In 1992, the residential sector accounted for 12 per cent of Australia's total energy use. NSW increased its domestic energy consumption by 80 per cent from 1976 to 1993-94. Australia has a 20 per cent higher fuel use per head than the OECD urban average. Land contaminated by industry is a major resource that rarely gets accounted for properly. The Better Cities program was successful at pioneering techniques in the rehabilitation of contaminated land.
Manufacturing is the greatest source of industrial hazardous wastes in Sydney.
Sydney households reduced their weekly solid waste from 21.6 kg in 1993 to 18.6 kg in 1995. The solid wastes generated by remote communities affect visual and social amenity and in some instances, human health i.e. indigenous Australians. All urban centres in Australia with populations of more than 500,000 people are located on the coastal fringe of the continent and discharge most of their effluent to the ocean and tidal estuaries. Sewage treatment facilities serving smaller settlements generally achieve higher levels of treatment than those serving larger populations, due to difficulties in treating large volumes of sewage.