By Corey Everitt
Each passing year concerns for the natural world only grows and World Environment Day this week is a day to reflect on the prevalent issues and matters to address in the local biosphere.
Cardinia may be a small corner of the world but many locals are taking action to do their part for sustainability, such as the Bunyip Renerable Action Group (BRAG).
“The extreme weather events and rising sea levels that are becoming evident throughout the world present enormous challenges which reinforce the sobering fact that we must take drastic action to mitigate our impact on the world’s climate now,” BRAG secretary Helen Ross said.
“By acting locally we see an opportunity to make Bunyip a showcase township within the Cardinia Shire.
“Our vision is to make Bunyip and District an environmentally sustainable, carbon neutral community.”
Running for just over five years now, BRAG has made efforts to drive the local institutions to a net-zero goal and promote sustainable practices through the community. In 2023 they won the Community Champion Award from Sustainability Victoria as a resident initiative against council projects.
Despite success there is a long road ahead and working with other groups like landcare and institutions like Cardinia Shire Council are crucial.
“Networking with other community energy groups both in Gippsland and across the state has opened up many opportunities and given us ideas and strategies to help us pursue our goals, we need to take every opportunity to expand our networks even further so we can learn from others with similar visions,” Helen said.
“We want to strengthen these ties and hope that all these groups will work with us to achieve our vision.”
Climate change affects all from human life to wildlife, for the Cardinia Environment Coalition (CEC) key concerns involve both the sustainability of flora and fauna as well as the food bowl.
Results include further threats to already vulnerable species of flora and fauna through habitat loss,” CEC president Lindsay McNaught said.
“Pressure on natural habitat and on productive farmland can come from demand for housing or for exploitation of resources.”
The CEC does all they can to promote sustainable practices. However, McNaught raises the example of pests in Cardinia and notes that significant change to such matters will be premised on promoting a wider scale effort.
“Our indigenous plant nursery is assessing how various species will cope with the changes,” McNaught said.
“We are also establishing a seed bank to facilitate propagation of all indigenous plants with particular focus on threatened species.
It is difficult to see too many opportunities in the challenges. The hope is that people who are able to influence events will respond to the challenges and make decisions based on the best science and information available.
“There is now clear indisputable evidence of damage done by deer in our Shire (and elsewhere) and by cats throughout Australia.
“With this knowledge, there are opportunities for negative impacts on biodiversity and food security to be reduced. Alternatively, politicians and others can avoid the difficult decisions and allow the present decline to continue.”
For Harpreet Kandra, an Ambassador for Sustainability Victoria from Officer’s Gurudwara Siri Guru Nanak Darbar, there are still many things people can do in their lifestyle to promote sustainable practices.
“As a community organisation run by volunteers ‘Gurudwara Siri Guru Nanak Darbar’ (GSND), we are regularly monitoring our resource consumption footprint and finding ways and means to be more sustainable and resilient,“ he said.
“For instance, we are developing a calculator to understand our carbon footprint aiming to become carbon neutral as we grow and expand. And we will share it with other community organisations who plan to go on the path of Carbon neutrality.“
The more significant issues tackled by GSND is recycling and implementing a ’circular economy’ to their practice, which they feel can set an example for everyone.
“Waste management and exploring alternative uses for waste are priorities for us,“ Kandra said.
“We aim to enhance implementation of the principles of a circular economy to maintain the economic and environmental value of materials.
“Often, what is waste for one entity can be a resource for another. For example, we require sturdy wood for building an organic garden, which could be sourced from discarded wood instead of new timber. “Similarly, we are always eager to share groceries and cooked meals with other community groups involved in food relief efforts.
There is much work to be done, if you wish to get involved in any of these groups you can contact BRAG at bragbunyip@gmail.com, or CEC at president@cecinc.net.au or GSND at harpreet.kandra@gmail.com
