Nelson City Council

Nelson City Council is currently working with our community to create a vision for Nelson over the next generation and beyond. If you would like more information, or would like to play a role in this process, go to our Framing our Future page.

What is sustainability?

Sustainability is  "a state which does not systematically undermine natural or social systems", a definition provided by The Natural Step and one adopted by Nelson City Council.  It is something which is relevant to everything that we do.

This page lists a range of resources under different topic headings, which can be used to develop greater understanding of, and knowledge about, sustainability in the Nelson community. Published materials are available at Nelson Public Libraries, in print or online.

• Natural Step and planning for sustainability
• Sustainability at home
• Building design
• Sustainability at work
• Sustainability in the Community
• Climate Change
• Energy
• Funding
• Transport
• Waste/ recycling
• Natural environment

 Natural Step and planning for sustainability

local resources

• Nelson City State of the Environment 2010 (7.5MB PDF)

national resources

• Natural Step : the Natural Step Environment Foundation Aotearoa New Zealand
  The Natural Step (TNS) is an international non-profit environmental education organization working to build an ecologically, economically and socially sustainable society. The site outlines the activities of the Natural Step in NZ, referring to the NZ companies taking part in the Pathfinder programme. Resources include an online newsletter.
• Sustainability Council of New Zealand
  A charitable trust with no political affiliations. Contains news and publications on issues relating to GM research and sustainable development.
• Sustainability.govt.nz
  Information about how to reduce your environmental impact and save money. Focuses on the main areas of rubbish, water, energy, building, transport and climate change.
• Sustainable Future : exploring a complex world
  Sustainable Futureis a research organisation specialising in issues affecting New Zealand. Site has information about current New Zealand and global sustainability developments and policy analysis and research. Includes publications, reports and resources.
• Sustainable living : news and action across New Zealand
  Newsletter provides information about sustainable living, and the Sustainable Living Programme, a community-based education programme developed by New Zealand local councils. Issues available in full-text.
• Resources site for sustainable living
  Site developed by local councils across New Zealand. Contains information to encourage people to minimise their impact on the environment. Includes background information and resources for practical action in the areas of energy efficiency, waste minimisation, water use, gardening, shopping strategies and travel.
• Sustainable Management Fund : supporting the community, industry, iwi and local government in a wide range of practical environmental initiatives
  The SMF will help achieve the Government's environmental objectives and priorities by funding projects that provide outcomes with national benefit. Site has information on projects already funded and details on how to apply for funding.

international resources

• Sustainability reporting framework
  Guidance on how organisations can disclose their sustainability performance. The Framework is applicable to organizations of any size or type, from any sector or geographic region, and has been used by thousands of organizations worldwide as the basis for producing their sustainability reports.
• Towards 2060 – Community Conversations in Manukau (2010) Manukau City Council’s sustainability project.
• Earth Charter initiative - international organisation
• Local Governments for Sustainable Future - an international network

 Sustainability at home

Read about local iniatives, resources and information on this site.

• Ecobob
  Site developed to make eco friendly living easy. Provides users with an easy way of accessing information on environmentally friendly living such as profiles of eco houses, a listing of businesses providing eco living products and services, a range of information articles on eco living and an online community for people to share ideas and connect on eco living topics
• Environmental Choice New Zealand
  Environmental Choice is the official environmental labelling programme. Looks at how to improve the quality of the environment by encouraging more sustainable processes through e.g. the design, production, marketing, and use of products which have a reduced environment impact during their entire life cycle.
• Good : New Zealand's guide to sustainable living
  Good magazine provides information, advice, and ideas about sustainable living. Site includes subscription details, contents and some articles in full-text.
• Smarter homes : creating healthy, affordable homes for better living
  Information about designing or remodelling homes so that they are more environmentallly friendly, energy-efficient, warmer, dryer, and more affordable. Includes technical information, news, and case studies.
• Living Heritage – Growing Native Plants in Nelson (2003)
  Department of Conservation and Nelson City Council - guide to growing the right native plants.

 Building Design

• Building Research Association in New Zealand
  Includes On the “Level” eco-design for homes
• NZ Urban Design Protocol – Low Impact Urban Design
• Centre for Building Performance Research - at Victoria University Wellington
• BEACON Pathways - sustainable buildings advice, includes:
  Building Sustainable homes: a resource manual for local government (April 2010) from Beacon Pathway.
• USA Green Building Council – LEED assessment tool                    
• Design Navigator – practical tools and case studies for building energy efficient homes

 Sustainability at work

Read about local iniatives, resources and information on this site.

• BusinessCare
  By providing training and support, BusinessCare aims to increase the number of people who have cleaner production skills throughout the country, giving business and industry greater access to experts to help them towards a sustainable future.
• Green office guide
  Information on building a business case for an environmentally friendly office ; practical tips, and a directory of environmentally friendly services, supplies, and information providers.
• GreenFleet/ Sustainable Business Network
  Programme which enables New Zealand businesses to do something towards reducing the environmental impacts of their vehicle fleet. Highlights services and tools available to calculate and offset carbon emissions; includes events calendar, resources, and news
• New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development
  NZBCSD provides business leadership as a catalyst for change toward sustainable development and promotes eco-efficiency, innovation, and responsible entrepreneurship. Site provides information about the council, its projects, and public events. Includes news and online resources.
• Sustain : New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development newsletter / New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development
  Sustain, published by the New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development, covers sustainable development news, issues and events. All issues are available in full-text.
• New Zealand Green Building Council - a not-for-profit, industry organisation dedicated to accelerating the development and adoption of market-based green building practices

 Sustainability in the Community

• Vancouver – Greenest City Quick Start Recommendations (2009)
• Transition Nelson
  Transition Towns is an inspiring vision and action plan for how a community can “transition” to an energy lean, carbon-constrained and relocalised future that is abundant, sustainable and resilient. - 
• Inspiring communities
  An organisation to support and  inspire communities to work together. Read their first report What we are learning about community-led development in Aotearoa New Zealand (2010).
• Healthy Spaces and Places
  An Australian guide for planning, designing and creating sustainable communities that encourage healthy living. It is a unique collaboration between the Australian Local Government Association, National Heart Foundation of Australia and the Planning Institute of Australia
• People, Places, Spaces – A Design Guide for Urban New Zealand (2002)
  Ministry for the Environment’s information on what urban design is, and how to achieve better urban design
• Project for Public Spaces - US organisation to help people build communities and sustain public spaces
• New Urbanism - an Australian organisation which promotes sustainable, compact communities.

 Climate Change

Read about local iniatives, resources and information on this site.

• Climate change information New Zealand
  Information and publications about the Ministry of the Environment's climate change policies and objectives.
• EBEX21 : tipu rākau : a New Zealand solution for green house gas measurement, management and mitigation
  Information about EBE X21 which is an integrated service that assists organisations to measure, manage and mitigate Co2 emissions
• NASA - indicators for climate change
• Australian Government Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency - information and resources
• Climate Crisis - Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth webpage - also see his Alliance for Climate Protection
• CarboNzero - an internationally accredited greenhouse gas certification programme. We provide tools and resources to help you measure, manage and mitigate your greenhouse gas emissions with credibility and integrity. We are the world’s first accredited GHG Certification Scheme under ISO 14065
• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

 Energy

Papers

• The next oil shock (Parliamentary Research Paper, October 2010)
• Vulnerability assessment of the impacts of peak oil on the Canterbury Region (Report to Environment Canterbury, October 2009)
• Searching for a Miracle – ‘Net Energy’ Limits and the Fate of Industrial Society (2009) A joint project of the International Forum on Globalization and the Post Carbon Institute
• Reducing Parking Spaces (2011) Stecker & ClimateWire. Scientific American

Web links

• Bioenergy Association of New Zealand
  Information about BANZ and its work to promote and coordinate the development of a bioenergy industry in New Zealand. Incorporates general information and articles about bioenergy, including wood pellets, biogas and transportation biofuels, and information about bioenergy interest groups.
• Energywatch : the newsletter of the Sustainable Energy Forum
  EnergyWatch is published by the Sustainable Energy Forum. It discusses issues concerning the promotion and use of energy for economic, environmental and societal sustainability. All issues from no. 14 are available in full-text
• Energy wise
  Tips and strategies compiled by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority to help people reduce energy consumption
• Clean energy guide
  Discusses the impacts of energy use on the environment and explains the benefits of switching to using clean energy
• New Zealand Gpvernment Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority
• Energy Management Association of New Zealand
• Energy Federation of New Zealand - professional, not-for-profit, and independent energy industry association.
• New Zealand Sustainable Energy Forum

 Funding

Read about support and advice from Nelson City Council on this site.

• Community Environment Fund - Ministry for the Environment
• Nature Heritage fund - for biodiversity projects

 Transport

Read about transport in Nelson

• Go Smarter - NZ organisation for Sustainable mobility
• Fuel Saver - NZTA site: tips and tools for travelling smarter

 Sustainability and waste/ recycling

Local resources

• Waste Education Service
  WES is a free service for your business or school - provided through Nelson Environment Centre for Tasman District and Nelson City Councils. Our Waste Education Service can help you discover all the ways you can reduce, re-use, and recycle your waste.
• Nelson Freecycle group - Non-profit exchange network for unwanted goods

NZ resources

• CANZBAC : can recycling : you can
  Information for homes, industries and councils about how to recycle cans. Includes educational resouces and activities about steel cans and recycling.
• DonateNZ
  Suggests options for passing on unwanted household goods which will support the local community and help save the environment. Includes links to community news, events, competitions and re-use tips and ideas.
• Maximising recovery
  Advice and services for New Zealand industry to help meet demands for more sustainable and commercially driven waste solutions. Includes link to the RAWNZ (Recycling and Waste New Zealand) online discussion group.
• New Zealand waste exchanges
  Directory of waste exchanges in New Zealand.
• Waste Exchange
  A free not for profit organisation which operates in many parts of New Zealand. It enables the exchange of information resulting in the diversion of waste from landfill to reuse or recycling. Includes lists of waste available and registers of material available or wanted.
• WasteMINZ
  The Waste Management Institute of New Zealand exists to promote sound waste management for the benefit of all New Zealanders. Their primary function is to act as a facilitator for the waste industry. They host an annual conference, hold seminars and/or workshops during the year, which are relevant to their Interest Groups. These comprise Landfill, Hazardous Waste, Environmental Education and Recycling.
• Your guide to reducing building material wastes
  Information about the Resource Efficiency in the Building and Related Industries initiative, including guidelines about resource efficiency, case studies, directories of purchasers of recyclable materials, online resources, and a link to the national waste exchange database.
• Zerowaste New Zealand
  Zero Waste is an approach that maximises recycling and waste minimisation and a design principle which ensures that products are made to be reused, repaired or recycled back into nature or the marketplace. The site provides information about the Trust and its philosophies and activities. It describes zero waste solutions and includes online reports, information and website links.

 Sustainability and our natural environment

• Action Bio-Community : local capacity in biodiversity management
  Includes latest developments in the bio diversity management project for councils and communities. Contains resources, case-studies, reference material and contacts.
• Bio-Protection : bioprotection science for New Zealand
  The Centre's mission is to champion novel bioprotection technologies for New Zealand's plant-based primary industries through research and development, leading to enhanced national biosecurity, sustainable production systems, wealth-creating technology, protection of ecosystems. Site includes information about the Centre, latest news, reserach, and publications.
• Clean Air Society of Australia & New Zealand
  Information about the Clean Air Society of Australia and New Zealand, including training, publications and special interest groups. Includes the latest issue of Clean air news
• Canopy
  The newsletter of the New Zealand Native Forests Restoration Trust. Issues are available in full-text.
• Earth sea & sky
  Part of Te Ara online encyclopedia of New Zealand, covering natural environment topics.
• Environment and Conservation Organisations of Aotearoa New Zealand
  Information about ECO and its member groups as well as news of the environment in New Zealand
• Environmental Defence Society : EDS
  Website of organisation committed to improving environmental outcomes within New Zealand through litigation, community support, research and policy analysis. Contains information about the Society, news, events, and e-resources including newsletters, media statements, articles and submissions
• Forest & Bird
  Site of New Zealand's largest independent conservation organisation. Includes information about native animals and plants, natural environments and threats to the ecosystem. Includes a blog and a map that helps find conservation campaigns and activities around the country.
• Our chance to turn the tide = Whakakōhukihukitia te tai roroku ki te tai oranga
  New Zealand government site about native biodiversity, what is being done to help conserve and manage it, and who are involved. Details of initiatives under the New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy. Includes publications; downloads and advice on how to get involved.
• Sustainable Coastlines : projects to sustain and protect our coastlines
  About the New Zealand organisation which organises and supports events and coastal clean-ups in New Zealand and around the world