Dispose of household chemicals

 

What you need to do

1. Find a drop-off location and date that suits you

   We're hosting a Household Chemical CleanOut on Saturday 18 April 2026 from 9am to 3:30pm at Alexandra Canal Depot, 67C Bourke Road, Alexandria NSW 2015. Everyone is welcome, even if you don't live in our area. 

   To find other drop-off locations and dates, visit the Household Chemical CleanOut website or call the NSW environment line on 131 555.

IMEX launches Net Zero Strategy – 2030 target depends on collaboration

 The IMEX Group has made a significant move on its journey to net zero with the public launch of a Net Zero Strategy. This outlines IMEX’s roadmap to deliver net zero events and operate a net zero business by 2030.

Spain to ban short-haul flights to combat climate change

 

Spain could be the next European country to halt short-haul flights, as part of efforts to combat climate change.

Madrid could follow the example of France whose ban on domestic flights on short routes that can be covered by train in less than two-and-half hours became effective last month, Schengen visa website reports.

Call on Mauritius government to return 440 monkeys to the wild

 

Action for Primates is calling for the recently seized 440 long-tailed macaques to be returned to the wild. We have written to the Mauritius Ministry of Agro-Industry urging the authorities to show compassion by returning these individuals, victims of an illegal trade, to their natural habitat, rather than to hand them over to companies where they will likely be used for breeding or exported to laboratories where they will suffer and be killed

New report highlights urgent concerns over Victoria Falls World Heritage Site

 

A new independent report produced for Keep Victoria Falls Wild highlights urgent concerns over the management of the Victoria Falls World Heritage Site (WHS) and recent allocation of leases and concessions by the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, threatening the vulnerable riverine fringe along the upstream river corridor above the Victoria Falls.

Tech4Nature partners announce project to study impact of tourism on biodiversity in Spain

 

BARCELONA, SPAIN - Huawei and International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) have selected Sant Llorenç del Munt i l'Obac Natural Park in Barcelona Province for a new Tech4Nature project to study how tourism impacts the park's ecosystem, notably the Bonelli's eagle.

TUI Turtle Aid satellite device tracks sea turtles’ journey in the Mediterranean Sea

 Sea turtles cover extraordinary distances as they journey between their nesting and feeding grounds and migrate to warmer waters for the winter. Together with Turkish NGO Dekamer, the TUI Care Foundation is tracking the journey of two sea turtles across the Mediterranean Sea with a GPS transmitter in order to receive vital information about their feeding sites and migration routes, which helps to safeguard their habitats.

Year in review: Supporting National Parks in 2021

 

WASHINGTON - As we enter the final days of the year, the National Park Foundation (NPF) is reflecting on how it supported national parks throughout 2021. Thanks to a growing community of park champions, including donors, foundations, corporate partners, National Park Service (NPS) staff, philanthropic organizations (often called Friends Groups), volunteers, visitors, and more, we achieved a lot together for national parks.

Tourism gets stricter with plastic pollution & waste

 

Tourism businesses and destinations are increasing their commitment toward sustainability. Focused at decreasing waste and pollution in every sector, the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative (GTPI) is set to welcome 32 new signatories, with every global region represented behind the shared goal.

SITA to be A Certified Carbon Neutral Organization by or before 2022

Global air transport IT provider SITA has released its annual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report, which reveals that, despite the pandemic, the company remains set to become a certified carbon neutral organization by or before 2022.

Animal Protection groups outraged as Mauritius government gives permission for capture of wild monkeys

 

Animal Protection groups have condemned as a 'backward step' the decision by the government of Mauritius to grant permission for the expansion of Biosphere Trading Ltd and to allow the company to capture around 1,000 wild monkeys.

The European countries with the highest percentage of protected nature

2020 was the year of staycations and learning to love the nature that’s around you – The New York Times recently reported a surge of European nature lovers visiting protected areas for the first time. But which country does the best job at protecting their natural sites?

Plastic Ocean Arch in Seychelles

 ‘Plastic Ocean Arch’ was recently erected in Victoria, Seychelles to showcase the harsh reality of ocean pollution. 

The Ocean Project Seychelles, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) established in November 2016, has been actively raising awareness of plastic pollution, by hosting regular beach clean-ups around the beaches of Seychelles. 

A total of 10.56 tonnes of rubbish had been recently collected from an expedition by the team to eight of the Outer Islands of Seychelles, some of which were used to create the arch. 

The art piece certainly showcases the implications of surmounting marine debris, and gives an insight to what it might feel like for sea creatures to have their natural habitat taken over by plastic. It is hoped that the initiative will encourage people to be more conscious about their plastic consumption, and to make the switch from disposable plastic items for reusable alternatives.

Alain St.Ange, the island's former Tourism Minister and now Leader of the "One Seychelles" political party took time to see the 'Plastic Ocean Arch' and says that he wishes to re-echoe the sentiments made that:-

"In 2020, we continue to brand Seychelles as the picture-perfect destination, but more of us need to poke our heads under water to see what is truly going on. We must listen to our local scientists whose cries are falling on deaf ears. We must actively choose to minimize our contributions to the global problem, and to maximize efforts nationally to combat pollution before it is too late for our vulnerable marine life".

Tags: ‘Plastic Ocean Arch’ in Victoria, Seychelles 

Emirates Group Hosts Sustainability Panel to Engage Employees on World Wildlife Day

Championing environmental stewardship and providing an opportunity for employees to understand the role that the company plays in building a more sustainable future, the Emirates Group hosted an event to raise awareness of the role of business in environmental protection and to highlight its ongoing environmental initiatives in conjunction with World Wildlife Day.

The event began with a screening of the popular Netflix documentary, Our Planet: Our Business. The Group’s environmental sustainability framework was briefly introduced, along with its three focus areas: reducing emissions, consuming responsibly and preserving wildlife and habitats. This was followed by an overview and panel discussion from different departments including Emirates Environment Affairs, dnata Environment, Service Delivery and Emirates Flight Catering on some of their environmental goals, ongoing initiatives, challenges and long-term sustainability plans. The audience was also able to ask the panel questions.

 

As part of the airline’s long-term sustainability initiatives, Emirates set out to significantly reduce its consumption of single use plastics in June 2019. Since then, over 100 million pieces of single use plastics have been removed from its aircraft. The airline has been working to reduce its use of items such as salt and pepper covers, plastic menu bags, as well as plastic wrapping for toys, and close to 15 million pieces of plastic have been removed from these three items. Emirates has also replaced amenity kit bag contents, child meal cutlery, stirrers and swizzle sticks, straws and waste bags with eco-friendly alternatives, eliminating close to 90 million plastic items from Emirates flights last year.

On the ground, over 1.1 million single use plastic bottles have been removed from Emirates’ and dnata’s ground operations and replaced with eco-friendly alternatives for employees to use. Moving away from bottled water options, marhaba lounges will also begin providing customers with filtered water, helping reduce waste to landfill even further for the millions of customers who frequent the lounges every year. A series of measures have also helped to divert over 250 tonnes of food waste produced at dnata catering from landfills in Australia. Initiatives include food waste being broken down to wastewater and released to the waste water system. In addition, excess food is being donated to charities who provide meals for people in need in both Australia and the UK.

Emirates Flight Catering (EKFC) produces an average of over 200,000 meals per day, and some of its biggest sustainability initiatives include food waste projects. In an effort to use the whole product, close to 500 kilogrammes of food items, including fruits, vegetables, bakery items and meat, are saved each day to be used in small goods, or are reused for different purposes in EKFC’s retail operations.

Srdan Susic, Director of Conservation and Climate at Emirates Nature-WWF also joined the panel to talk about the importance of making changes now, preserving vital ecosystems in the UAE, how the environment will affect businesses in the future and what can be done, and that small changes do make a difference.

Tags: Emirates, World Wildlife Day

Tourism to tackle plastic pollution with new commitment

Every year, billions of people go on holiday to escape from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Eight out of ten tourists travel to coastal areas, hoping to relax under blue skies, clear waters and white sandy beaches.

Increasingly, however they risk finding an ocean coloured not by vibrant species of fish and coral, but by chocolate wrappers, single-use bottles and plastic straws. The sand too is buried under layers of cigarette butts, discarded flipflops and ice cream tubs. In fact, during peak tourist season, marine litter in the Mediterranean region has been found to increase by up to 40 per cent. With great irony, tourism, which often depends upon the Earth’s natural beauty, is making enormous contributions to its decay in a very visible way.

Alongside the 8 million tonnes of plastic that enter the ocean every year, 300 million tonnes of new plastic is created annually, utilizing non-renewable resources such as oil, gas and coal, and contributing to climate change. If growth in plastic production and incineration continue, cumulative emissions by 2050 will make up between 10 and 13 per cent of the total remaining global carbon budget. As a result, the implications of plastic overconsumption extend even further than the litter that is visible in the ocean. 

Many stakeholders in the tourism industry have been taking action against plastic pollution—moving away from single-use plastics, reducing consumption of unnecessary plastics, and moving towards circularity through better recycling and reusing schemes. However, in order to tackle the enormity of the plastic problem, equally enormous action is needed, across the entire tourism value chain.

Towards a circular economy for the tourism industry

The goal of the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative is to bring the tourism sector together under a common vision to transition to a circular plastic economy and sustainability in the sector. The initiative has been developed by the Sustainable Tourism Programme of the One Planet Network, a multi-stakeholder partnership to implement Sustainable Development Goal 12 on sustainable consumption and production, and is led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Tourism Organization in collaboration with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. This initiative is the tourism sector interface of the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment, which currently has over 450 signatories from businesses, governments, and other organizations, with the common objective of reducing plastic pollution through ambitious targets.

The Global Tourism Plastics Initiative requires tourism organizations to make a set of concrete commitments by 2025, including:

• Eliminate problematic or unnecessary plastic packaging and items by 2025
• Take action to move from single-use to re-use models or reusable alternative by 2025
• Engage the value chain to move towards 100 per cent of plastic packaging to be reusable, recyclable, or compostable
• Take action to increase the amount of recycled content across all plastic packaging and items used
• Commit to collaborate and invest to increase the recycling and composting rates for plastics
• Report publicly and annually on progress made towards these targets

“Plastic pollution is one of the major environmental challenges of our time, and tourism has an important role to play in contributing to the solution,” said UNEP’s Economy Division Director, Ligia Noronha. “The Global Tourism Plastics Initiative supports tourism companies and destinations to innovate, eliminate and circulate the way they use plastics, to help achieve circularity in the use of plastics and reduce plastic pollution globally.”

By pulling the entire tourism supply chain together, we can #BeatPlasticPollution.

About the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment

The New Plastics Economy Global Commitment unites businesses, governments, and other organisations behind a common vision and targets to address plastic waste and pollution at its source. Signatories include companies representing 20 per cent of all plastic packaging produced globally, as well as governments, non-governmental organizations, universities, industry associations, investors, and other organisations. The New Plastics Economy Global Commitment is led by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme.

Tags: New Plastics Economy Global Commitment 

Vietnam Golf Clubs to quit grasping at single-use plastic straws

Laguna Golf Lang Co and other members of the Vietnam Golf Coast (VGC) are in the process of completely phasing out single-use plastics after reaching their final straw with the environmentally corrosive material.

The best signature golf courses in Central Vietnam joined forces earlier this year as part of the VGC, a destination marketing effort geared towards cementing the region’s status as one of Asia’s leading places for play.

Four of these clubs, Laguna Golf Lang Co (designed by Sir Nick Faldo), Ba Na Hills Golf Club (designed by Luke Donald), Montgomerie Links (designed by Colin Montgomerie) and the soon-to-open Hoiana Shores Golf Club (designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr.), have pledged to eliminate single-use plastics in their operations.

With holes carved through jungle, on pristine hillsides and hard by the shores of the East Sea, the constituent members of the VGC all showcase the stunning natural beauty of Central Vietnam.

By scrapping items made of plastic such as garbage bags, locker room accessories, plastic cups and straws, the Vietnam Golf Coast aims to safeguard these land and seascapes for future generations as well as providing as shining example in Asia’s golf industry when it comes to taking meaningful action to protect the environment.

“Vietnam is one of the most beautiful countries in the world, and we are fortunate enough to have one of its most visually stunning sites,” said Adam Calver, Director of Golf at Laguna Golf Lang Co and Chairman of the VGC. “As golf is a game that works in harmony with nature we have a responsiblity to take a leadership role in protecting the environment.”

While nobody doubts the immense benefits offered by plastics in daily life, consensus is building about the need to address the toxic impact its overuse is having on our marine environments.

Last year in Indonesia a dead sperm whale washed ashore with close to 6kg (13 lbs) of plastic waste in its stomach – which included 115 drinking cups. Each year up to 13 million tonnes of plastic leaks into our oceans, according to the United Nations Environment Programme.

The drive to eliminate plastic throughout the VGC is already at an advanced stage. Plastic garbage bags have been replaced by bamboo baskets, accessories have been switched to wooden or bamboo materials, paper cups have replaced plastic ones while all straws are made using paper, steel, bamboo or natural grass. Bamboo was an obvious substitute for plastic given its abundance in the region, said Tim Haddon, General Manager for Ba Na Hills Golf Club. They feel that it adds an extra sense of place for our guests.

All of the clubs have already been taking action to reduce the use of plastics, added Calver. They feel that it is their responsibility as custodians of nature to do everything they can eliminate any negative impact the facilities have on the environment.

Tags: golf, Golf Clubs, Vietnam, Vietnam Golf Clubs

Hiri is raising awareness of the importance of coral reefs

Inspired by the global movement to combat climate change and protect the planet, environmentally-conscious travelers are ditching traditional holidays in favour of trips with an eco-tourism flavour.

That’s the view of Debora Kocak, one of the co-founders of Australian-based coral restoration organisation Hiri, which has recently launched internships for people wanting to do their bit to help save the planet, while experiencing a different lifestyle and culture.

Hiri works with communities throughout the Pacific, educating them about coral gardening and raising awareness of the importance of coral reefs. The company also uses coral gardening techniques to help replenish areas affected by overfishing or other damage.

A survey this year by travel booking site booking.com revealed 70 per cent of travelers would be more likely to book accommodation knowing it was ecofriendly, 62 per cent would feel better about staying in accommodation with an eco-label, and 71 per cent felt companies should offer consumers more sustainable travel choices.

Kocak, who juggles her work with Hiri alongside studying at Bond University on the Gold Coast, said there had been a definite shift in trends among holidaymakers.
 
“A lot of people are more interested in actually doing something with their holiday that is more meaningful and impactful in some shape or form, so we give people the opportunity to not only have a nice holiday but also do something to give back to a community or save the planet in some little way.”

Hiri was offering the chance for holidaymakers who wanted to make a difference to come along with them on one of the company’s coral restoration trips.

“You get to go with us to a village, or to a community and we run them through the whole process of reforestation, so it’ll be from A to Z learning, everything to do with the importance of coral reefs, all the way through to the planting process,” Kocak said.

Seb Thomas, who travelled with Hiri earlier this year to Tubusereia in Papua New Guinea, said the internship was a chance for him to give back. 

“I’ve always wanted to go to the Pacific, and I’ve wanted to be a conscious traveler. Often when we go travelling, we forget about sustainability and we consume a lot, I’ve done a lot of travelling but I wanted to give back as well.”

Kocak felt Hiri’s message was particularly relevant at a time where global strikes against climate change and media coverage of environmental advocate Greta Thunberg’s appearance at the United Nations climate summit had struck a chord with the public.

Tags: Hiri

WTM London partners with Sherbet London to reduce 18 tons of CO2 emissions

 Electric taxi company Sherbet London is setting out to offset 18 tons of CO2 emissions during WTM London 2019 by offering 1,000 one-way airport transfers and taxi rides within London.

Sherbet London is the official taxi company for WTM London. There 40 WTM London and London Travel Week branded electric cabs in honour of the 40th anniversary of WTM London.

The aim is to offset 18 tons of carbon emissions during the event by offering 1,000 rides in the electric cabs. Each Sherbet electric cab emits just 29g of CO2 per km as opposed to a typical diesel taxi, which emits 222g.

WTM London attendees will have a front-row seat to the positive environmental impact of these cabs, by being able to view live CO2 offset measurements, which will be displayed on screens at the Sherbet London stand at WTM London and on the event’s website.

To help them reach their goal, exhibitors and visitors are encouraged to book their airport transfer or London taxi journey with Sherbet Ride through a special online booking system during WTM London.

Senior Exhibition Director of WTM London Simon Press said: “This partnership represents an exciting advancement for WTM London. We are constantly trying to make sure that our event remains sustainable and reflects the very best advancements in environmental technology.

“For our 40th edition we sought out significant ways to celebrate this anniversary and we are proud to be collaborating with Sherbet London. This partnership definitely strengthens our credentials as a truly responsible event in the global travel calendar.”

Download the Sherbet Ride app, available on Android and iOS for instant or future bookings.


Tags: Electric taxi company Sherbet London, WTM London 

TUI to tackle single-use plastics in coastal regions of Cyprus

TUI Care Foundation and the Travel Foundation announced the launch of an initiative to tackle single-use plastics in coastal regions of Cyprus.

The partnership will work closely with the Cyprus Sustainable Tourism Initiative (CSTI) to tackle the threat of single-use plastics for Cyprus as a destination and the marine environment in which it is located.

In the Mediterranean, plastics constitute the majority of beach litter, over 85% of floating litter and 45% to 95% of the litter found on the seafloor. Packaging like plastic bags and food containers as well as single-use plastics such as straws, bottles, and cotton buds are the most common items of litter found in the Mediterranean Sea. But to tackle plastic pollution of the sea, action needs to be taken on land first. The tourism industry and its stakeholders provide a great platform to increase awareness of the plastic challenge by reducing their own plastic usage.

The initiative targets a local reduction of single-use plastics by tourism businesses of up to 70% by 2022, focusing on the popular destinations of Ayia Napa and Protaras in the East of Cyprus. Tourism businesses have been increasingly engaging with the issue of plastic pollution, recognizing their role in distributing single-use plastics. This campaign will support local hotels, bars, and restaurants with training and guidance to find alternatives to purchasing plastic items such as straws, cups, cutlery, bottles, bags and takeaway food containers. The project will also raise awareness of the issue of single-use plastics with tourists, residents, and youth – with activities such as beach cleans, competitions, school activities and events. It will include social media engagement and an online community to drive outreach and awareness.

“This project takes a collaborative approach, bringing together businesses, policymakers, NGOs and society to reduce the amount of single-use plastics. It’s an opportunity for the tourism industry to lead the way in reducing, re-using and recycling, and to encourage others to reduce their environmental footprint, helping to conserve this beautiful coastline”, says Frank Oostdam, Member of the Board of TUI Care Foundation

“We already have had a lot of support from hotels, bars and restaurants and other local businesses who want to get ahead of this issue, do the right thing for Cyprus and respond to the growing expectations of customers – local and international – who are now questioning the use of disposable plastics. This initiative is about providing training and advice for businesses and recommendations for residents and visitors about how they can do their bit, and events such as beach cleans and awareness-raising activities,” says Philippos Drousiotis, Chairman of CSTI.

At the moment, the initiative is gathering the commitment and support of stakeholders to shape a campaign that will see its launch on November 2019. The mission is clear and the name speaks for itself: Keeping sand and sea plastic free!

Tags: TUI Care Foundation, single-use plastics in coastal regions of Cyprus.

Violent fire damaging Amazon rainforest; tourism weakens

Huge fires have been blazing through the Brazilian rainforest this week, with more than half in the Amazon Equatorial Forest Zone. These powerful fires spell disaster for the local environment and ecology — and environmentalists and researchers say the blazes were likely lit by cattle ranchers and loggers. French president, Emmanuel Macron, has said this massive fires in the Amazon are an “international crisis” and called for them to be top of the agenda at the G7 summit, prompting a furious response from Brazil’s leader.

A growing number of worldwide celebrities are among those speaking out about the potential global catastrophe. Many are demanding accountability from Brazil’s pro-business President Jair Bolsonaro, who activists say encouraged ranchers, farmers and loggers to exploit and burn the rainforest. But the President has said he’s not responsible for the fires. That hasn’t impressed celebrities, who have taken to social media to ask the President to do more.

French President Emmanuel Macron and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres both took to the social media to express concern about the fires that have reached a record number this year, devastating vast swathes of forest considered a vital bulwark against climate change. The fires in the Amazon have surged 83 percent so far this year compared with the same period a year earlier.  Although fires are a regular and natural occurrence during the dry season at this time of year, environmentalists blamed the sharp rise on farmers setting the forest alight to clear land for pasture.

The farmers may have had at least tacit encouragement from the firebrand right-wing president, who took power in January. Bolsonaro has repeatedly said he believes Brazil should open the Amazon up to business interests, to allow mining, agricultural and logging companies to exploit its natural resources.

The wildfires raging in the Amazon rainforest have hit a record number this year, with 72,843 fires detected so far by Brazil’s space research centre INPE, as concerns grow over right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro’s environmental policy.

The surge marks an 83 percent increase over the same period of 2018, the agency said on Tuesday and is the highest since records began in 2013.

The INPE said satellite images spotted 9,507 new forest fires in the country, mostly in the Amazon basin, home to the world’s largest tropical forest seen as vital to countering global warming.

The images show the northernmost state of Roraima covered in dark smoke. Amazonas declared an emergency in the south of the state and in its capital Manaus on August 9th. Acre, on the border with Peru, has been on environmental alert since Friday due to the fires.

Wildfires have increased in Mato Grosso and Para, two states where Brazil’s agricultural frontier has pushed into the Amazon basin and spurred deforestation. Wildfires are common in the dry season but are also deliberately set by farmers illegally deforesting land for cattle ranching.

The unprecedented surge in wildfires has occurred since Mr Bolsonaro took office in January vowing to develop the Amazon region for farming and mining, ignoring international concern over increased deforestation.

@Inputs from Reuters

Tags: amazon rainforest, brazil, January, United Nations