Albert Park College

Civics and
Citizenship
By Helena Nikiforou
Environmental
issues
This is an issue because…
Environmental issues are a big topic in our society today. Major current issues include,
Pollution, deforestation, agriculture clearing/overgrazing, overfishing/illegal fishing and
infrastructure development. In Australia, more than 30% of agricultural land is considered
“severely damaged” This is due to rising salinity from deforestation and over-irrigation.
Australia has a “plastic problem” according to cleanup Australia, Australia produces more than
2.5 million tonnes of plastic each year, Equating to about 100 kg per person. Only 13% of
plastic is recovered while 85% of plastic is sent to landfills - this is not good! Australia needs
to fix this and start having a voice in these issues so the risk of our environment can be
reduced.
 What are the goals?

Fedral State Local

Start using more renewable have free public transportation. apply more garbage bins in
energy than coal mining. households.
 Local
government
Applying more garbage bins in households
reducing garbage in households
What do we want?
As I said earlier garbage waste in Australia is a major
issue. With that being said, a goal and improvement I
would like to see for the local government and
neighbourhood councils is to establish more
environmentally friendly garbage bins in households.
this can make big changes for the environment and can
have a positive impact on waste management.
what can we do?
The council can promote this issue and how we can fix it
by putting posters around the neighbourhood and
posting topics on all media platforms. This participation
strategy would be effective as more of the community
would be aware of the issue and how they can manage
their waste. Issues could only occur if the people don't
put their waste in the correct bins.
 State
Government
Giving raise to free public transportation
Making Public Transportation Free
What do we want?
Motor vehicles have an environmental impact on pollution such as greenhouse gases.
Motorized transport in Australia is the third largest source of greenhouse gas
emissions. This is not good! That’s why I think the state government and state
regulators should give approval to free public transportation. Public transportation
significantly minimizes air pollution from motor vehicles by eliminating automobiles
from our streets. Air pollution reduction has obvious health advantages, but it also
aids in the preservation of Australia's distinctive natural environment.

What can we do?

Posters and media outlets are a great way to express the cause of why we should start using
public transportation as our first preference of vehicle. Many Australians are starting to display
awareness of the environment. As I said earlier, if motorized transportation is Australia's third-
largest greenhouse gas emission in Australian cities, hopefully, people living in the city or
nearby can start having a second thought on how they want to travel to their destinations. I
can't say that most people could travel by public transport every day, but hopefully, more
people could start using public transport when suited.
Federal Government
Start using more renewable energy
Reducing coal mining
What do we want?
Coal mining is a MAJOR issue in Australia. That's why I think the federal government should start raising awareness and start replacing coal
with renewable energy.
The negative impact on coal mining is that Toxic and carcinogenic compounds are released into our air, water, and land as a result of coal
mining and burning for energy.
Coal pollution has been related to the development of potentially deadly illnesses, and studies have shown that it has a negative influence on
the health of miners, employees, and residents.
On the other hand, Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human
timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves, and geothermal heat. renewable energy has many different benefits in
our society and for our widespread community. The Department for Energy and Mining, through the Mineral Resources Division, are some key
stakeholders for this issue. The federal government can start implementing more renewable energy resources such as more solar and wind
energy.

What can we do?

I can get in contact with different environmental departments and groups to raise
awareness about this issue. This can be effective because it would hopefully give an
opinion and perspective of why this issue needs to be addressed. I highly doubt that if
I only were to speak to the committees I wouldn't be heard as much, that's why we
need loads of people from all communities to start taking action on this issue.
 Local Government
The local Government can start implementing the thought of
adding more bins to households.

State Government
Future actions The state government should start making public
transportation free for all Australian citizens.

Federal government
The Fedral government should start taking action in making
more renewable resources for our society and electricity.
Thank you for
reading!
By Helena Nikiforou