Posts Tagged ‘molonglo’

MEDIA RELEASE | It’s All About Demand - Greens promise free water efficiency for households

Thursday, September 25th, 2008

Candidate for Molonglo Shane Rattenbury has today launched the Greens Water policy, focussed on reducing water demand.

“The future predictions for our part Australia point to a hotter and drier climate. With increasing population, future water security will be dependant on managing demand for water, particularly increasing our water efficiency. The Greens are determined to work with Canberra households and businesses to tackle that,” said Rattenbury.

“In order to cut water use, the Greens want a funded program where a qualified plumber visits houses and undertakes maintenance and repairs such as fixing or replacing leaking hot water systems and pipes, installing dual flush toilet systems, fitting low flow taps, shower heads and other water savings devices.”

“Our target is to deliver this to 25,000 households over the next four years, around 20% of Canberra households. This program will cost approximately $8 million.”

We also want to investigate similar initiatives with the commercial sector.

Other key initiatives in the Greens water policy include:

-Replacing the current staged system of water restrictions with a permanent strategy to achieve water conservation targets;

-Establishing a Legislative Assembly Inquiry to consider the best options for ensuring a sustainable water supply in the ACT. During the current Assembly, Labor refused to support a Select Committee on this, and the Inquiry they did establish never reported before the Assembly finished;

-Accelerating the program to replace stormwater drains with urban creek and wetland systems, beginning with the completion of the Sullivans Creek wetland network;

-The new urban development of Molonglo to be built with a ‘third pipe’ installed at the same time as other infrastructure. The third pipe provides treated recycled water to recreational areas and all households for non-potable use;

-Encourage further uptake of urban water tanks by:
-Removing the requirement that they must be plumbed into houses to gain the rebate;
-Removing the planning stipulation that tanks can only be sited in the backyard or hidden from view; and
-Reviewing whether rebates need to be increased.

“This package of measures is designed to cut demand for water use, and ensure that Canberra has a secure water supply in to the future,” concluded Rattenbury.

MEDIA RELEASE | Greens call for Solar Test

Thursday, September 11th, 2008

The Greens want a solar test applied to all new developments in the ACT, Greens candidate for Molonglo Shane Rattenbury announced today.

“Now that we know the benefits of passive solar design in our living and work spaces, it is time for the planning approval process to catch up and include building orientation and access to sunshine in its development approval process,” said Rattenbury

“For instance, the development proposed for the Burnie Court site in Lyons, as described in Draft Variation No 288, is laid out in such a way that it makes poor use of the free energy of the sun.”

“At the moment, the Territory Plan says that overshadowing is allowed so long as it allows a minimum of three hours in some part of the living areas of existing dwellings. That’s a pretty minimal requirement”

“The Lyons Estate (nee Burnie Court) redevelopment is starting from scratch, so there is no reason why every single dwelling should not have good solar access.”

“The entire new development of Molonglo is the same. We have to be building suburbs now that are fit for the 21st century, not designed like it is the 1980’s.”

“We have to get smarter about planning and building if we want to reduce our carbon footprint and our planning system has a key part to plan in this process,” concluded Rattenbury

Back to the drawing board on Molonglo

Wednesday, August 13th, 2008

ACT Greens Candidate for Molonglo, Shane Rattenbury, has called for a rethink of the planning for the Molonglo development.

“We can’t just blindly build a new town centre without the necessary planning needed to build sustainable communities.” Mr Rattenbury said.

“The transport, solar passivity, water and open spaces must be done right from the beginning.”

“We should be looking at living within our environment sustainably, not on top of it.”

“I reaffirm my opposition to a new lake, which threatens the river bed and is not the only answer to stormwater management.”

“The Greens will look for adequate sustainability planning before supporting any changes to the National Capital or Territory Plan’s in the new Assembly.” Mr Rattenbury said.