The Joint Organisations Net Zero (JONZA) Grant Program was established by the NSW Government as a capacity-building program to help regional councils reduce their carbon emissions in line with existing corporate commitments as well as NSW’s Net Zero target of 50 per cent reduction by 2030 and net zero by 2050.  

It is delivered by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) Sustainable Councils team to address Council resource constraints through funding full-time employees within JOs/ROCs to lead and coordinate net zero activities for their members and to focus on Council needs and the development of a range of supportive pathways and initiatives.  

The second round of the JONZA program 2024/25 built on the success of the program delivered during Round 1 and is continuing to deliver climate change mitigation initiatives for member Councils across the ISJO region.

The JONZA program was designed to deliver support to Councils to achieve their net zero ambitions by funding a dedicated position at the JO level to facilitate collaboration between member Councils and State Government to coordinate emissions reduction outcomes.

Key deliverables from JONZA 2.0 include:

• Delivery of regional initiatives identified within the Illawarra Shoalhaven Regional Energy Strategy (RES)
• Identification of opportunities to develop waste diversion or reprocessing pilot programs
• Development of regional Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure (EVCI) guidance to support Council readiness and systematic approaches to infrastructure installation
• Identification and development of regional opportunities for procurement of low emission goods and services by Member Councils
• Implementation of a regional Community Renewables Program (CRP) to demonstrate an innovative approach by ISJO Member Councils to support their community net zero journey through increasing uptake of renewable energy technology
• Embedding of Regional Resilience Integrated Planning and Reporting (IP&R) Framework within Council structures
• Collaborative work with member councils to promote the standardisation of corporate emissions reporting
• Piloting of a regional standardised community emissions reporting framework and monitoring application
• Development of regional grant applications aligned with strategic net zero initiatives.
• Collaborative development of net zero initiatives and frameworks through the JONZA Network and adapt outcomes for delivery in the ISJO region.

EVCI on Public Land – Leading Practice Framework 

The DCCEEW Net Zero Transport team provided additional funding to the ISJO through a variation to the JONZA program to specifically deliver activities which support a regional approach to the delivery of electric vehicle charging infrastructure (EVCI) on public land.

A significant gap that exists within Council initiatives towards delivering EVCI on public land is the inconsistency in internal processes for evaluating suitable locations for EV chargers and variable internal capacity across Councils to effectively coordinate the delivery of EVCI.  The ISJO has used the funding from DCCEEW to appoint a consultant to deliver a Leading Practice Framework designed to address this gap and enhance Council capability to facilitate EVCI on public land.  

The ISJO and broader JO network recognised our member Councils would benefit from a framework for developing EVCI policy and process aimed at building internal capabilities within Councils. The framework will be designed to be adaptable for various Council departments, providing a consistent methodology that all Councils can use to manage the entire lifecycle of EVCI projects.

The practice framework will enhance Council capability approaching EVCI by:

• Standardising evaluation processes by providing clear criteria and procedures for assessing suitable site locations for EVCI on public land
• Build on internal capacity and knowledge, offering resources to increase the knowledge and skill set of Council staff to manage EVCI projects
• Streamlining workflow coordination by establishing efficient workflows and communication between internal and external stakeholders to improve coordination of EVCI installations
• Identifying leading practices to engage communities and gather input for effective EVCI site selection
• Promoting consistent implementation procedures by creating leading practice tools.

The EVCI Leading Practice Framework is currently under development with consultation from Council participants from across the State-wide JO network to help best identify the key issues councils face when encountering the EVCI rollout.