Environment and sustainability
Creating healthy environments, adapting to climate change and taking action for sustainability is an important priority for South Australia’s councils.
With higher temperatures that last longer and more intense weather events, communities are seeing the impacts of climate change at a local level.
South Australian councils are delivering environmental projects to protect the environment and create a sustainable world for us all.
Actions councils take in their local areas:
- sustainability initiatives for residents and businesses in recycling and reducing rubbish
- facilitating walking trails, creating wetlands, maintaining open green spaces
- planting and protecting trees
- caring for native environments
- promoting renewable energy solutions such as solar power.
Beyond the practical changes we can make, councils also take action by developing policies and plans for sustainability. These include plans to reduce carbon emissions.
Some councils run programs to promote sustainable living, such as community gardens, composting and workshops on sustainability practices.
Many council programs focus on ways to improve their own operations, including
- being waterwise to use less mains water
- finding ways to use less fuel and electricity
- creating greening projects to reduce heat and make suburbs more attractive
- upgrading lighting to use less energy and lower costs
- using green energy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Many councils also have plans to reduce their corporate emissions by looking at how they can use their buildings and facilities more sustainably.
