Let’s Ask: Green responsibility

Australians are increasingly making ethical and environmental choices in their day-to-day lives. Lake Macquarie is among the cities leading the charge.

We asked locals what they were doing to help protect the environment to see what’s happening at street level.

 Ellie and Zac, Regal Wraps and Regal Honey, Belmont South

“We are a family of beekeepers producing local honey with hives hosted in backyards across Lake Macquarie. We discovered that the by-product of our harvests – beeswax – was a game-changer for cutting out plastic wrap and reducing our food wastage. We love using them in our household and that we are teaching our children to think about their plastic use and help the environment.”

Gian, Charlestown

“I live in Georgetown and work in Charlestown as a mechanical engineer. For the past year or so I’ve been riding my bike to work. It’s a much better way to get around instead of driving a car when I’m the only one in it..”

Elise, Lake Macquarie Free Range Eggs, Dora Creek

“We constantly strive to improve our processes to ensure we have minimal impact on the environment. We use only 100% recycled, Australian-made egg cartons, solar panels on both of our farms and two large recycling bin services on-site to recycle all of our cardboard and plastic waste.”

Gabby, Lake Mac Repair Cafe, Warners Bay

"Lake Mac Repair Cafe is a free, fun and informative meeting place where people come together to repair and give a new lease of life to their stuf. We want to encourage a circular economy, reduce waste to landfill and share valuable and practical skills of how to fix things – many of which are being lost over time."

Fiona, Belmont

“I try and pick up some rubbish each morning when I’m walking my dogs around the oval. It’s just a matter of trying to keep the place clean which is really important to me.”

Drew and Joel, Awaba Public School, Awaba 

“We grow our own fresh herbs, veggies and fruit, so when we cook at school we don’t have to buy as much food at the supermarket. We have four bins in the playground – one for food scraps, another for soft plastics, one for recyclables and a red bin for general waste. We have solar panels, native Australian bees that pollinate our plants, water tanks, light monitors and a big green heart.”

Paul, Warners Bay Community Garden, Warners Bay

"Our members help protect the environment by encouraging people to grow food in a sustainable way, educating them on ways to grow without harmful fertilisers or chemicals, fostering a sharing-not-wasting mindset across the community, and demonstrating use of composting techniques to alleviate more landfill material."