2021-03-09 P&E Agenda - Item 8 - Attachment 1 - Climate Change Response Plan

         INTRODUCTION

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 shown us 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 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
       Working to improve waste management and the efficiency of the landfill gas
        extraction at the Noosa landfill site
       Provided grants to community group for solar and energy efficiency projects
       Free solar advice hotline and education programs for households and businesses

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Noosa Climate Change Response Plan - draft for council endorsement March 2021