A leading US association representing public works professionals has recognised IPWEA’s thought leadership in the field of sustainability in a new industry resource.
The American Public Works Association (APWA) Centre for Sustainability recently released the first edition of its Sustainable Practices in Public Works, a newsletter-style publication which provides tools and resources to allow decision makers to implement more sustainable, economically sound, and socially responsible long-term solutions.
IPWEA’s Priority Sustainability Actions for Public Works Directors, featuring five sustainability actions and five sustainability approaches, was featured in the publication.
The priority sustainability actions were formulated during the IPWEA Sustainability in Public Works Conference, held in Tweed Heads July 2014.
IPWEA director of sustainability Stephen Lees says the actions and approaches were distilled from suggestions made by various speakers at the conference.
“It was the key output from last year's Sustainability in Public Works Conference,” Lees says.
“In the last session we discussed what are the things that public works professionals can go back and implement in their own councils.”
Lees says the result of that discussion is a list that puts the ability to make a difference back in the hands of the individual.
“A lot of the things we talk about with sustainability are blue sky stuff,” he says.
“Some people look at environmental and sustainability issues and climate change problems and say it's all too difficult, it's up to the people in power like governments.
“(But) there is an alternative approach that says we need to start in our own backyard.
(Councils) have a lot of power in procurement, they can make choices between something that is a sustainable product and a non-sustainable product.
“However modest, I think all these things help move us forward.”
Lees says it is encouraging APWA has chosen to promote the actions.
The next IPWEA Sustainability in Public Works Conference will be held on 24-26 August 2016 in Melbourne.
Lees encouraged any engineers or public works professionals who would like to present papers to start thinking about projects that could be featured.
“It doesn’t have to be something earth shattering - even a modest initiative at a local council would be worth presenting,” Lees says.
You can read the full Sustainable Practises in Public Works publication
here.
Sustainability actions for Public Works Directors:
1. Set, monitor, review and publicly report against challenging sustainability targets covering main resources used for energy, water, materials, waste and GHG emissions.
2. Justify sustainability benefits in public works proposals on economic grounds using “whole-of-life” costing.
3. Promote more sustainable use of materials in public works by amending procurement policies and practices to explicitly consider environmental and social aspects.
4. Design public works with built-in resilience to cope with increasing risks and challenges of climate change and extreme natural events.
5. Investigate early replacement of all streetlights with energy efficient LED lamps.
Sustainability approaches for Public Works Departments:
1. With help from Council’s communications specialists, consult with and engage the local community (including businesses) to develop a shared sustainability vision and encourage the community to communicate its expectations to decision-makers.
2. Adopt a corporate Sustainability policy (if there is none) and make the CEO/GM or a director explicitly accountable for managing Council’s sustainability performance, including climate risks, and reflect that accountability in his/her Key Performance Indicators.
3. Promote a common understanding of what sustainability is and its benefits in local government, especially in public works; using ‘liveability’ to highlight community well-being benefits.
4. Start with small sustainability projects that can be learnt from - try new approaches or work with your community to adapt a successful project elsewhere to suit local circumstances.
5. Market sustainability initiatives using sustainability success stories from other cities and by framing objectives in positive and readily-understood terms, such as improving efficiency, minimising waste, securing water supply and improving transport connections.