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Greater Dandenong City Council undertakes many initiatives at both a corporate and community level to reduce the impact on the environment and to leave a healthy planet for many generations to come.
The Parks team works to enhance Greater Dandenong’s local biodiversity and implement nature programs throughout the year to educate the community.
Council is working to divert waste to landfill through programs such as the Reuse and Recycle Drop Off day events, the partnership with Rotary International for the Rotary Overseas Relocated Playground (RORP) program and the food waste recycling service.
Hard rubbish collected in booked kerbside collections also goes to an environmental service that uses innovative ways to reduce waste to landfill and recovers materials for recycling.
Council holds incursions in early learning centres, primary schools, aged care and retirement villages on composting, recycling, ‘nude food’, food and garden waste and sustainability issues.
The Follow Your Waste tours will run again this financial year and Council continues with its recycling and garden waste bin inspection and education program throughout the municipality.
Council has installed some covert surveillance cameras at high dumping locations throughout the city to catch unlawful dumpers.
There is also a strong focus on keeping litter and single use plastic waste off local streets and out of waterways through community education programs and ongoing social media campaigns.
Council is working with key stakeholders to also prepare everyone for the state government’s ban on single use plastics in 2023.
Several environmental events are held each year, including the Sustainability Festival and the Discover Dandenong Creek Festival, providing opportunities to share Council’s work and to seek community action on climate change and long-term sustainability. The community can also meet Council’s sustainability mascots ‘Lily Litter’ the ladybug and ‘Harry Habitat’ the tree.
Council is working closely with several agencies through the Waste Intelligence Network (WIN) to work with local businesses who are causing the most serious environmental damage to air and water quality within Greater Dandenong. WIN is led by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) and includes neighbouring Councils, Victoria Police, WorkSafe, Fire and Rescue Victoria, the Country Fire Authority, and the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP).
Council has installed solar panels on several Council buildings and has pooled its electricity needs with 45 other Victorian Councils into one long-term contract with Red Energy to provide renewable energy generated from wind farms in Victoria.
Streetlights are being replaced with energy efficient technologies to support the community to reduce their energy consumption and costs. Council replaced 7108 inefficient mercury vapour and high-pressure sodium lights with sustainable LED lights from 2016-2020. Since 2020 until now, a further 788 lights have been replaced.
All these initiatives are working towards Council’s target to become a net zero emission Council by 2025 and a net zero emission city by 2040.
For more information visit www.greaterdandenong.vic.gov.au or follow Council on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.
