3. Resource efficient

An eco-city uses only what it needs and produces no waste, creating many environmental and economic benefits that contribute to sustainability.

While densely populated cities have intrinsic efficiencies of scale we are only just beginning to understand them as an ecosystem. They currently require an enormous amount of resources to sustain their inhabitants. London for example needs a staggering 125 times its own area to supply the resources to sustain itself ¹ .

Large cities are central to the flow of goods and services, people, and ideas that have enabled global integration and prosperity for many. These flows can also create direct and indirect environmental impacts. We need to understand, measure and monitor these impacts and design new ways to make them more efficient and reduce their ecological footprint to a sustainable level.

Melbourne's high consumption of energy, water, food, materials and natural resources is not sustainable - economically or environmentally. Increased consumption of animal-based, processed and imported foods as well as out-of-season produce has environmental implications. Inefficient appliances, entertainment units, airconditioners and other electrical devices unnecessarily increase the amount of energy and resources used.

Through partnerships with various private and public groups and organisations, Melbourne will become a resource and material-efficient city. To achieve this goal, we will measure and report on our ecological footprint, and develop new ways of living that are less resource-intensive. We will also promote use of backyard and rooftop vegetable gardens, and encourage greater waste reduction, re-use and recycling. The incorporation of waste-management facilities that make it easier for people to reduce waste sent to landfill is also essential.

Goals	Indicators	Outcomes
Reduce household waste in the city.	Tonnes of residential waste generated/year/worker Target: Indicator to be developed Current: to be developed. ² Tonnes of residential waste recycled/year/worker Target: Indicator to be developed Current: to be developed.³	Economic and environmental benefits to householders and the municipality as a result of significant reduction in household waste.
Reduce commercial waste in the municipality.	Tonnes of commercial waste generated/year/worker Target: Indicator to be developed Current: Indicator to be developed Tonnes of commercial waste recycled/year/worker Target: Indicator to be developed Current: Indicator to be developed	Economic and environmental benefits to businesses and the municipality as a result of significant reduction in commercial waste.
Ecological footprint and target Develop a municipal ecological footprint and target including embodied energy and water in the goods and services used within the municipality.	Ecological footprint indicator to be developed	An integrated view of our activities and lifestyles, based on full life cycle thinking about consumer goods and services has resulted in significant reductions in material goods.
Recycling and waste collection more economic Waste collection and processing system is assessed and a system is developed and implemented which is more economic and efficient.	Cost of waste management/year/ratepayer	Waste is collected and managed more economically and more efficiently to reduce waste generation, increasing recycling and reducing costs.
Embodied energy The use of materials and products with high levels of embodied energy is reduced. Embodied energy is the total amount of energy required to transform raw products and materials to their final use (i.e. extract, harvest, process, manufacture, transport, construct and maintain) and must be reduced for life cycle energy and greenhouse gas emission targets be achieved.	Indicator to be developed.	Materials, products and systems used for building and public realm construction, refurbishment and maintenance reflect current best practice in energy conservation through low embodied energy use. Residents of the municipality are able to make informed choices in terms of embodied energy levels when purchasing materials and products.