Group celebrates red-letter day for climate action

THE community has driven climate change to the top of the agenda at the Borough of Queenscliffe, with councillors adopting the Climate Emergency Response Plan (CERP) at a meeting last week.

More than 160 people, many of them wearing red, packed the Queenscliff Town Hall or watched from outside as a majority of the borough’s council resolved to adopt the CERP.

The plan, developed in consultation with the community and in partnership with the Queenscliffe Climate Action Group, has three targets:

• Our community’s electricity consumption will be matched by a 100 per cent renewable electricity supply by 2025
• Our community’s energy needs will be matched by a 100 per cent renewable energy supply by 2027, and
• Our community will have transitioned to a Zero Carbon Community by 2031, realising the vision created by the Community Panel in response to the aspirations voiced by the community.

Queenscliffe Climate Action Group (QCAG) founder Kitty Walker addressed the crowd outside following the adoption of the CERP, saying “our little borough is leading the charge”.

“People are starting to take notice of what we’ve achieved and we should all be really proud of that. We’ve done this together. This is Council’s plan, it is your plan, it is our plan.”

In a post on their Facebook page after the meeting, QCAG thanked everyone who attended.

“It was so powerful to see the community show out in force and remind Council that this plan is a plan we want,” the post stated.

“This is a huge win for our community. From councillors and council staff to panel members, community organisations to Wadawurrung Traditional Owners, young people to those that provided feedback throughout the process to strengthen the CERP, and anyone that showed up at any time to support this work – we thank you for your time and passion to keep our Borough beautiful and safe.

“The hard work now begins, and developing an implementation plan for the CERP will start immediately.

“We look forward to your ongoing support in rolling out the CERP’s 49 actions, which will help us achieve three incredible goals, including transitioning to a zero carbon community by 2031.”