Our journey
What Council has achieved in the past in energy efficiency, renewable energy, sustainable transport or broader sustainability
In 2019, Wollongong City Council declared a climate emergency and voted to adopt targets of net zero emissions by 2030 for our operations and net zero emissions by 2050 for the City of Wollongong. Our commitment to climate action supports our membership to the Global Covenant of Mayors (GCoM) which we joined in 2017.
Since joining the Cities Power Partnership program in January 2020, Wollongong City Council has adopted three important strategic documents: the Sustainable Wollongong 2030: A Climate Healthy City Strategy, the Climate Change Mitigation Plan 2020-2022 (CCMP), and the Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Stations on Public Land Policy. The Sustainable Wollongong 2030 Strategy and the CCMP will guide both Council and the wider community in creating a climate healthy and low carbon city, and it is envisaged that the EV policy will support an uptake of EVs through the increase in EV charging infrastructure in Wollongong.
We have also rolled out our Food Organics Garden Organics (FOGO) program to all residents in the Wollongong LGA. By separating food waste from landfill, this will reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and the emissions generated. The food waste is then able to be recovered and reused to create fertile compost.
Our Administration Building was the first building in Australia to achieve a 5-star Green Star Performance rating in 2015. In June 2019 we achieved a 6-star Green Star Performance rating. So far we have installed 327kW of solar photovoltaic systems across our Council facilities and are planning to install a further 219kW at our Administration Building car park. We have reintroduced hybrid cars into our fleet and have established a Community Recycling Centre at our Whyte’s Gully Waste and Resource Recovery Park. We are also continuing our roll out of LED street and sporting field lighting upgrades across the city.
What Council hopes to achieve in the future in energy efficiency, renewable energy, sustainable transport or broader sustainability
Our future efforts are guided by our recently adopted Sustainable Wollongong 2030 Strategy, which collates all of our environmental and sustainability goals, plans and programs into one overarching document. There are a number of supporting documents such as the CCMP, the Waste and Resource Recovery Strategy and the Urban Greening Strategy that will help us to achieve greater sustainability across the city.
We are currently reviewing our Climate Change Adaptation Plan 2009 which will identify and address the unavoidable impacts of climate change as they occur. Reviewing and implementing our Climate Change Adaptation Plan will help to reduce and manage the impact of climate change on our assets, promote and plan for our ability to deliver services and support our community to cope with a changing climate.
What Council hopes to gain from being a member of the Cities Power Partnership
Being a part of the Cities Power Partnership will provide us with additional knowledge and support as we work to reduce operational and community emissions. Working alongside other like-minded Councils will allow us to share information and achievements and support each other on our journey towards greater sustainability.