ACT Greens Plan For Adapting To Changing Climate

The ACT Greens have released a plan to ensure our city remains beautiful, safe and livable as we respond to our changing climate.

"With Greens in Government the ACT has become a global leader on climate action. We have cut emissions by over 40%, shifted to 100% renewable electricity, and committed to phasing out polluting fossil fuel gas," said ACT Greens Leader, Shane Rattenbury.

"But the reality is that our climate is changing and we are already experiencing the impacts of climate change through more frequent heat waves, more intense bush fires, more severe droughts and increased intensity of rainfall events.

"We need to put in place measures across the city to adapt to the changing climate, and prepare for these extreme weather events. It's important that we protect the most vulnerable in our community as we do this.

"With good preparation we can ease the impact of these extreme weather events on our community and make sure our city remains beautiful, safe and liveable.

"The ACT Greens will take decisive action to prepare our city and our community for climate change. This means planting more street trees and changing the way we develop to keep our city cool, it means being prepared for heat waves and keeping our community healthy and safe as the climate changes, and it means being well prepared for extended bushfire seasons." Mr Rattenbury said.

To build resilience to the unavoidable impacts of climate change, the ACT Greens will:

• Plant at least 20,000 street trees each year to increase urban canopy cover with a focus on suburbs with the least tree cover, ensuring tree species are climate appropriate and non- invasive
• Bring back the iconic bus stop bunkers - or other types of climate ready, shaded and weather-resistant bus shelters across Canberra with a focus on areas where they are lacking.
• Establish a Chief Heat Officer to coordinate responses to extreme heat events, and develop a Climate and Health Strategy.
• Work with the community to trial and implement city cooling interventions, including active measures such as misting systems and awnings, or passive systems such as water features, street plantings, green roofs and facades
• Increase funding for the Emergency Services Agency and ACT Parks and Conservation Service to reflect the increased bushfire risk, longer bushfire season and increased likelihood of severe weather events.

Deputy Leader of the ACT Greens, Rebecca Vassarotti said the ACT Greens will plant 20,000 trees across Canberra to protect our status as the bush capital of Australia and reintegrate the environment back into our suburbs.

"In a climate crisis, planting more trees isn't just an option-it's a crucial part of making Canberra a more liveable city," Ms Vassarotti said.

"When we're designing and building our future suburbs, the environmental infrastructure - the trees, plants and green spaces - is just as important as the roads, the footpaths and buildings.

"But for too long, Labor has treated it as a second order priority, rather than a foundational element to building a sustainable and liveable city.

"For years, developers have been given a free pass to make a quick buck rather than creating leafy, green, liveable suburbs - and we're still feeling the impact now.

"All this has done for Canberrans is turn our newer suburbs into hot, dry concrete jungles in the middle of summer. As the climate crisis deepens, these conditions are only going to become more extreme unless we take urgent action now.

"That's why the ACT Greens will plant 20,000 trees each year to keep our city cool in the summer and maintain our status as the bush capital.

ACT Greens Candidate for Yerrabi, Soëlily Consen-Lynch says Canberra needs a network of well-managed parks and waterbodies to cool the city, and believes the government should prioritise areas that currently have the lowest access to green space or are most affected by urban heat effects.

"Our summers are getting hotter and so are our suburbs," Ms Consen-Lynch said.

"The ACT Greens will work with the community to trial and implement city cooling interventions like misting systems and awnings, water features, street plantings, green roofs, which will help make our suburbs cooler and more liveable for everyone."

Today's announcement builds upon the Greens' August announcement to pick up the pace on delivering equitable climate action, so that we meet net-zero emissions faster, in a fairer way, supporting those who need it most.

The Greens' comprehensive plans to provide real climate leadership are detailed on the ACT Greens website.