Annual Reports

The Environmental Sustainability Annual Report monitors our progress towards achieving the East Gippsland Environmental Sustainability Strategy 2022-2032’s seven goals and the actions from the Environmental Sustainability Action Plan 2022-26.

This report provides a snapshot of the various achievements made by Council and other partners, ensuring that these key achievements are acknowledged and celebrated.

Read our Environmental Sustainability Annual Report 2022-23.

A summary snapshot of the Annual Report 2022-23

Previous versions:

Annual Report 2019-20‍

Annual Report for 2018-19

East Gippsland Environmental Sustainability Strategy and Action Plan

Council acknowledges the importance of reducing the human impact on the environment and has developed an Environmental Sustainability Strategy.

The strategy is a management tool targeting action towards environmental sustainability in the areas of Council control and influence within East Gippsland.

Over the next ten years, we are committed to:

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>> Managing and mitigating the impact of climate change.

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>> Achieving sustainable resource management.

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>> Facilitating living and working within the capacity of the local environment.

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The four-year Environmental Sustainability Action Plan outlines how Council intends to achieve the goals and targets of the Environmental Sustainability Strategy.

The action plan details how Council will either lead or work in partnership with various stakeholders and our community to achieve outcomes.

Progress in delivering the actions will be provided to the community through social media updates, the Environmental Sustainability Annual Report and through our Environment Connect Newsletter.

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Stay informed

View past editions of the quarterly Environment Connect newsletter and subscribe to receive the newsletter via email.

You can also check out our easy-to-read two-page guide to Roadside Vegetation Management.

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Moroney Street Bairnsdale (McKean Street to Bredt Street), streetscape planting

We are planting and replacing trees each year across the municipality.

The species of trees chosen is based on:

• Site conditions including utilities (power, water, gas etc.), soil profile and space available
• Existing vegetation in the locality
• Future-proofing for expected climate changes
• Minimising ongoing maintenance requirements for Council
• Stock availability

Moroney Street was chosen for this project to complement the urban street improvements completed recently.

We are informing property owners what species we intend to plant on their nature strip as part of this project.

The streetscape has been designed by our Arborist, Parks and Gardens Coordinator and Open Space Planner.

Impacted property owners have been contacted and given the opportunity to review the streetscape design and provide feedback.

This can be done by contacting our Open Space Planner, Marc Taylor, on 5153 9500 or emailing us.

Map of the Moroney Street (stage 2-3) streetscape planting

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About our streetscape projects

The urban streetscape is an important part of any town. Council’s long-term vision and strategy is to increase the tree canopy in a way that reflects the different characteristics of each town and region. Capital budget has been allocated each year to implement these works on selected streets.

A healthy urban streetscape has shown to be critical in maintaining the health and liveability of our townships. Through:

• Improving and maintaining the health, well being and happiness of our residents and visitors
• Increasing property values
• Cleaning air and water
• Creating attractive tree-lined streets that encourage people to visit, work and live locally
• Sequestering and storing carbon
• Providing habitat for native fauna
• Creating healthier ecosystems

Tree species selection

Council has selected a range of trees that have been shown to perform well in streetscapes and are suitable for the conditions and surrounding infrastructure. When determining the species selection, the following factors were taken into account:

• Neighborhood character (existing street tree species)
• The ability of the species to survive and adapt to future climate changes
• Available planting space (nature strip width and length, light poles, crossovers)
• Above and below ground services (powerlines, gas, water etc)
• Potential future works (footpaths, road renewals)

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