With a week to go until the local government elections on 14 September, Newtown Climate reached out to lead candidates for the Danum (Stanmore) ward of Inner West Council with four questions about their climate policies. See their responses below, listed in order of receipt. We thank all candidates for their responses, and will update this page as more responses are received.
We also asked the same questions of candidates for Lord Mayor (City of Sydney) – click here to see their responses.
Question 1: Reducing private car dependence and increasing the number of trips made by walking, cycling and other forms of active transport is one of the most effective and immediate ways to improve air quality and reduce climate pollution. What are your plans to improve active transport infrastructure and ensure people can safely get around without a car if they choose to do so?
Chloe Smith – Labor
Inner West Labor councillors know that encouraging active transport and reducing vehicle usage is one of the most efficient ways to reduce carbon emissions, while also making our community healthier and happier. That’s why we’ve committed to increasing funding for cycleways in the Inner West in each of the next four budgets, so that by 2027-28 the total budget for cycleways will be double what it is now.
We’ve already locked in the completion of the Greenway from Iron Cove to the Cooks River by 2025, and now we’ve also committed to establishing the Great Inner West Walk – connecting existing and new walking and cycling infrastructure across the Inner West. The Great Inner West Walk will create a continuous path through the LGA, connecting communities and leveraging existing infrastructure with new connections and wayfinding signage. These green corridors will make the Inner West one of the most walkable and active transport-friendly communities in NSW.
One of the main barriers to cycling uptake is that people don’t feel safe traversing our streets. Inner West Labor is proud to support InnerWest@40, Council’s plan to lower speed limits on local roads to 40km/h – and we support lowering it to 30km/h around schools and high-pedestrian zones. We’ll also conduct an audit of street lighting and cycling infrastructure, including bike racks and lockers, to encourage greater uptake, while continuing to invest in maintaining our roads and footpaths so that our local area is safe and accessible for walkers and cyclists.
Liz Atkins – The Greens
Liz Atkins referred us to The Greens’ policies for Making Inner West Council a Climate Leader
Rosana Tyler – Liberal
No response received.
Question 2: Actions that reduce household emissions – like installing rooftop solar, insulating homes and switching to efficient electric appliances – also make houses cheaper and more comfortable to live in. Despite this only 8% of Newtown households have rooftop solar, and the 60% of local residents who are renting are at the mercy of landlords when it comes to these key decisions. What are your plans to support households to reduce emissions and save money?
Chloe Smith – Labor
As a renter myself, I’m familiar with the challenges of wanting to reduce household emissions and cut the cost of energy bills but having limited opportunities to implement energy-saving measures around my home.
In this Council term, Inner West Labor introduced a nine-month household energy-efficiency service pilot, in partnership with the Women’s Housing Company. This ongoing pilot has to date provided assistance to eight low-income households in the Inner West that don’t have means or opportunity to implement energy efficiency measures like solar panels or gas conversion. The measures are forcast to save each household an estimated $200 on energy costs per year.
In the next term, Inner West Labor will implement this as a permanent service, specifically targeted towards low-income households, renters, and women fleeing domestic and family violence. This will have a significant impact on Council’s goal to reduce community emissions by 75% by 2036.
We have also commenced a relationship with Ausgrid and will look to partner with them to deliver a community battery to the Inner West, enabling households without solar panels to access renewable energy, reduce pressure on the grid, and lower household emissions.
Liz Atkins – The Greens
Liz Atkins referred us to The Greens’ policies for Making Inner West Council a Climate Leader
Rosana Tyler – Liberal
No response received.
Question 3: Local businesses can also benefit from reducing their energy bills and switching to more efficient modern technologies. What are your plans to support local businesses to reduce their emissions?
Chloe Smith – Labor
Supporting local businesses to reduce emissions needs to be part of Council’s work to combat climate change in our local community. In the next term, Inner West Labor will explore opportunities to partner with waste companies to expand food recycling to local businesses. Our household food recycling program has cut carbon emissions from landfill by more than 12,000 tonnes since October, the biggest contribution our community has made to carbon reduction. Supporting businesses to do the same is the next step.
We will also establish a local democracy group for small businesses, giving them a forum to advocate directly to Council. Through this group, we will work with the business community on practical initiatives to cut emissions, including waste management and energy efficiency.
Liz Atkins – The Greens
Liz Atkins referred us to The Greens’ policies for Making Inner West Council a Climate Leader
Rosana Tyler – Liberal
No response received.
Question 4: We are already seeing impacts of climate change like hotter temperatures and more intense rainfall in our local area. What are your plans to ensure our community is adequately prepared for and resilient to future climate impacts?
Chloe Smith – Labor
The Inner West has a proud history of local action to combat climate change and improve sustainability. We’re the first council in Australia to be both 100% divested from fossil fuels and 100% powered by renewable energy. In this term we’ve expanded food recycling to every household, cutting emissions by over 12,000 tonnes since October. And we’ve set firm targets to transition away from gas in Council operations and transition council vehicles to electric. But there’s more we can do to improve our community’s climate change resilience.
Inner West Labor has already commenced work on increasing uptake of household rainwater tanks to support water conservation in the event of an extended drought period, including opportunities for renters, low-income households, and apartment dwellers to better harvest and store rainwater.
We will also identify cooling centres within each suburb of the Inner West to support community, especially the most vulnerable, to access respite from severe heat events or air pollution. These cooling centres will be free, publicly-accessible and climate-controlled buildings open for all. We will also establish emergency contingency plans for late-night opening of Council buildings in the event of a severe heat warning.
Inner West Labor is committed to continuing to work with community, climate change experts, and all stakeholders to improve our community’s resilience to climate change impacts.
Liz Atkins – The Greens
Liz Atkins referred us to The Greens’ policies for Making Inner West Council a Climate Leader
Rosana Tyler – Liberal
No response received.