2021-08-10 P&E Agenda - Item 7 - Attachment 1 - Climate Change Response Plan

                                                                 Noosa Climate Change Response Plan




The climate emergency
We are living in times of increasingly complex and rapid change, driven by technological advances,
economic transitions, demographic shifts, and a changing climate. Noosa Council, in partnership
with the local community and other levels of government, has an important responsibility for providing
essential services, managing local risks, and supporting disaster recovery, as well as adapting to
changing circumstances and finding new opportunities to support a safe and prosperous Noosa into
the future.
The 2019-2020 bushfire season, and the global pandemic, are stark reminders of both the fragility of
the social systems and networks upon which we all depend, as well as the importance and benefits
of responsible planning, rapid mobilisation, and working together as a community. COVID-19 has
also shown us that we can make our own new normal – throw out old rules that no longer work for our
community and make new ones, and ask ourselves what we want for our world. The response to the
COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated how scientifically-sound and carefully considered actions can
lead us out of a crisis.
This is the type of unified response needed for responding to the global climate emergency. The
disruptions to our way of life caused by a rapidly changing climate demand a certain moral courage
that enables us to prioritise the ‘collective’ and to take positive action for ourselves, for future
generations, and for the planet. It requires everyone to act, to ‘step up’ and to reimagine and create a
new, cleaner, and safer Noosa.
This Climate Change Response Plan is a vision for a new future for Noosa, and a blueprint for us all to
do our bit locally and to be an example for others of something better. It challenges us all to think big,
heed the scientific advice and take careful and resolute action now.


Our journey so far
Noosa Council declared a climate emergency in 2019, making a strong statement in support
of taking action on climate change as part of a collective voice across local, state, and federal
governments worldwide. We need action at all levels of government and across all sectors to avoid
dangerous climate change. There are carbon emissions within the control of Council, carbon
emissions elsewhere within the Shire that we can influence, as well as those that require regulatory
change and leadership beyond Noosa’s boundaries.
Over the last several years Council has been working to reduce its own emissions. Since 2016,
Council has had in place a Zero Emissions Organisational Strategy for the Council’s operations to
achieve zero net emissions by 2026. In this time, we’ve successfully achieved the following:
•   Installation of over 600 kW solar PV across Council owned and operated buildings and facilities
•   Improved energy efficiency of air conditioning systems for Council facilities
•   Changed hundreds of lights to energy efficient LEDs
•	Worked to improve waste management and the efficiency of the landfill gas extraction at the
   Noosa landfill site
•   Provided grants to community groups for solar and energy efficiency projects



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