Gardens go CarbonZero

Wellington Gardens has been named a Toitu¯ CarbonZero organisation, joining a collection of businesses working together to ensure the future of the environment.

The three-year certification was given to the Wellington Gardens on December 13, and encompassed the Wellington Botanic Garden, Otari-Wilton’s Bush, Truby King Park, and Bolton Street Cemetery.

The process began in September, 2018, when David Sole, the former manager of Wellington Gardens, was motivated by the work of botanic gardens around the world.

Many were advocating for sustainability and proactivity in the face of climate change.

Current manager Rewi Elliot said this was an incredibly significant moment for the gardens and staff who had worked hard to achieve this certification.

The process of becoming CarbonZero was demanding, with the gardens recording all information around energy and consumption across all areas of operation.

‘‘We are really proud to have achieved this certification and are looking forward to seeing more organisations around Wellington do the same,’’ Elliot said.

The focus was on four key areas; reducing waste, energy consumption, travel, and fuel.

Some of the initiatives included reducing energy consumption in glasshouses, and reducing water use.

They reduced waste by removing rubbish bins across the gardens, with the message to visitors, ‘‘What you bring with you, is what you take out with you’’.

‘‘This has encouraged the public to think about their waste and take responsibility for what they purchase and bring with them to our spaces,’’ Elliot said.

They reduced fuel consumption by progressively replacing power tools with electric models. Next on the list was moving the entire car fleet to EV or hybrids as each car came up for replacement.

They also had to carefully select the plants they established, choosing those which needed less chemical pesticides and took less time and effort to maintain.

This way, Elliot said, the gardens staff could put more time into community engagement and education services.

Wellington City councillor Teri O’Neill, the natural environment portfolio lead, said it was important to lead the way for a better collective future for the capital.

‘‘The council itself is Toitu¯ Carbonreduce certified, and continues to look at ways to minimise and manage the impact we have now, and the footprint we leave behind,’’ O’Neill said.

A ceremony will be held within the next fortnight when Toitu¯ will present the award to the Wellington Gardens.