State of the Environment Report Victoria 2008 - The Government Response
In 2008 Victoria’s first comprehensive State of the Environment Report was released by Victoria’s Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability. A link to the Report can be found on the Commissioner's website at www.ces.vic.gov.au
The report includes 289 recommendations, as diverse as salvaging fridges from landfill, soil pH benchmarking and Commonwealth tax reform.
The previous Government formally responded to the State of the Environment Report Victoria 2008 and outlined actions to address key areas. State of the Environment Report - Victorian Government response, November 2009
[PDF File - 2.6 MB]
Victoria's next State of the Environment Report is due for release in 2013.
A number of developments have taken place since the release of the State of the Environment Report Victoria 2008, which means some recommendations have now been addressed or are less relevant because of those developments. Highlights include:
- The Victorian Energy Saver Initiative which requires retailers to help households implement energy efficiency activities. More than 110 businesses have been accredited to participate in the initiative.
- The Northern Sustainable Water Strategy, which sets out a long-term regional plan to secure water for local growth, while maintaining the balance of the area's water system and safeguarding the future of its rivers and other natural water sources.
- The Vic LandCarbon project, which boosted knowledge required in order to more actively manage carbon on public land.
- The Victorian River Health Program, which tackles the causes of poor river health. One of the Program's strategies, the East Gippsland Regional River Health Strategy, identifies activities and targets for rivers located within the Snowy, Tambo, Mitchell and East Gippsland river basins.
- The Future Coasts program which is improving the management and planning for coastal adaptation. The program has provided detailed mapping of the Victorian coastline that will act as a basis for assessing the physical vulnerability of coastal areas to the impacts of sea level rise and extreme storm events.
All Victorians - individuals, households, businesses, industries, regions, communities and governments - share a responsibility to respond to environmental challenges. Partnerships with industry, local councils and community groups are essential to strengthen the resilience of communities and encouraging local action to maintain community liveability.
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1 From the State of the Environment Report Victoria 2008
2 Recommendations are: A0.1, A1.4, A1.5, A1.10, A1.11, LB9.11, CES4.2, LW14 and LW17.