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Issue 11, December 2010 |
Climate of Change |
| Botanic Gardens |
Climate Change |
Environment Protection |
Natural Resources |
Parks and Wildlife |
Previous Newsletters |
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Innovative new legislation to improve energy efficiency in the commercial and residential building sector, called the Environmental Upgrade Agreements Act was passed on 24 November. It hallmarks a new partnership approach between building owners, banks and local councils which will drive new investment in energy efficiencies and help building owners and tenants reduce their electricity bills. Also through the $150-million Energy Efficiency Strategy DECCW initiated the NSW Home Power Savings Program for low income earners, and rolled out the next phase of the Save Power campaign to encourage the community to improve energy efficiency and reduce bills. We marked the uptake of the 300,000th household rebate. The Coastal Protection Bill was passed in October and will help local councils and coastal dwellers better manage the impacts of coastal erosion and sea level rise. In May, we signed Australia’s first ever biobanking agreement which will save 80 hectares of private, high conservation land forever, and we initiated a major education campaign to promote land holder compliance with the Native Vegetation Act 2003 as well as expanding and refining our use of satellite imagery to detect illegal clearing of native vegetation. National parks celebrated the milestones of NSW’s 800th reserve and 7 millionth hectare. This included more than 100,000 heactres of precious river red gum forest and the addition of 70, 000 hectares of western lands including Joulni Station – NSW’s most significant known Aboriginal burials in Mungo National Park. New laws also strengthened the protection of Aboriginal cultural heritage in NSW and the reform process started to create a new stand alone Act for Aboriginal heritage. Thank you to all our valued stakeholders for helping us to achieve these remarkable outcomes that will benefit NSW well into the future. Lisa Corbyn The DECCW 2009-10 Annual Report highlights numerous achievements including financial penalties totalling more than $1.4 million and 1270 hours of community service imposed on people flaunting environmental laws over the last twelve months. More... The NSW Government recently launched the first two of 14 air quality monitoring stations of the Upper Hunter Air Quality Monitoring Network.The Singleton and Muswellbrook stations were part of the NSW Government's startegy to manage, monitor and minimise dust from coal mining. More... New laws and supporting regulations and codes of practice offering greater protection to Aboriginal cultural heritage came into effect on 1 October 2010. Environmental Upgrade Agreements Act The New legislation to stimulate energy efficiency upgrades in the commercial building sector was passed by the NSW Parliament. The Local Government Amendment (Environmental upgrade Agreements) Act 2010 improves access to finance for upgrades to improve the environmental performance of existing buildings. More... New tool in battle against feral dogs and foxes After extensive research and field trials, the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service is rolling out a device that may revolutionise the current approach to the control of wild dogs and foxes in national parks. More... Green card for beaches as summer comes into sight Almost 90 per cent of the 265 monitored swimming sites along the NSW coastline have been graded as Very Good or Good according to the NSW Government’s first ever state-wide State of the Beaches Report. More... Seven million hectare milestone Almost nine percent of NSW, an area equal to the size of Tasmania is now protected in the national park system following the addition of more than 70,000 hectares of land in the State’s west. More... Celebrate New Year's Eve on Sydney Harbour Sydney Harbour National Park offers a range of free and ticketed vantage points for viewing the New Year's Eve fireworks, including foreshore areas around the harbour, and the islands of Clark, Shark, Goat and Fort Denison. More... The Coastal Protection and Other Legislation Amendment Bill passed through both houses of Parliament in October improving how coastal erosion risks are managed in NSW and providing additional options for landowners to protect their property. More... Wetlands benefit from best conditions in 10 years More than 100,000 megalitres of environmental water delivered to the internationally significant Macquarie Marshes wetlands is successfully supporting wildlife breeding and vegetation recovery in the Macquarie Marshes. Through the NSW Environmental Trust, grants of $1.5 million will support 80 individual projects across the State with almost $1 million dollars being awarded to eight separate research projects run by academic institutions and scientific organisations. More... Council officers will be better equipped to deal with neighbourhood noise issues armed with a new guide. The Guide focuses on how to assess and manage the noise issues dealt with by council officers, such as neighbour-to-neighbour problems and those resulting from commercial or small industrial premises. NSW’s newest Aboriginal owned national park More than 500 people gathered at Nambucca Heads on the North Coast to celebrate the creation of NSW’s sixth and newest Aboriginal-owned national park Gaagal Wanggaan (South Beach) National Park on Saturday 6 November 2010. More... Lead energy and climate change dialogue A recruitment drive aimed at attracting 500 people to encourage their family, friends and workmates to discuss reducing power use and climate change was launched on 15 November. More... Wind farm greenhouse gas savings tool As part of the Renewable Energy Precincts initiative the NSW Government has developed the NSW wind farm greenhouse gas savings tool allowing community and industry to easily calculate the projected greenhouse gas savings from new wind farms in different Precincts across NSW. The NSW Government has invited the community to comment on a new approach to the protection of plants and animals across NSW - now and into the future. The draft NSW Biodiversity Strategy 2010-2015 details a range of measures for biodiversity management over the next five years. More... NSW households have now claimed more than 300,000 Government rebates to green their homes, helping families in NSW save a combined 352,000 tonnes of carbon pollution and around four billion litres of water. More... 
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As 2010 comes to a close it offers a great opportunity to reflect on some of the significant achievements for the NSW environment this year.
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