VCE Environmental Science

Unit 4 of VCE Environmental Science is about Ecologically Sustainable Development, including the Environmental Management Systems of government and businesses. Every reputable organisation in Australia should be considering the impacts of climate change on their business – even if they are skeptical of the anthropogenic causes of global warming, changing climate will affect resource managment, agriculture, manufacturing, transport and consumer spending. An Emissions Trading Scheme (or Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme) will result in rising energy costs and hopefully provide opportunities for increased recycling, improved renewable energy technologies and greater uptake of low-emission vehicles. Companies that plan for climate change, using Environmental Risk Assessment principles, will be most prepared to act to reduce the threats to their economic, social and environmental sustainability.

At Hawkesdale P12 College we aim to reduce our energy use from from the grid and reduce solid waste going to landfill by recycling. In September our 5.5 KWh photovoltaic solar system was installed. This was made possible through a federal government grant from the National Solar in Schools program ($50,000) and a state government grant of $15,000. You can see our current energy production and total since installation at the Sunny WebBox site. By using renewable energy we hope to reduce our carbon footprint and educate students and the community about the benefits of solar power.

The 350 network, supported by World Vision Australia, is a group of over 200 organisations around the world who support a target of 350ppm of carbon dioxide so that our atmosphere is “similar to the one on which civilization developed and to which life on earth is adapted”. The 24th of October is International Day of Climate Action – you can join a local action or register your own here.  Calculate how much carbon dioxide you produce each year using this Energy Requirements Survey.

This post is part of a global project “Blog Action Day 2009” about climate change. From the previous post: More information about Co-generation Plants from the Energy Globe Portal. More on heat-pump technologies, cogeneration and refrigeration research from the Swiss Federal Office of Energy.

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The Midfield Group includes five businesses in the chain from paddock to consumer -

1. Pastoral company

2. Livestock freight and refridgerated transport vehicles

3. Abatoir

4. Meat packaging, export and retail sales

5. Midfield co-products (such as blood and bone, tallow and meat meal)

The company aim to be Australia’s most efficient, quality producer of red meat. They state “ We also have our commitment to reducing our environmental footprint and creating a secure a healthy future for you and your children in writing; we adhere to our own Environmental Management System, which encompasses the minimisation of greenhouse gas emissions, recycling waste materials and the efficient use of energy.” Specifically they are developing an alternative fuel for their transport vehicles from waste tallow – converting animal fat into biodiesel. They are also planning to reduce their energy use and greenhouse gas emissions by using geothermal water and a gas co-generation plant to heat water for cleaning purposes. They recycle water used in the abatoir and stomach contents of slaughtered animals are returned to their pastoral properties as a mulch/fertilizer.

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While I am away at Professional Development on Monday and Tuesday you have plenty of work to do! Firstly you need to finish the short answer section of the 2005 exam we started this week – the questions about Environmental Management Systems and Ecotourism. Secondly, you need to take notes about Great Western Vineyards as a case study of EMS. Remember, careful evaluation requires qualitative and quantitative data to support your asessment. What are they doing well? How could they improve? What are the economic, social and environmental issues?

Story of Stuff

This 20-minute animation video is a great introduction to Environmental Management Systems (EMS), Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) and Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD). Annie Leonard explains the unsustainable five-step production system (Extraction, Production, Distribution, Consumption and Disposal) that drives global economies.

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The Environmental Protection Authority have been busy in the south west of the state in the past week. After heavy rain in Camperdown on Monday night, a considerable amount of effluent was released from the saleyards into a stormwater drain and then flowed into a nearby creek and across neighboring farmland. Cattle which consume the effluent-contaminated water are at risk of contracting diseases, including salmonella and bovine Johne’s disease. The EPA are investigating the discharge, after fining the council in 2006.

On Friday, the EPA issued letters asking twelve south-west industrial sites to explain their high usage of water and/or energy. Fonterra, Murray Goulburn, Portland Aluminium, Warrnambool Cheese and Butter and Warrnambool Stockfeeds all exceeded the thresholds for both water and energy consumption. These companies must prepare a plan to show how they will cut energy and water use, as well as reducing the amount of waste they generate.