Communities for Climate Protection® - New Zealand (CCP®-NZ): A New Zealand Government initiative delivered by ICLEI-A/NZ. This programme is part of ICLEI’s international Cities for Climate Protection™ Campaign.

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South Wairarapa District Council has completed the second phase in putting together its climate protection policy.  A breakdown of the emissions created by the various council functions has been completed leaving the way to work on reducing the energy used in each area.  Streetlights account for almost half of the council's emissions with the vehicle fleet another 30%. Figures are:  streetlights 45%, vehicles 30%, buildings 17%, water and sewerage pumping 7%, and waste management 1%.  This information was provided in the South Wairarapa District Council’s April 2006 newsletter.

He thought he might hear it coming.  He didn’t.  He didn’t smell it either, though he thought he might.  What Rodney District Council’s mayor, John Law, was waiting for, and was pleasantly surprised by, was the arrival in Orewa last week of a 1993 Toyota Corona Salon powered by, of all things, 100% used vegetable oil.  Read more about it on the Rodney District Council website.

During May, Christchurch City Council and the Royal Society are presenting a weekly series of free lunchtime lectures on climate change in Christchurch called Science in the City.  Lectures focus on how the international scientific community predicts that the greenhouse effect will result in global warming of Earth's atmosphere by between 1.5 and 4.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the 21st century.  For further information see the Christchurch City Council website.

2006 – Living Sustainability – Taking Charge of the Future
This year’s ECO Conference will be held 30 June – 2 July, 2006 at The Waharau Outdoor Education Centre, Waharua Regional Park, Firth of Thames, Auckland.  The annual ECO Conference is a great opportunity for the public to join with New Zealand's environment and conservation groups to gather to share ideas, discuss key environmental issues, learn valuable skills and be energised and inspired.

Topics will include:

• Climate Change;
• Ocean and Marine Matters;
• Seanet Marine Information Project;
• Energy Efficiency Options;
• Sustainable Buildings;
• Group Capacity Building;
• Sustaining Your Group;
• Workshops; and
• Fieldtrips.

For further information contact the ECO Conference Co-ordinator Kate Lower on mobile + 64 (0)21 137 5667, or visit the conference website.

World Environment Day was established by the United Nations Environment Programme in 1973 to help raise awareness of environmental issues.  It is celebrated in more than 150 countries on 5 June every year. For further information and ideas, see what is happening around the world by visiting the United Nations Environment Programme website.

Following a review of the Government’s Climate Change policy, the Ministry for the Environment held a series of public engagement meetings in Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington.  The purpose of these meetings was to provide information on the current status of Climate Change policy in New Zealand and to give people an opportunity to express their viewpoints on Climate Change policy matters.

In summary there seemed to be a general acceptance by attendees that:

• Developing Climate Change policy is a very complex task;
• There is no obvious ‘silver bullet’ that will assist New Zealand in meeting its Kyoto commitments; and
• New Zealand’s domestic Climate Change policies need to be largely aligned with international movements to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

To view the Climate Change Policy Review, as well as presentations and each city’s meeting notes visit the Ministry for the Environment website.

Also available are presentations and notes from the Industry Stakeholder engagement day held earlier in the year.

Both of these links may provide ideas for community and corporate engagement on climate change issues.

Compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) use about a fifth of the electricity consumed by standard bulbs. According to Energy Mad who market the EcoBulb, the 600,000 Ecobulbs already purchased will save New Zealand consumers over $60 million on their power bills over the life of the Ecobulbs.  This is equal to removing about 59,000 cars from the road, and will save enough electricity to power about 44,000 homes for a year.  Each CFL will save around $100 on power over its lifetime.  For more information visit the Royal Society of New Zealand website and learn about “the Power of One”.

When you go on a long car or plane trip, compensate for the carbon you’ve released into the atmosphere by contributing to Landcare Research’s carbon credit scheme to regenerate marginal land with native bush. Just go to the EBEX21® website and they’ll tell you how much your trip was worth. This could become a standard practice with people attending conferences and meetings, and many businesses have signed up to the scheme to compensate for the day-to-day operation of their vehicle fleets.

For more information visit the Royal Society of New Zealand website.

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