Learn about the City’s environmental projects and initiatives.
Environmental plans
We are continually working to reduce energy and carbon emissions, water consumption and adapt to a changing climate.
The City is committed to protecting and enhancing our natural environment for current and future generations. Guided by our Strategic Community Plan, we recognise environmental sustainability and strong local connections as top priorities for our community. Our residents value the City’s unique natural assets and vibrant public open spaces, and we are dedicated to safeguarding these resources through collaborative action and innovative solutions.
This document outlines our vision and strategic approach to sustainability, focusing on four key pillars: energy, water, biodiversity, and waste. It details the City’s priorities, targets, and ongoing initiatives to create a more resilient, resource-efficient, and biodiverse community.
The City is committed to achieving 100 per cent renewable electricity supply by 2030 and a 70 per cent carbon emissions reduction target by 2030. This will ensure we are doing our bit to help Australia reach Paris Climate Agreement goals and limit the impacts of climate change.
Our priority is to reduce the consumption of grid-powered electricity on City infrastructure (i.e. City owned buildings) or replace it with renewable sources to decrease carbon emissions.
The City has shown a long-term commitment to climate change adaptation. The Climate Change Adaptation Plan, developed in 2013, identified key climate risks to the City’s services and operations and priority actions to reduce its exposure to those risks. Implementing the priority actions has helped the City to build climate resilience and be prepared for the more extreme climatic changes. Actions have included measuring and monitoring biodiversity, conserving water and energy, adjusting behaviour to avoid extreme temperatures and building infra-structure that will withstand more extreme storm and flooding events. The Plan is due for review in 2022 as part of the Sustainability Strategy development.
The City Urban Forest Plan sets a bold vision for a cooler, greener, and more liveable city, where a thriving canopy of trees benefits every member of the community. Recognising the essential role that trees play in cooling our suburbs, supporting wildlife, and enhancing wellbeing, the Plan outlines a collaborative approach to reversing canopy decline and building leafy neighbourhoods for future generations.
With a target to increase average canopy cover to 18% city-wide by 2040, the Plan details strategies to engage the community, plant and retain more trees, and maximise the benefits of our urban forest.
Environmental projects and conservation
These restoration projects are critical to ensuring the long-term survival of our native flora and fauna and their habitat.
- Brushfield Way drain restoration project
- Bushland protection fencing
- Bushland revegetation projects
- Lake Gwelup restoration
- Coastal revegetation projects
- Watermans Bay dune restoration project
- Signage upgrade
- Paths and beach access step upgrades
- Jackadder Lake wetland margin restoration
- Basalt Silver Topaz Bushland enhancement project.
Fencing and track upgrades
To date the Natural Areas team have upgraded fencing and access tracks in 40 bushland reserves across the city including Carine Regional Open Space, Dianella Regional Open Space, Richard Guelfi Reserve, Yokine Regional Open Space, Star Swamp, Lake Gwelup, Princess Wallington Reserve, Trigg Regional Open Space and Cottonwood Crescent Reserve.
Lake Gwelup restoration
A long-term project that will see the removal of invasive weeds such as Typha, and replaced with native Baumea sedges. The project will restore wildlife habitat and improve the aesthetics of the lake.
Natural Areas undertakes flora surveys every two years to monitor the progress of at risk species such as orchids. It is estimated that orchid populations have declined by 75% across the city due to people picking them.
The City's Natural Areas team undertake annual fauna surveys to track the progress of native wildlife, especially those species that are threatened, endangered or at risk due to human impacts.
Rusty Spider Orchid
Unlike most plants, orchids do not grow back once they are picked.
The Southern Brown Bandicoot or Quenda is a marsupial in decline and listed as Threatened - Priority 5 by the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
They are found in four of the City’s bushland reserves as well some coastal dunes. Quendas are easily stressed and disturbances from people or their pets can death or females ejecting infants from their pouch.
Protecting Quenda's
The City asks your assistance by staying on tracks, avoid walking through the bush, keeping dogs on leash, and not allowing domestic cats to enter bushlands, wetlands or coastal dunes.
Careniup Wetlands Reserve, within the suburb of Gwelup, consists of a number of parcels of public open space that have been ceded to the City via the Special Control Area identified in the City’s Local Planning Scheme No.3.
With the majority of adjacent land developed and most of the public open space now ceded to the City, this Management Plan has been prepared to guide the future development and management of the reserve to ensure both the community’s future recreational needs are met and the site’s environmental and landscape qualities are preserved and enhanced.
To learn more about our conservation management plans, visit the conservation management webpage.
