Bass Coast Roundtable
Contact
Jane Jobe, Convenor, Bass Coast Roundtable
m| 0409 530 898
p| 03 5956 8831
f| 03 5956 8820
e| jane@southernsustainable.com.au
Reports
Annual report 2007-08 (PDF 35 KB)
Annual report 2006–07 (PDF 57KB)
Projects
Business Environmental Sustainability Recognition Program
Overview
The Business Environmental Sustainability Recognition Program was a pilot project developed in the Bass Coast region for potential application across the biosphere reserve in future.
It aimed to encourage businesses to adopt environmentally sustainable practices, particularly businesses which had not considered these issues before. The program was intended to provide an entry-level step to encourage businesses to think further about sustainability and achieve further accreditation, and to promote the biosphere reserve to local businesses and their customers.
The program involved a simple self-assessment by participating businesses in the Bass Coast Shire — see information and self-assessment kit (PDF 712KB). A biosphere reserve decal was awarded to those demonstrating environmentally sustainable practices covering:
- Energy use
- Recycling
- Water use
- Greenhouse emissions
- Business planning
- Pollution
- Community awareness
Evaluation
Outcomes are discussed in the program evaluation report (PDF 287 KB). Key lessons learned included:
- Awareness of the biosphere reserve was low — 68% of respondents were not previously aware of the biosphere reserve.
- Interest in the biosphere reserve was strong — 50% of respondents were interested in joining the foundation.
- Interest in accreditation services was strong — 42% of respondents were interested in being contacted by businesses offering assistance in environmental accreditation, management systems and audit services.