By ANTHONY RADFORD

UNLESS you have been shading yourself from the rain and sun under the proverbial rock in recent months, the phrases ‘emissions trading scheme’ and ‘carbon pollution reduction scheme’ should be quite familiar.

While our politicians fight out an issue that is much bigger and much more important than all of them, and us, put together, the debate has educated the community on at least one level.

The debate has pointed to the complexity surrounding limiting  greenhouse gas emissions and shone a torch on green industry.

While businesses have been going green for decades, companies have arisen that help us reuse, recycle and receive government grants and subsidies.

To navigate through all of this, three local companies have set up and they are taking their expertise to the world.

One of those leading the way is well known environmentalist, environmental engineer and green guru Ian McBurney.

Mr McBurney, who describes himself as an ecological sustainability mentor for government, business, communities and individuals, is one of the city’s best known green pioneers.

He started Bendigo-based firm Live Ecological two-and-a-half years ago after a distinguished career in the waste minimisation, environmental education and sustainability fields.

He has delivered workplace sustainability training to more than 6000 staff from small business to local government and large manufacturing companies such as City West Water, South East Water, Australian Arrow, Bosch Australia and Banyule, Nillumbik and Whitehorse councils and also written and produced environmental educational films, curriculum and books.

Mr McBurney now helps guide big business, local government, small firms and individuals towards ecological sustainability and is also a noted MC, speaker and educator.

His local client list includes well-known Bendigo names such as Jimmy Possum, the City of Greater Bendigo and St Luke’s Anglicare.

Live Ecological has a simple purpose; help businesses and individuals reduce waste and pollution and save energy, water and other resources – and maybe save the planet along the way.

“There are so many reasons for businesses in particular to leap onto the path to sustainability; to save money and make money, increase market share, improve workplace culture, increase productivity, avoid fines, be part of the biggest movement in human history, win awards, feel good … the list goes on,” he said.

Mr McBurney said globally, organisations and individuals were “re-imagining” themselves to exist healthily within the natural systems and cycles of the planet.

“And that’s what I am doing right here in Bendigo, helping to improve businesses and homes to be more liveable, more affordable and importantly, more green,” he said.

Mr McBurney said for most organisations and households, a 30 per cent cost saving could be achieved simply through education.

“By simply educating people about the simple, day-to-day ways to save energy and water, a huge impact can be made,” he said.

In Australia, the average Victorian household spends $1800 on energy bills, produces 12 tonnes of carbon dioxide, uses 365,000 litres of water and produces 490 kilograms of waste.

“A 30 per cent reduction in each is simple to achieve and a 90 per cent reduction in each is possible,” Mr McBurney said.

“Imagine the difference that will make to our world.”

Ben Keogh manages Castlemaine-based company Australian Carbon Traders.

He designed the Landcare CarbonSMART carbon pool and co-ordinated a significant tree-planting project to offset the carbon dioxide emissions from the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.

Mr Keogh specialises in trading and creating greenhouse gas emission offset projects.

ACT plans tree-planting projects with the specific aims of sequestering carbon, making money for clients, creating environmental benefits and helping to fight climate change.

“Trees are still the only proven and quantifiable method to take carbon from the atmosphere, which is why tree-planting remains a strong focus for carbon traders,” Mr Keogh said.

ACT links firms and individuals wanting to offset carbon with people who grow trees using its purpose-built Australian Forest Abatement Registry on a fee-for-service basis.

The registry has 12 projects listed, with a total of 25,295 hectares.

Bendigo’s newest eco enterprise, Greenstreets – which provides consultancy services and software products to help companies, agencies and government comply with environmental and waste management regulations – moved into its new CBD workspace late last year.

Irishman David Darcy founded Greenstreets in Dublin in 2000, after living in Australia in the 1990s.

While Greenstreets grew to become one of Ireland’s largest environmental consulting firms, he recognised Australian companies faced a similar legislative framework to his clients in Europe.

Bendigo provided a central location to service a growing market across regional Victoria.

“Compliance reporting has placed new costs and obligations on all businesses, diverting their attention away from their core business,” Mr Darcy said.

Predicting the enforcement of more and more environmental regulations into the future, Mr Darcy said the importance of assessing and reporting statistics would only increase.

Greenstreets works with customers to manage their obligations under various regulations, such as packaging and waste.

“Australia’s waste strategy is a mix of legislation and voluntary regulation that encourages and sometimes forces industry and society to reduce, re-use and recover waste from commercial and domestic sources,” he said.

“Greenstreets has developed a new calculation and reporting tool to help reduce the workload associated with compliance reporting and sells software products to assess baseline and on-going statistics in the compliance sector.

“We offer a detailed review of energy, waste, water and transport costs and can help reduce operating costs and improve environmental performance.”