Energy and emissions

Ensuring our energy supply is affordable and reduces the impacts of climate change is important to the City and wider community.

Traditional grid-electricity and gas are becoming more expensive and continue to rely on fossil fuels (coal and natural gas), which release greenhouse gas emissions. This means finding more efficient and renewable energy sources such as solar photo voltaic (PV) is becoming increasingly important.

The City has been working hard for many years to reduce our corporate carbon emissions and increase renewable energy use, helping to ensure we are doing our part to limit the impacts of climate change.

This includes setting ambitious but achievable targets, including:

  • Source 100% of total electricity demand from renewable energy by 2030
  • Reduce corporate carbon emissions by 70% by 2030.

Leading by example, the City also aims to empower its community to make informed energy choices.

Activities such as walking off track, vegetation clearing, and off-track biking or BMX can cause destruction of habitat and native plants through trampling and spreading diseases.

Invasive plant species can outcompete native vegetation, altering habitat structure and reducing biodiversity. 

Feral cats, foxes, European carp and rabbits can predate on or compete with native wildlife, leading to declines in native species populations. 

Accidental or intentional fires can cause significant ecological damage, particularly if they occur too frequently and do not allow for natural recovery. 

Pesticides, fertilisers, and other chemicals from urban areas can enter bushlands and wetlands through runoff, contaminating soil and water, and harming plants and animals. 

Phytophtora dieback, caused by the soil-borne pathogen Phytophthora cinnamomi, affects a wide range of native plant species, and leads to plant death resulting from lack of water and nutrient absorption. 

Urban waste, including plastics and other debris, can degrade the visual and ecological quality of bushlands, posing risks to wildlife that may ingest or become entangled in litter. 

Alterations in climate patterns as well as increased frequency of storms, droughts, and fires can cause direct damage to bushlands, exacerbate existing threats, and disrupt ecological processes. 

Did you know?

Grid-powered electricity in Western Australia is expensive and carbon intensive. This is because it relies on burning fossil fuels such as natural gas and coal. Burning fossil fuels produces greenhouse gas emissions, which are widely accepted in the scientific community as a major cause of human-induced Climate Change.

You can help by reducing your use of grid powered electricity. Use energy during daylight hours even if you don’t have a solar system on your roof. This helps to make good use of the solar energy that is being made collectively here in Perth.