Climate Change Strategy for Canberra

The Chief Minister released a climate change strategy for the Australian Capital Territory (Canberra) on 27 July 2007. The strategy includes carbon neutrality in government buildings, energy efficiency improvements in government housing and schools, an increased solar hot water rebate and free bus travel for bicycle riders.

Available are:

1. $100 million strategy to tackle climate change, Media Release 328/07, Jon Stanhope, ACT Chief Minister, 27 July 2007
2. Chief Minister's speech, ACT Chief Minister, ACT Government, 27 July 2007 (PDF 75Kb)
3. Weathering the Change – The ACT Climate Change Strategy 2007-2025, ACT Government, 27 July 2007 (PDF 2.3Mb)
4. Action Plan 1 – 2007 - 2011, ACT Government, 27 July 2007 (PDF 1.8Mb)

There appears to be no mention of the role ICT can play in a climate change strategy.

Summary of Climate Change Actions:

1. Being Smarter in Our Use of Resources

• Develop an Energy Policy
• Pursue Carbon Neutrality in Government Buildings
• Establish a $1million Energy Efficiency Fund for ACT Government Agencies.
• Develop and Implement a Park-and-Ride Strategy
• Legislate for Green Power to be offered to all new electricity customers.
• Implement a renewable energy target (RET) in line with the NSWRET
• Offer stamp duty concessions for low emissions vehicles
• Implement energy efficiency improvements in government housing
• Provide a solar hot water rebate
• Pursue national emissions trading and reporting
• Assist schools become carbon neutral
• Undertake ACTION CNG Bus Fleet replacement
• Undertake energy efficient street light replacement
• Introduce free bus travel for bicycle riders

2. Designing and Planning our City to be more Sustainable

• Implement Public Transport Improvements
• Develop Network and Service Design Plans for buses
• Investigate Travelling to Work Options
• Introduce a Feed-in Tariff for renewable micro generation
• Pursue Energy Efficiency Rating for all Buildings
• Investigate Mandatory Solar Hot Water for new houses
• Develop integrated land use and transport planning
• Include environmentally sustainable design features in all new public schools
• Increase the new home owner’s entitlement to trees and shrubs
• Pursue Triple Bottom Line Tendering for land release
• Pursue an Urban Forest Replacement Program
• Establish East Lake as a showcase urban development

3. Adapting to Current and Future Climate Change

• Develop a Grant Program for Community Groups
• Prepare Government Agency Vulnerability Assessments
• Undertake a climate change social impact analysis
• Prepare an ACT and Region Vulnerability Assessment
• Support the National Adaptation Framework
• Assess Climate Change Impacts on our Urban Areas
• Protect areas of high conservation value
• Develop an Ecosystem Connectivity Map
• Prepare a Sphagnum Bog Mapping and Recovery Plan
• Plant One Million New Trees

4. Improving our Understanding of Climate Change

• Undertake a Community Education Program
• Implement Sustainability in Schools
• Showcase Renewable and Energy Efficiency Technologies
• Facilitate a business roundtable on Climate Change
• Partner with key Institutions to Encourage Research
• Develop Fuel Sale Data Legislation for Emissions Monitoring
• Undertake a Carbon Sequestration Audit

From: Action Plan 1 – 2007 - 2011, ACT Government, 27 July 2007 (PDF 1.8Mb)