Posts filed under ‘transport’
Commuter car park upgrade at Merlynston
safety hazards for pedestrians and cyclists
On 6th September Climate Action Moreland submitted the following submission to the Level Crossing Removal Authority on the development upgrade proposal for the Commuter car park at Merlynston station . We know that many North Coburg Residents and other community groups also put in submissions. We have heard and had no further community engagement with LXRP.
Here is our submissions sent 6 September 2021.
(more…)Walking: Making it Safer and More Enjoyable
Walking is a key form of sustainable transport. Indeed, it has so many benefits, including improving the environment, people’s health, and their sense of community. Encouraging more people to walk more often is one of the best ways a society can achieve a range of objectives.
Unlike for other transport modes, governments don’t collect good data on pedestrians that could be used to inform pedestrians strategies. Urban densification increasingly leads to competition over space allocated for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists. So it becomes even more important to ensure that we understand how, why, where and when people walk, and how to address barriers to walking.
Brunswick Residents Network (BRN) sought to do this. In early 2021 they surveyed 992 residents from Brunswick (including East and West) on their walking habits and have reported on their findings here. They hope to use the findings to lobby Moreland Council to improve walking infrastructure. Of course, these findings will be applicable in other areas too.
(more…)Submission: Moreland Council Budget 2021/22
On Wednesday 2 June Moreland Council had it’s formal submission feedback session to Councillors over zoom on the Draft Council Budget in 2021/22. The Climate Action Moreland submission was six and a half pages in length. Convenor John Englart briefly summarised the submission for Councillors.
Our submission called for increased expenditure to address the climate emergency, and addressed issues across the following areas:
- Infrastructure to improve uptake of Sustainable Transport
- Street trees, in particular the maintenance and protection of trees
- Permeable and low carbon surfaces
- Leisure Centres (in particular Fawkner Leisure Centre redevelopment)
- Open Space
- Comment on other strategic initiatives in the budget, including how to Phaseout gas in council facilities
June 5, 2021 at 9:04 am morelandclimategroup Leave a comment
New Victorian interim climate targets welcome but underwhelming
Today the Victorian Government announced the interim emissions reduction climate targets for 2025 and 2030. This announcement has been delayed for over a year due to the pandemic.
The targets announced are to reduce emissions by 28-33 per cent by 2025 and 45-50 per cent by 2030.
Awesome you say? 50 percent reduction by 2030, similar to what President Biden announced at the Biden Climate Summit on April 22. Not so fast.
The Independent Expert Panel recommended Victoria set greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets of:
- 32-39% below 2005 levels in 2025 and
- 45-60% below 2005 levels in 2030.
Even this was not consistent with keeping global warming to 1.5 degrees, and the numerous risks enumerated in the IPCC Special Report on Global warming of 1.5C1.
The Combet Review identified emission cuts of at least 43% by 2025 and 67% by 2030 to have any chance of limiting warming to 1. 5°C, yet justified lower targets, even though there is scientific research3 that indicates there are several dangerous tipping points that should require substantial risk minimisation in setting ambitious targets. Read our submission from July 2019.
(more…)Submission: Australia’s Technology Roadmap not enough to address the Climate Emergency
Climate Action Moreland submission on the Draft Australia Technology Roadmap. This is the document that Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor has been pushing. The document itself provides a survey of different technologies that can be used in address climate change. But it is insufficient. The decision processes that approve expansion of emissions (such as in new coal mines or gas extraction), or maintain present high pollution levels in existing sectorial processes needs also to be considered. Strategic Technology Roadmap is only one tool that should be used to driving climate action ambition to tackle the climate crisis. We have a climate emergency.
Pandemic disruption should cause us to reassess aviation policies and airport expansion
Virgin Airlines goes into volubntary administration due to Pandemic
The Management of Virgin Airlines has put the company into administration, due to the impact of the pandemic in reducing need for essential travel, and the huge debt the airline has accumulated. Most Virgin planes are presently sitting at airports, huge stranded assets.
Labort MP for Wills, Peter Khalil, has said in a Facebook Post Labor has been calling on the Morrison Government to Save Virgin. But is this the wisest move given the future for passenger aviation demand in a pandemic with no assurances of a vaccine available and the level of greenhouse gas emissions and climate impact by aviation?
Virgin Airlines is presently owned by Etihad Airways (20.94%), Singapore Airlines (20.09%), Nanshan Group (19.98%), HNA Group (19.82%), Virgin Group (10.42%). Bailing out Virgin is bailing out foreign corporations, some of these owned by other nations.
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Climate action centre stage at Sydney Road Street Party
Peter Khalil MP public engagement issues board at end of Sydney Road Street Party. Source: Courtesy Peter Khalil
Thousands of people strolled and paraded along Sydney Road on Sunday 1st March for the annual Sydney Road Street Party. The street was closed to all traffic and trams from Brunswick Road to Victoria street. Climate Action Moreland was there with a stall, up near the Victoria street end. We provided a local climate / environment hub for Stop Adani Moreland, Neighbours United for Climate Action, Newlands Friends of the Forest, and Moreland BUG to locate and campaign with us.
Our main engagement activity was collecting signatures for our petition to City of Moreland to amend their Procurement Policy with regard to businesses that sign contracts to do work with the Adani Coal mine. If you missed us on the day, you can sign our digital version of the petition to Moreland City Council on Adani.
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Submission: Retaining trees as heritage and to moderate heat in Gandolfo Gardens with Skyrail construction
Urban forest canopy in a highly urbanised area such as around Moreland Station provides vital environmental services. These include habitat for urban wildlife, particularly birds, air filtering pollutants, absorbing excesses rain runoff reducing urban flooding, and providing shade under the established tree canopy which reduces localised temperatures during extreme heat events.
The urban heat island effect is very prominent along the Upfield Corridor and tree canopy provides one of the best methods for local reduction in temperatures during extreme heat events. The trees in Gandolfo Gardens, part of the larger Moreland Reserves either side of the station, contribute substantially to community well being. While most of the present trees were planted during the 1970s and 1980s, there are several trees likely to be well over a hundred years old and part of the original community tree planting in 1911. The local community, lead by the Coburg Progress Association faought hard for the establishment of these reserves and the gardens and trees therein.
Level Crossing Removal Project (LXRP) will remove 4 sequential level crossings to build an elevated rail line starting from Tinning street and ending before O’Hea street in a $460 million construction project. At Moreland Road the proposal is to build a new elevated station north of the present heritage listed station.
This will entail the destruction of 113 trees within the Moreland Station Reserves, with inadequate reasons given for why the new station could not be built south of Moreland Road, over the road, or on the north side next to Moreland Road. LXRP fail to provide possible alternative construction methodologies to minimise the number of trees to be removed.
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Submission to Climate Change Authority – policies necessary to achieve Australia’s commitments under the 2015 Paris Agreement
Climate Action Tracker June 2019 assessment.
Climate Action Moreland prepared the following submission (PDF) to the Climate Change Authority focussing on three sectors: agriculture, energy (electricity) , and transport. These are key areas for Australia to implement climate policy to achieve reduction in emissions to meet Australia’s commitments under the 2015 Paris Agreement. We appreciate the Climate Change Authority collating this information, even though the present conservative government largely ignores the independent advice of this Authority.
Under the Paris Agreement Australia needs to submit a new Nationally Determined Contribution document that outlines all targets and policies to achieve our targets, by early 2020. No backtracking is acceptable (this is written into the agreement as well) This is the ratchet (ambition) mechanism of the Paris Agreement. On current commitments the world is heading for an average temperature rise of between 2.4 degrees to 3.8 degrees Celsius by 2100, as calculated by the Climate Action Tracker website. Australia’s effort is rated as ‘Insufficient’.
Climate Push for bike lane trial on Sydney Road Brunswick
Sydney Road Option 3 bicycle lanes (Source: VicRoads)
Moreland Council will be submitting a submission to the Department of Transport for a 6 month separated bike lane trial on Sydney Road between Glenlyon Road and Brunswick Road. An important reason driving this is the need to ramp up the use of sustainable transport on Sydney road to address transport emissions, to encourage mode shift away from car use to public transport and active transport in the City of Moreland.
At the August Moreland Council meeting Council debated proposals for the VicRoads Sydney Road Improvement project and the officer recommendation for a submission to the Department of Transport advocating Option 3 with separated bike paths and increased space for pedestrians.
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Climate Action Moreland: people in Brunswick, Coburg, Fawkner and Glenroy wanting action on climate change 