University Land Management: The Stats on what UWA is doing for the Environment Aideen Gallagher is a final-year JD student reporting to you straight from quarantine
Camila Egusquiza is an overly anxious South American student, trying to make a career in journalism ‘Climate anxiety’ is a condition now officially recognised by the Australian Medical Association. Thankfully (or not, I am yet to decide) I now know that my persistent environmental existential dread is a nearuniversally shared experience. Whilst the turbulent era of snap lock downs and ‘Mark McGowan swooning’ has been a whirlwind distraction from the environmental emergency, it still pays to consider policy other than how speedily a premier can shut the border to NSW. Arguably, all organisations and institutions should be turning their mind to their individual contributions for the sake of greater cultural and social momentum. To keep you up to date, we will summarise UWA’s Environmental Sustainability Strategy, which is divided into five main points.
Biodiversity
UWA plans to enhance flora and fauna on campus to preserve and protect green space. To do so, they aspire to establish an ‘urban forest’. An urban forest is a collection of trees growing within a city, and to be considered as such the land needs to be at least 30% canopy cover. To achieve this status, UWA has committed to green landscaping, tree assessments, organic pest removal, and strategic design for all new campus developments. 10
Energy
Currently, UWA’s emissions sit at 38,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. The university’s goal is to be an energy-neutral campus, which translates to net-zero emissions, by 2025. This is set to be achieved through “Initiatives based around the themes of energy efficiency, on-site renewables generation, and off-site renewables procurement.” UWA has also emphasised becoming a virtual power plant or microgrid, supported by distributed energy generation and storage.
Recycling and waste
The primary waste goals include an overall reduction by 10%, plus increasing the diversion from landfill to up to 70%, by 2025. The desired strategies are based on reduction, diversion, circularity, innovation and management. Some of the initiatives they plan to undertake include: • • •
Food waste reduction programs, such as OzHarvest Increased uptake of compostable packaging, especially to replace single-use Creation of a ‘circular economy’ index for the University (i.e. design and/or use
UWA? More like NWA amirite?
