the sources of CO2 emissions in descending order of size.

Diagram 1.

The diagram shows that 84% of emissions come from the community - industry, transport and household; whereas Council’s emissions are relatively minor at less than 1%. Therefore we think that, for mitigation planning, Council should focus mainly on how it can influence the top emission sources and on carbon sink projects.

We understand and accept the strategic analysis applied to the Draft Strategy that distinguishes between areas under the direct control of Council and those areas that it can (only) influence. However, while it is likely that significant mitigation actions will also need to be taken by State and Federal Governments, Huon Valley Council can take a leading advocacy role in bringing this to their attention. For example, this may be for reimagining transport systems or through working creatively with industry as they are the major source of emissions in the Valley. It is also likely that HVC would also work collaboratively with other state and regional organisations such as LGAT and STCA.

By understanding more clearly which sectors produce what emissions it then becomes necessary to consider where Council should be applying its major mitigation effort. Actions under Objective 1 of the document are still an important part of the dealing with climate change mitigation but in volumetric terms they are insignificant – less than 1% of total emissions. However, it is important that Council does take action on dealing with its own emissions and probably even more important, it is seen by the community to be taking action. We postulate that the demonstration factor by Council taking action will lead the community to take action where there are significant emissions.

We would like to suggest that Part B - Adaption should cover impacts and adaptation to the following areas:

council infrastructure (roads, parks, halls, other assets);
natural resources under Council’s control or influence;
collaboration on economic development impacts. One example is the economic impact of pests (marine and terrestrial) and reduction in cold days with negative impacts for Huon Valley orchardists;
communication and education of residents, businesses and tourists;
relevant planning scheme inclusions in the Local Provision Schedule to cover the impacts of heat, erosion, inundation, bushfire, extreme rainfall (flooding);
health and immunization needs.

3. Key principles

High sources of emissions

Identify the major sources of emissions in the Huon Valley and collaboratively devise strategies for tackling them, even where they are not directly under the control of council.

Quantify resources and outcomes

Throughout the document there is no mention of the resources that are going to be put into the mitigation process or by how much it is intended to reduce emissions over the next five years. As this is a new strategy CEH appreciates the challenge associated with quantifying inputs and outputs. But to be a credible plan this could be forecast for say the first couple of years and the mechanism for deciding how much money is to put against this new line item. It would also be good if there was an estimate of the expected reduction for the individual actions.

Measure and record

Figures 1, 2 and 3 includes very useful data about emissions in the municipality, but there are a number of omissions that it will be important to measure. For example, what is the quantum of emissions saved by degassing refrigerants? How much is known about the emissions from organic waste, or the waste that is transferred to Copping? We realise that this cannot be done instantly but it would be good to have a program progressive extension and improvement built into the plan.

Work collaboratively, include the community

We are impressed with the number of actions that the Council are aiming to achieve without further assistance. To better facilitate action these responsibilities should be spread more widely throughout the community. What should be the role of business, community groups, and individuals? For example with Action 2.5.1 there are aquaculture and horticulture businesses in the Valley who would directly benefit from the establishment of an organic waste facility and could provide expertise, as well as financial resources. Or individual community members could assist with energy efficiency for households such as is run by Z-Net through Uralla Shire Council. There are many people with great skills and knowledge in the Valley who could assist in a number of ways. If people, businesses and organisations across the community are broadly involved by contributing to the Strategy there will be better commitment and greater emissions reductions

There is also a vital role for working collaboratively with the STCA and LGAT. They need to be included in the Part A Mitigation strategy along with reference to the State and Federal Governments and their agencies. Are there actions that would be best undertaken in collaboration with our neighbour, Kingborough Council?

Select specific targets

As far as is reasonably possible, targets should be set for each of the Actions in Objective 1 and 2.

Adopt pilot projects

To test the effectiveness from an organisational or emissions reduction perspective it may be beneficial to establish and closely monitor pilot projects. For example, with considering Action 2.5.2 FOGO consider setting something up for an area such as Geeveston. It could also be applied to Action 2.6.3 with the restoration of degraded land.

Communications and marketing

There will be many important messages for Council to both give and receive from the community that will require a separate communications and marketing strategy. This will include comprehensive web based information in an easy to access section of the HVC website, social media, special events, hard copy pamphlets and press articles. On a personal level it may mean attending business meetings, visiting schools, appearing in the electronic media. These activities will also require a budget.

It will also be important to celebrate the wins and share these with the public.

Don’t be afraid to sell the benefits of this strategy! This, along with adaptation and waste actions represents jobs and growth for the future. Part of the communication and marketing associated with the mitigation strategy should be to promote the associated employment and the education and training needed to equip people for working in this evolving career structure.

4. Recommendations

Listed below are recommendations for the mitigation strategy. Some are relatively straight forward suggesting that adding sentences to the written plan while others are more complex.

Recommendation 1.

Include a statement in the Background section about community support in the Huon Valley over the last three years for taking climate change action.

Recommendation 2.

Add Diagram 1, % CO2 Emissions vs Source into the section in the document that presents information about Council and Community emissions and include an explanation.

Recommendation 3.

Reassess the Actions in Objectives 1 and 2 with the aim of supporting the community to do more to reduce emissions that are not directly under the control of HVC.

Recommendation 4.

Include a vision statement about how much, either in tons or percentages, that the Council aims to reduce emissions over the life of the strategy.

Recommendation 5.

Include a statement about the amount of money Council intends to spend on the Mitigation Strategy in years 1 and 2 and provide an indicative budget for years 3, 4, and 5.

Recommendation 6.

Explain how levels for unquantified emission will be assessed in the future and when this is intended to happen. Eg FOGO collection, street lights to be converted to LED globes.

Recommendation 7.

Develop a system for recording emission levels for activities and explain how this information/data will be made available to the public.

Recommendation 8.

Re-assess how the broader community can contribute to of the Mitigation Strategy and include this, where appropriate, against each action.

Recommendation 9.

Compile a list of prioritised Actions that can best be assessed through pilot projects. Eg Ride share routes.

Recommendation 10.

Devise and implement a Marketing and Communications plan for the Mitigation Strategy.

Recommendation 11.

Write to the STCA to congratulate them on the work done through the RCCI initiative and recommend that they continue the work by developing a template for preparing a climate change strategy that could be adopted by councils and monitoring tools for charting the progress of emissions reduction.

Recommendation 12.

Form a Climate Action Reference Group to support the implementation of the Mitigation Strategy and the future Adaptations Strategy.

Recommendation 13.

Jointly organise with CEH an interactive community information session on climate change and bushfire risk: Presentations from Dr Tom Remenyi, Tasmania Fire Service, SES, HVC and CEH.

Recommendation 14.

Jointly organise with CEH community information sessions on other climate change topics (in similar fashion to Recommendation 13 above ) for inundation/flooding, soil erosion/extreme rainfall, heat impacts, economic impacts on agriculture and aquaculture.

Recommendation 15.

When the adaptation strategy is also written: a. declare a Climate Emergency; b. join ICLEI – Local Government for Sustainability; c. join the Global Covernant of Mayors for Climate and Emergency – Mayors4Climate.

5. How can Circular Economy Huon assist

Circular Economy Huon would like to work with the Huon Valley Council to assist with the implementation of actions for the mitigation plan and in the future with the development and implementation of Part B-Adaptation. By working collaboratively we believe it will bring about quicker results, reduce the expectations on council and provide considerable benefits to the general community.

Our particular areas of interest and some expertise are:

- transport systems,

- energy efficiency for householders,

- organic waste systems,

- working with, and connecting business.

Through our network there are a range of people who may be able to assist Council in a range of other areas.

We welcome, and look forward to the opportunity of meeting with representatives of Huon Valley Council to discuss how and where we can assist with climate change programs.

6. References

Climate Change Strategy – Part A Mitigation Plan
Southern Tasmanian Council Authority - Climate change projects
http://stca.tas.gov.au/our-projects/
Darebin Climate Emergency Plan 2017-2022
http://www.darebin.vic.gov.au/-/media/cityofdarebin/Files/Your-Say/HaveYourSay/SummaryofDraftDarebinClimateEmergencyPlan.ashx?la=en
Darebin Climate Emergency Plan 2017-2022 Summary
http://www.darebin.vic.gov.au/-/media/cityofdarebin/Files/Your-Say/HaveYourSay/SummaryofDraftDarebinClimateEmergencyPlan.ashx?la=en
Sustainable Strathbogie 2030 - Strategy and Action Plan 2018-2022
https://oursay-files.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/uploads_production/forum-file/draft-sustainable-strathbogie-2030_2130.pdf
Beyond Zero Carbon. Australian Local Government: Climate Review 2018 https://bze.org.au/wp-content/uploads/aus-local-government-climate-review-bze-report-2018.pdf
Beyond Zero Carbon. Zero Carbon Communities: Guide 2020 https://bze.org.au/wp-content/uploads/aus-local-government-climate-review-bze-report-2018.pdf
Climate Change Impacts & Risk Management -
A Guide for Business and Government
https://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/resources/21c04298-db93-47a6-a6b0-eaaaae9ef8e4/files/risk-management.pdf