Front counter duty planner service will only be available between 11am-3pm on Tuesday 22 September 2026. If you need to speak to a planner before 11am please contact our Customer and Business Services Team on 6655 7300 to leave a message and a planner will return your call as soon as possible.
On 27 March 2019 Bellingen Shire Council declared a climate emergency. The declaration recognises that our Shire is being affected by climate impacts, particularly increasing sea level rise, bushfires, heat waves, severe storms, drought and floods and serves as a call to take urgent action in rapidly reducing our carbon emissions and responding to the threat of climate change.
As part of the declaration Council prepared and adopted three key documents.
Our Climate Emergency Response Framework provides the context for the climate emergency and Council’s overall vision and approach to the crisis.
Read the Climate Emergency Response Framework(PDF, 2MB)
Our Corporate Carbon Plan sets ambitious targets including:
and provides a framework of how Council will achieve these targets.
Council's original Corporate Carbon Plan(PDF, 3MB) was adopted in 2019. Since then Council has achieved its 2030 emission reduction target five years ahead of schedule. In the 2024/25 financial year Council achieved a 58% reduction in fuel and electricity emissions compared to its baseline year of 2009/10. Council has now adopted an updated Corporate Carbon Plan 2025-2030(PDF, 10MB) outlining further opportunities to reduce emissions.
In 2024 Council was recognised for its significant achievements in action on climate change by being awarded the Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Award (Population Category B) at the 2024 Keep Australia Beautiful NSW Tidy Towns Sustainability Awards.
Our Community Climate Action Plan maps out Shire-wide initiatives taking place to reduce the community’s emissions and adapt to climate change.
Read the Community Climate Action Plan(PDF, 2MB)