Corangamite Shire Council mayor Ruth Gstrein responds to call to declare climate emergency

Terang's John Glazebrook pressed Corangamite Shire councillors on climate action at a monthly meeting stating he believed the council had prioritised profitability rather than the environment.

"I think it's time for this council to join with the other councils who have declared an environmental emergency to take a stand and make the same declaration and put sustainability ahead of private profits," he said.

"Negotiate with the renewable energy companies coming here to get more sustainable energy for the community of Corangamite and stop the carbon emissions that are a threat to the most important thing we have in this community which is a stable climate."

The shire joins both Southern Grampians and Glenelg Shire in its hesitation to make the call.

Warrnambool and Moyne Shire councils each passed a motion declaring a climate emergency in 2019.

Mayor Ruth Gstrein said the council had made climate change a priority without making the formal statement.

"We could declare a state of emergency but I think at Corangamite we are more focused on doing rather than talking," she said.

"But perhaps we do need to better promote what we are doing."

She said that included a recent $800,000 pledge towards emissions reduction in its 2022-23 financial budget.

"We certainly haven't been sitting on our hands over the past years," Cr Gstrein said.

"We've implemented a number of significant environmental projects through water-saving devices and installation of rooftop solar, we've replaced our street lights with LED globes, we began food and organics to convert into compost about 15 years ago and I know there are still some councils in Victoria who still don't offer the FOGO collection.

"This year in our budget we've allocated funds for a climate change and resilience project officer and are looking at installing charging stations for electric vehicles and as we begin to convert our fleet to electric we're very aware of that."

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She said none of the councillors denied the impact of climate change and all council priorities needed to be balanced.

"I don't think the council or anyone sitting around this table believes Corangamite Shire is safe from climate change," Cr Gstrein said.

"Indeed we talked this evening about our emergency management plan and we've seen our fair share of disasters through flood and fire. We're very much aware of what's happening in Europe and america at the moment in California.

"This council, like all councils, has a number of priorities and as we've mentioned this evening in our submissions agriculture is an important one - it's our primary land use and our biggest employer," Cr Gstrein said.

"All the priorities council does have - not just around agriculture - we do have to balance them very carefully."

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