Recycling on an industrial scale

Old industrial buildings and structures have a unique beauty and style all of their own. One only has to look at something like the Queen Victoria Building to be reminded of the old saying ‘they sure don’t make ‘em like they used to’. And in many respects, that’s great! New buildings are becoming more and more sustainable in how they are built, and more efficient in how they are run – and that’s great for the environment and for us.

At the same time there are a bunch of old industrial sites which are sitting unloved and unmaintained. Of course the million dollar question is what’s the best thing to do with them? Sure you could pull it down, but why not make use of that beautiful industrial style and local history? And how good would it be if you could make it into something that the community can use and cherish?

Well we’ve found a few examples (a couple of Sydney ones and one from New York) which do exactly that. It’s a great reminder that we should never be afraid to think outside of the box, because that’s where some of the most exciting sustainability ideas lie.

Paddington Reservoir, Paddington NSW
Images from City of Sydney


Paddington Reservoir was built between 1866 and 1878 as a key water storage facility for Sydney. After being decommissioned in 1899, the site served as a workshop and service station. However in 1991 part of the roof collapsed and the area was closed off for a number of years for safety reasons. It has since been revitalised into a stunning community park, which celebrates it’s beauty and also its history. For more information click here.

Ballast Point Park, Birchgrove NSW
Image from Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority


Ballast Point Park was used between 1788 and 1800 as a source of ballast for ships returning to Europe. It was owned by a variety of people, and then served as a fuel depot from the 1920s to the 1990s. Again it was derelict for a number of years, before being revitalised into a fantastic community park. For more information click here.

High Line Park, New York
Images from www.treehugger.com


The High Line is an elevated railway that was built in the 1930s in Manhattan, as the previous railway line on the street was causing too many accidents. It was used until 1980, and likewise it fell into a state of disrepair. Following a number of years of community and legal debate about what to do with it, it was rebuilt as thread of elevated parkway creating much needed parkland for the city of New York. For more info check out the High Line website.

Of course other well known examples include The Brickpit at Sydney Olympic Park and the nearby Newington Armoury. All of these examples serve to highlight the potential for creating great resources when you use the principles of sustainability and think outside of the box!

Sustaining the Meadow sows the seeds of success!

We love hearing about some of the great sustainability initiatives which are being undertaken in the local community. The ‘Sustaining the Meadow’ project is a great example!

Held in Claremont Meadows, the project involved a series of sustainability workshops for local residents over the last couple of months. Topics included creating your own seed raising mix, sowing seeds, vegetable gardening in a box, organic pest control and creating a worm farm. The workshops weren’t just theory either, participants at each workshop got to get in and get their hands dirty! The workshop series was coordinated by the St Marys Area Community Development Project, with funding from Penrith City Council’s Magnetic Places Program.

By all reports everyone had a great time at the workshops and walked away brimming with new information and enthusiasm – we can’t wait to see what they get up to with their new skills!

If you’d like more information about the Sustaining the Meadow project, or other exciting programs happening in the Claremont Meadows area, call Greg Harriden on 9673 2169. Greg is a Community Development Worker with the St Marys Area Community Development Project and he would love to hear from you.

Getting a handle on the carbon tax

The Federal Government have just announced their plans for a carbon tax for Australia, and quite rightly it’s got people across the country talking about it. Basically the big questions are what is it, how is it going to work, and how is it going to affect my household/work/business?

We’ve done a little research to try and make it easier for you to understand what it means for you and the country as a whole.

The Federal Government have established www.cleanenergyfuture.gov.au to help people learn more. One of the great features is this household calculator , where you can quickly and easily estimate what the impact of the proposed changes will be. I just did it for my own household, and it was nice and easy to use.

So how does a carbon tax like this go towards addressing the issue of climate change? Here’s a simple graphic which explains the principle behind it.

Another good link we’ve found is this 6 page pdf. The document outlines the key actions and activities which will be undertaken as part of the proposed scheme, such as things like investing in renewable energy.

Come celebrate NAIDOC week at Jamison Park

NAIDOC Week is a time to celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, and is an opportunity to recognise the contributions of Indigenous Australians in various fields.

NAIDOC stands for the National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. Its origins can be traced back to the 1920s, when Aboriginal groups sought to increase awareness in the wider community of the status and treatment of Indigenous Australians. To learn more, check out the NAIDOC website.

To celebrate this important event, why not come down to Jamison Park on Friday 8 July? The event runs from 10.30am to 3.30pm and will include singers, games, barbeque, mixed netball and touch football competitions, and activities for children!

Last seen in 1898!

Can you imagine discovering an animal that hasn’t been seen for 113 years? I certainly can’t, but that’s exactly what happened recently in a nature reserve in Columbia!

This red-crested tree rat (Santamartamys rufodorsalis), dropped in to an ecolodge in the El Dorado Nature Reserve, where a couple of nature conservation volunteers were able to get these photos. It was last observed in 1898, despite a number of surveys since then to find it. It apparently hung around for a couple of hours, before scuttling off back into the bush.

To give that some perspective, 1898 was the year the first referendums were held about Australia becoming a single nation! It’s also the year that the Queen Victoria Building in Sydney was completed. To see what Penrith looked like back then, check this out.

For more information on the sighting of this cute little critter, check out the Conservation International website.

Okay, here's one more pic for you all.

Fridge Buyback

A lot of people have a second fridge somewhere, quietly humming along and using more electricity than they really need to use. With electricity prices going up, these fridges (which are usually older and less efficient) are going to cost more and more to run. It’s estimated that these fridges cost about $225 a year to run as it is, not to mention the tonne of carbon they produce each year!

So what’s the best way to get rid of one of these old fridges? The answer to that is Fridge Buyback. Basically Fridge Buyback will pay you up to $35 to collect your fridge, and it will then be professionally recycled (and all the nasty refrigerant gases are captured too). As always terms and conditions apply, but the basics are that the fridge has to be a working second fridge, be 250L or more in size, and be over 10 years old.

Fridge Buyback is funded through the NSW Climate Change Fund, and is available to a number of areas in the Sydney and greater region. So far over 430 households in Penrith have participated in the scheme, which won the Best Specific Environmental Initiative category of the Virgin Blue Business Awards as part of the United Nations Association of Australia’s World Environment Day Awards.

For more information call 1800 708 401 or visit www.fridgebuyback.com.au

Sydney by bike

Following on from my previous post about exploring your own backyard, on the weekend I decided to take advantage of the great weather and do just that. My partner was working at Mosman, so I took the opportunity to throw the bike in the back and carpool with her, and go exploring from there.

I’ll admit that I drove to Kirribilli and parked the car on a residential street, but it saved me riding back up the hill to Mosman at the end of the day (not to mention avoiding the traffic along Military Road!).

I started with a leisurely cruise along the foreshore to Luna Park, looking over the harbour to the Opera House, Botanic Gardens and Circular Quay. From there it was up the hill to North Sydney, which is also where you access both the pedestrian and bicycle paths across the Harbour Bridge. The east side is for pedestrians only, and the west side is for bikes. Suffice to say the views from the bridge are magnificent! If you’ve never walked or ridden across the bridge, I highly recommend it.










The cycleway from the bridge meets up with the new bike lanes on Kent Street, which have been installed by the City of Sydney. Basically it is a dedicated lane on the street for bicycles, which is protected from cars and trucks on the road by a concrete medium strip. A full map of the cycleways can be found here on the City of Sydney’s website, to help you plan your trip.

From there I cut across Pyrmont Bridge past Darling Harbour, and again along more dedicated bike lanes through Pyrmont to the end of Anzac Bridge. While the Anzac Bridge doesn’t have the same beauty that the Harbour Bridge does, the views from it are also amazing.



From the end of Anzac Bridge I turned left to follow the edge of Rozelle Bay, where there are parklands and a shared pathway along the waterfront. This stretches around to meet Blackwattle Bay, and then you’re basically at the fishmarkets. From there I went back through Pyrmont and Darling Harbour, back up Kent Street and back across the Harbour Bridge to where I started.





Touring by bike in Sydney has never been easier and more inviting than with the new cycleways that have now been installed. It’s nice and cheap, and you can cover a lot more ground than if you were on foot. Just make sure you take some water and some basic tools and a puncture kit, and a reasonable quality lock just in case you want to drop into any shops along the way.

Explore the world in our own backyard

Here in Penrith we're pretty spoilt when you think about it - we're a stones throw away from the world heritage listed bushland of the Blue Mountains, and to the other side we've got one of the most diverse and culturally rich cities in the country! But how often do we actually take the time to slow down and fully appreciate all that Sydney has to offer?

One person who has done that is photographer Louise Hawson, with her 52 Suburbs project. "My blog, 52 Suburbs came about when I was scouting for a new photographic project. I have always thought it odd that many people regard the world as fascinating but shut down when it comes to their own backyards, regarding them as ho hum and not particularly interesting. When I applied this thinking to my own city, Sydney, I realised I was just as guilty as anyone else — I had been drawn to many places overseas and constantly fantasised about travelling far away — but I was not very interested in Sydney. It felt like I’d stopped exploring it a long time ago and had been stuck instead in my own little patch for years."

Louise decided to visit a new suburb each week for a year (hence the 52 Suburbs name), and document the images of her visits on her blog at www.52suburbs.com. Originally just a pet project, word spread about her amazing images and more and more people started to hear about it. This has resulted in a book titled 52 Suburbs (pictured below), and there is also an exhibition of her photos on display at the Museum of Sydney until 9 October (details here). And yes, if you're wondering she did visit Penrith, see that post here.

52 Suburbs is a great reminder to all of us to open up our own eyes and appreciate the beauty and diversity of our own backyards. It's also a great example of the kind of great things that can happen when you follow your passion.

Carpool and win!

There's never been a better time to join up to Western Sydney Carpool wwww.wscarpool.org. Car pooling a great way to save money and help look after the environment.

There's a bunch of benefits to carpooling, which include:
• Save money on fuel and tolls
• Play your part in reducing congestion on our roads
• Reduce wear and tear on your car by using it less often
• Enjoy priority parking at selected locations (Penrith Council will provide two dedicated spots in front of the Civic Centre)
• Reduce your carbon footprint
• Meet new people
• Stress less by sitting back and enjoying a ride to work

Western Sydney Carpool features a secure website which ‘matches’ you to commuters with similar travel arrangements, and it's absolutely free. All you need to do is log on to the system, and create a personal profile. The system will then identify other travellers who live within 15km of you with similar travelling needs.

Penrith Farmers Markets

We love local food - it's fresh and tastey, it supports local farmers, and it's good for the environment too! Lucky for us Hawkesbury Harvest coordinate monthly farmers markets in Penrith, so there's a stack of yummy produce all in the one place.

The markets are held the first Saturday of the month from 8am to 1pm, on the grass area between Penrith Library and the Joan Sutherland Performing Arts Centre. For more information click here to check out the Hawkesbury Harvest website. Here's some photos from Saturday to give you an idea of what's on offer!