Sustainability at Council

Tamworth Regional Council is committed to environmental sustainability and sustainable development. Specifically, Council recognises the need to protect and enhance our natural and built environments if we want a healthy, connected and sustainable future.

The Environmental Sustainability Strategy 2022-2026 (PDF 5.5MB) is Tamworth Regional Council’s roadmap for advancing sustainability in our Region.

The purpose of Our Sustainability Strategy is to integrate sustainability across our organisation and community, as well as to protect and enhance our natural and built environments to enable a healthy, connected and sustainable future for our local community. The key themes of Our Sustainability Strategy are water, waste, energy, circular economy, natural environment, transportation and mobility, sustainable governance and climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Council is committed to being a leader is sustainable water use, contributing to a waterwise region for our future.

Since 2015, Tamworth Regional Council has had a Sustainability Unit. The team of four staff provide specialist advice on sustainable water, waste and energy practices and guide the strengthening of Council’s corporate sustainability performance, engaging the local community and facilitating sustainable development for our region.

Sustainability achievements

General

Year

Project

Completed

Benefit

2017

Developed Sustainability Strategy and action plans

2018

Long terms goals and aspirations developed and given a program to guide and support delivering on them.

Councils Sustainability Strategy was one of the first in NSW Local Government to acknowledge the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)and identify the SDGs that support, and are supported by, the TRC Sustainability Strategy

Ongoing

Support and participate in the following events, promotions and initiatives:

National recycling week

National water week

Garage Sale Trail

Clean up Australia Day

The Amazing Enviro Race

Tamworth Country Music Festival

o Tune in to Recycling

o Water Conservation

“Don’t be a tosser”

RID online “report illegal dumping”

Nobody smokes here – provide infrastructure and support educational messages

Regional Waste Warriors Expo

Northern Inland Regional Waste

Community awareness and engagement

Waste

Year	Project	Completed	Benefit
2018	Duri Small Vehicle Transfer Station development & Landfill Capping Supported in conjunction with Council by the NSW Environmental Trust as part of the NSW Environment Protection Authority's Waste Less, Recycle More initiative, funded from the waste levy.	July 2020	Closure of landfill activities and development of the Small Vehicle Transfer Station will provide the following operational and environmental benefits: Improve safety for both staff and community site users; Reduce environmental impacts, such as windblown litter, biosecurity risk and leachate generation; Improve resource recovery and recycling opportunities; and Improve visual aesthetics.
2018	Somerton Small Vehicle Transfer Station development & Landfill Capping Supported in conjunction with Council by the NSW Environmental Trust as part of the NSW Environment Protection Authority's Waste Less, Recycle More initiative funded from the waste levy.	June 2020	Closure of landfill activities and development of the Small Vehicle Transfer Station will provide the following operational and environmental benefits: Improve safety for both staff and community site users; Reduce environmental impacts, such as windblown litter, biosecurity risk and leachate generation; Improve resource recovery and recycling opportunities; and Improve visual aesthetics.
2017	Landfill Gas Capture	May 2017	Currently flaring the gas to convert from Methane to CO2, this is a 30x less harmful greenhouse gas than methane. Contract awarded to utilise the gas for energy production converting 100% of the gas captured to energy to be fed to the power grid. Power generated will be the equivalent of approximately 1000 homes.
	Organics Recycling Facility (FOGO)	Approval pending	15,000 tonnes of organic waste diverted from landfills per annum Extending the life of the regions landfills by 5 years Food and garden organic waste processed into high quality compost
November 2019	Introduction of Mattress Recycling	Ongoing	63.2 Tonnes collected and recycled since Nov 2019 – this includes lounges listed below. Divert problem waste from landfill – mattresses are incredibly hard to manage in a landfill, take up a lot of space Must be deconstructed and materials recovered individually to be recycled
November 2019	Lounges - fabric and textile recovery		Reduce waste to landfill, recover and reuse materials
November 2015	Community Recycling Centre	Ongoing	Total Tonnage = 133t The CRC allows residents to dispose of common problem, and potentially hazardous, wastes that should not be sent to landfill. Waste delivered to the CRC is collected by a contractor who takes the materials for potential recovery of recyclable materials, and treatment and disposal in a way that causes no harm.
2017/18	NSW EPA Litter Grant – install litter bins at high usage rest stops at town entrances		Reduce litter in typically high volume areas Improve appearance of the regions town entrances Signage and education campaign incorporated into the grant delivery
2017/18	Public Place Recycling Trial and Audits	Audit program completed October 2019	Recyclable material diverted from landfill Public place recycling available in Peel Street Program to expand to other main streets and high use public areas is being developed Audit identified opportunities for education
2018	School Recycling Program	2018	Recyclable material diverted from landfill More of the regions schools able access recycling infrastructure and servicing Increase Challenge Recycling business
2018	Waste Voucher Trial	Trial completed 2019 - vouchers extended to commencement of the new waste contract	Bulky waste delivered to landfill instead of kerbside collection Kerbside – compacted and landfilled regardless of material or usefulness At the Landfill – materials can be sorted and recovered where possible – metal, timber etc or items suitable for Waste No More. Reduction in waste to landfill
2018/19	"Lets Talk Rubbish" campaign	Ongoing	Broad reaching community engagement and education campaign to get the right items in the right bin Waste services guide booklet, TV, radio, garbage truck wraps, social media, community engagement.
2017	Container Deposit Scheme	Ongoing	Litter reduction Materials collected via the scheme are 100% recycled reducing waste to landfill Supported the implementation of the CDS Created educational messaging and community engagement around participation and the benefits of the scheme Refund sharing agreement with Challenge recycling-strengthening community relationships, resilience and employment through social enterprise
2019	Waste No More - Buy Back Centre	Ongoing	Reduce waste to landfill by increasing potential for reuse and repurpose Challenge partnership funded by Container Deposit Scheme refund In coming months will incorporate workshops for upcycling, repairing instead of disposing etc.
September 2019	Grant funding to install gross pollutant litter trap	Ongoing	70KGs of litter captured and disposed of since September 2019 Litter collection traps in storm water drains preventing litter from proceeding through waterways Created “rubbish in the drains” education and awareness campaign
	Sharps infrastructure and servicing in Council owned spaces	Ongoing	Identify “hot spots” for sharps disposal and ensure collection and disposal infrastructure is adequate, review locations and amend if required. Ongoing community education and support for other services operating in the sharps space e.g. Health and Community Services groups.

Water

Year	Project	Completed	Benefit
2020	Water Sensitive Design Controls	October 2020	Council Water Sensitive Design Controls will assist the community to achieve a long term sustainable reduction in reliance on potable water and increase the reuse of grey water throughout the region. The Water Saving Rebate Scheme supports the implementation of the Water Sensitive Design Controls.
2020	Groundwater access for construction industry	Ongoing	In May 2020, an access point was established for the construction industry to access groundwater for works. Under Level 5 restrictions, construction industry water users will be required to access groundwater for things such as road works and dust suppression. Previously, treated water had been used. This saves Tamworth, Moonbi and Kootingal's treated water supply and gives security of access to water for construction activities during high levels of water restrictions.
2020	Water Restrctions Values and Perceptions Survey - Manilla, Barraba, Attunga, Nundle and Bendemeer	September 2020	The Values and Perceptions Survey was designed to capture the feedback or residents in areas that had moved to Permanent Water Conservation Measures in mid-2020. The Survey gathered feedback on the effectiveness of Council's Marketing and Communications activities throughout the drought and the Drought Management Plan.
2019	120 Megalitre Raw Water Storage Dam at Calala Water Treatment Plant	2019	The 120ML raw water storage dam will improve harvesting efficiency of raw water sourced for the Tamworth, Moonbi and Kootingal town supply from Chaffey Dam by up to 13% annually. This project will also provide Council with additional operational advantages such as improved raw water quality and potential electricity cost savings.
2016	Utilising backwash water at Barraba (2019) and Nundle (2016) water treatment plants	2019	A portion of backwash waste water (waste product during treatment process) is returned to the head of the plant to be treated again. This saves the amount of water requiring to be brought in from raw water sources.
2019	Large water users Audits	2019	Recognise efficiencies and identify water savings opportunities Conserve water now and in the long term
2018	TAFE partnership - water wise garden	2018	Live example of plants and alternative garden surfaces that can save water
2017	Staff Training – water wise gardening and landscaping techniques for public spaces	2017	Engaged and educated staff that are taking water saving knowledge back to the workplace Several new spaces since developed using the information learned at the training e.g. water wise garden at the Waler Memorial
	Integrated ground water irrigation scheme	Ongoing	Green spaces and sporting fields able to access ground water, greatly reducing Councils dependence on treated water to maintain essential areas for leisure and recreation.
2017	Lets Thrive Media Campaign	Jan 2019	Education campaign targeting outdoor water use and ways to reduce treated water needed to maintain useable and beautiful outdoor residential areas. Campaign launched as 100GL Chaffey Dam reached 100%, giving residents to convert and establish gardens and outdoor areas better able to survive the next dry/restricted period
2019	Drought Management Plan – Communications and engagement strategy		Behaviour change, manage concerns and create bias to action within the community to conserve water. Ownership and understanding of the “why” and what it means to everyone that we work together.
	Back wash reuse at AELEC	Ongoing	“back wash” waste water product produced at treatment plant Pumped to AELEC and sports precinct for irrigation Zero treated water used for landscaping irrigation in these spaces
Since 2007	Internal water savings initiatives	Ongoing	· Belmore Park Bore and storm water tank installed to irrigate cricket pitch and adjacent bowling greens · Lockheed Street Depot 200,000 litre rainwater tank installed at depot for vehicle wash-down, toilet flushing, street sweeper and road projects requiring tankers · All roundabouts with gardens Dripper systems and timers installed · Flynn Street Depot 115 kilolitre rainwater tank installed to be used for mower and vehicle wash-down and CBD bird disruption · Botanic Gardens Bore installed · Manilla Caravan Park Dual flush toilets installed · Manilla Town Halls Tap aerators and thermostatic mixing valves · Gipps Street Playing Fields Bore and tank system now irrigates fields completely with groundwater · Purchased 500 Greenwell tree watering systems for new tree plantings · Forest Road Landfill rainwater tank installed and plumbed to staff amenities · Regional Playground synthetic turf installation · Sports Dome synthetic turf installation · TRECC sensor taps installed throughout venue · Whaler memorial park update to drought tolerant garden
Since 2007	Water saving rebates	Ongoing	Rebates available on a range of water savings products and services offering residents connected to a treated water supply the opportunity to claim a rebate on products that reduce water consumption over the life of the product. In 2019 the scheme was extended to business and commercial residents connected to a treated water supply.

Energy

Year	Project	Completed	Benefit
2018	Street light LED upgrade	2018	4,239 lamps upgraded to LED across the region Payback period 6.2 years · Capital cost $1.3 M · Savings $200 k p.a. · Environmental savings 689 tons of carbon dioxide or 13.8 million black balloons p.a.
2019	Renew Large sites energy contract- twice	2020	· Large sites saving p.a. compared to standing rates $1.3 M · Large sites saving p.a. compared to 2019 rate $183 k · 18 Councils, others from CNSWJO and REROC · $312 k premium to include 20% renewables Two stage tender process undertaken to renew energy contract for a short term and then again for a long term contract. Short term (6 month)contract entered into due to market instability and poor pricing 3 year contract commenced in January 2020, markets more stable, pricing better. Council joined a Council buying group of to leverage best possible price
2018	Renew small sites energy contract	2018	· Small sites saving p.a. compared to standing rate $353 k 3 year contract for small sites energy supply. NSW Procurement contract had the best financial outcome for Council.
2018	EOI for large scale solar options	2018	Identify the potential opportunities and risks for TRC in investing in large scale solar, business case did not support proceeding, risks were too great.
2018	TRC facility Audits	Ongoing	TRC facilities ranked in order of priority for energy audits with the following criteria · High Energy consumption · Potential for energy use reductions · Potential for $ savings Audit schedule being undertaken by Energy Sustainability Officer, report with outcome and recommendations provided to facility managers, support to implement changes given. Savings measured and recorded.
2019	Upgrade Councils energy management software	2019	Accurate data – able to track energy use, cost Identify efficiency opportunities, changes to operations utilising off peak times to make $ savings Identify wastage and save energy use and cost e.g. air conditioners on automatic timers being turned off during holiday shut down periods.
2018-2021	Establish baseline carbon emissions for TRC	Ongoing	Ensure that energy management software is accurately recording carbon emissions for all of Council (including Landfills, airports, buildings, plant and fleet etc.)– ensuring that all data is able to be sourced and reviewed in a single location.
2018-19	Behind the meter solar at 11 Council facilities	May 2020	11 sites identified for BTM solar – energy/$ savings · Capital Cost $595,107 · Savings p.a. $116,000 · Energy savings p.a. 1 GWh Emissions savings 820 p.a. tonnes of carbon dioxide or 16.4 million black balloons
2019	NRMA partnership - EV fast charger in Hands of Fame Carpark	2019	Increase access to the region for tourism, day trips for EV owners Support an increase in EV market across the region More EV’s = reduction in combustion engines which reduces emissions