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ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE

Under Part II of the FOI Act, IBA must publish information for the public as part of the Information Publication Scheme. IBA’s Information Publication Scheme Plan is available on IBA’s website, as is the information IBA has published in accordance with the scheme’s requirements.

ECOLOGICALLY SUSTAINABLE APPROACH

IBA is committed to the principles of ecologically sustainable development as outlined in section 3A of the EPBC Act.

IBA recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s unique relationship to the land, sea and waterways and seeks and adopts innovative approaches so that ecological processes are maintained in a rapidly changing business environment, safeguarding the environmental welfare of future generations.

IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT

The main contribution to IBA’s impact on the natural environment is corporate operations, including administration and property management.

In 2019–20, IBA aimed to conduct operations in a manner which minimised its environmental impact, as shown at table 6. Upgrades in hardware contributed to an estimated 30% reduction in power use in targeted offices, and further reductions are expected due to the cloud environment. IBA’s Sydney, Perth, Brisbane and Canberra office buildings have a National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERS) rating of 3.5 or more.

IBA set up a Sustainability Committee in 2020 to decrease the impact that IBA’s operations have on the environment. The committee put together their capability statement and started to create plans of action including a “Green Recovery Plan”. The objective of the committee is to identify the social, environmental and financial opportunities that will assist the agency in decreasing its environmental footprint and align the initiatives developed with cost effective opportunities. The first initiative of the committee was to reduce the printing impacts of our significant corporate documents including corporate plan and annual report with availability of both documents online.

As part of IBA’s commitment to professional development in this area, a staff member received funding to complete Cambridge University’s Sustainability Management Short Course, focused on global business development and sustainability.

In response to COVID-19, during the period February to June 2020 we reduced our greenhouse emissions via a significant reduction in travel. We also found online solutions for tasks such as signing forms which has reduced printing and paper waste.

TABLE 06: IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT

Area of impact

Measures and results

Energy

Estimated 30% reduction in power use since IBA swapped two desktop monitors for a larger one. Brisbane and Sydney offices moving to new energy efficient screens. Old items will be recycled or resold to benefit Indigenous social enterprises.

IBA’s four major tenancies in Canberra, Sydney, Perth and Brisbane are in buildings with Energy (NABERS) ratings of 3.5 to 5 stars.

IBA’s largest tenancy building in Canberra is currently certified as a 5-star, Green Star Building and registered with the Green Building Council of Australia. This building has been engineered to enhance its environmental performance, with measures including:

  • tri-generation technology
  • black water recycling
  • rainwater collection
  • solar powered hot water
  • energy-efficient movement sensors and T5 lighting

Water

IBA tenancies are fitted with water-saving fixtures where possible, including sensor taps, half size dishwashers, dual flash toilets and monition sensor urinals. IBA staff are encouraged to implement strategies to save water, such as ensuring dishwashers are full before use.

Waste

IBA is committed to reducing landfill by cutting back paper use and encouraging recycling.

Measures to reduce paper use across IBA include:

  • adopting of Major Office Machines Arrangement II practices, such as applying active sleep, default duplex and grey scale mono settings
  • multifunction printers which require employees to scan an IDed access pass to collect printing—encouraging reduced levels of printing
  • old paper files scanned and stored and staff trained to use digital records management over paper files
  • online signing of documents to reduce printing

To manage waste more effectively, IBA has segregated streams for general waste, commingled recycling and paper and cardboard recycling.

IBA uses battery, mobile phone and toner cartridge recycling programs to ensure these items do not go to landfill.

Greenhouse gas emissions

IBA provides video conferencing facilities to all 14 office locations for connectivity and to limit staff travel. The introduction of Microsoft Teams makes it easier for staff to connect and conduct meetings online.

Visit

https://www.transparency.gov.au/annual-reports/indigenous-business-australia/reporting-year/2019-20-33