Latest Campaign News
ARE USED BATTERY COLLECTION BINS UNSAFE?
The announcement by Officeworks that it has ceased collecting used batteries on behalf of B-cycle casts serious doubt on the effectiveness of the voluntary industry program.
New research shows Koalas in the Sydney Basin are in decline
New research released today by the Sydney Basin Koala Network shows the area where koalas are found in the Sydney Basin is declining and the areas supporting long standing breeding populations of koalas is also reducing. The need for protection is becoming ever more urgent, the Sydney Basin Koala Network and Total Environment Centre said today.
TEC Releases Plan for Battery Recycling and Reuse Crisis
Industry-led voluntary schemes will fail to address the environmental risks arising from battery disposal said Total Environment Centre today on releasing a plan for urgent regulation to establish an effective, mandatory Product Stewardship Scheme to safely collect and recycle all battery types in Australia.
Sydney Koala Budget – species still at risk
Sydney’s beautiful greenbelt and the healthiest Koala colony in NSW are at risk. The NSW Government’s announcement of $80m for south-west Sydney’s Koalas must be linked to habitat protection across the Cumberland Plain. Unless there are protected linking corridors between reserves, koalas will face extinction as urban sprawl dismembers their habitat and migratory movements and road kill grows.
Open Letter To Fight Cumberland Plain Conservation Plan Reforms - Signed by 25 NGOs
Dear Local, State and Federal MP, The Cumberland Plain Conservation Plan (CPCP) covers 200,000ha framing the entire western edge of Sydney. It could curb Sydney’s urban sprawl; protect endangered ecosystems; and help tackle killer urban heat for existing and new residents – while supplying new housing. Twenty-five national, state, and local environment groups are urging that the Plan be amended to put conservation of threatened plant and animal species securely in place before new development. You can find the statement here.
Key Koala Refuge and Corridor to be Cleared
Koala habitat designated as of regional koala significance (ARKS) on the mid-north coast with the local koala population listed as a priority population for investment by the NSW Koala Strategy – is to be bulldozed under weak NSW land clearing laws
Status Report: Australia’s Bottle and Can Refund Schemes
We are releasing the first review of all of Australia’s drink bottle and can 10c refund laws which assesses the performance of each state and territory and examines future challenges. Read the full report here. Once opposed by the beverage industry, the Container Refund Schemes (CRS) are now broadly supported and have a crucial role to play in developing Australia’s circular economy as they deliver billions of drink containers for recycling each year. Nevertheless, all can do with some improvements. Jeff Angel, Director of Total Environment Centre, states that we should be aiming for 90+% return rates, well above the current national return rate of 65%.
Fate of Key Koala Corridor at Stake
New development in and around the Warragamba township is threatening an important Koala colony, as it fragments and degrades their habitat. Local community concern is growing, and Total Environment Centre is calling for a halt to current and future planned clearing, so that protection of this endangered species can be put in place.