Newcastle leads on climate change

Tuesday, 7 November 2006

Earlier tonight, Newcastle City Council passed a strong motion on climate change. The motion (moved Michael Osborne, seconded Keith Parsons) says:

Newcastle City Council recognises the urgent need to protect local and global environments from increasing greenhouse gas emissions and to reduce Newcastle’s role in that increase.

Therefore Newcastle City Council:

1. Recommends that the NSW Government establishes a cap on coal exports from Newcastle at existing levels.

2. Recommends that the NSW Government initiates an independent Inquiry into the environmental, social and economic sustainability of the current coal industry and proposed expansion of the Hunter Valley coal industry.

3. Recommends that pending such an Inquiry, the NSW Government initiates a moratorium on new coal mine approvals at Anvil Hill and elsewhere in NSW.

4. Calls on the NSW and Federal Governments to establish a mandatory renewable energy target of 25% by 2020, with 20% by 2014 as a first step, in keeping with targets set by the South Australian Government.

5. Calls on the NSW Government to establish a contribution of 10c/tonne on coal exports through the Port of Newcastle to fund a community trust to be administered through Hunter Councils, to support a transition to a clean energy economy in the Hunter and to invest in local renewable energy projects.

6. Calls on the NSW Government to build a more efficient public transport system in the Hunter, linking major regional cities defined in the Lower Hunter Regional Strategy.

Council also resolved to consider the provision of safer, more efficiently networked series of cycling routes in the Newcastle LGA in the context of an upcoming infrastructure workshop.

Hopefully, the State and Federal Governments will take notice and act.

The full text of the background material can be found here.