Local Government NSW (LGNSW) and the Office of Environment (OEH) have announced the successful recipients of the first round of funding to the Building Resilience to Climate Change Grants, totalling $432,500.
The well-deserving recipients to receive funding are: Albury City Council, Manly Council, Penrith City Council and Leichardt Council in collaboration, Shoalhaven City Council, Wollondilly Shire Council and Southern Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils.
Albury City Council received $48,000 to adapt remote IT transmission stations to extreme heat events to secure internet and communication capability for emergency services and critical infrastructure.
$80,000 was awarded to Manly Council for their AdaptRoads Pilot, which assesses the resilience of road networks.
Penrith City and Leichhardt Councils collaborative project to develop strategies for adapting to urban heat events in their locality secured $67,000.
An innovative evaporating cooling project for Shoalhaven City Council’s Nowra CBD received $80,000 to develop a water play area, natural shading and water stations for the community similar to the one in Darling Harbour.
Wollondilly Shire Council received $77,500 to help investigate and map areas in their municipality that can be used for food production and meet local food demand, while $80,000 was awarded to the Southern Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils to carry thermal mapping across Rockdale, Hurstville, City of Sydney, Canada Bay, Ashfield and Canterbury Council areas.
LGNSW President, Cr Keith Rhoades AFSM, welcomed the funding for Climate Change initiatives.
“Councils face the hard task of managing climate change risks at a local level, often with very little monetary support.
“The Building Resilience to Climate Change Grants Program is an opportunity for councils that have great ideas about minimising climate change risks to source extra funding so that these innovative ideas can become a reality.
“Adapting to climate change is an important issue for Local Government and an opportunity for innovation.
“We received 56 separate applications from all over the state in this first round of grants, which show that councils are looking to tackle climate change risks within their day-to-day operations to protect their assets and their communities.
“It is vital that local decision makers take action and implement solutions to minimise climate change risks to protect their communities now and in the future.
The Building Resilience to Climate Change Grants, a collaborative Program between OEH, LGNSW and the NSW Environmental Trust, were launched in August 2014 to help Local Government undertake projects that build resilience to climate change.
The next round of Building Resilience to Climate Change Grants will open in May 2015.
