EUROBODALLA RURAL LANDS STRATEGY INCEPTION MEETING PRESENTATION - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
EUROBODALLA RURAL LANDS STRATEGY INCEPTION MEETING PRESENTATION INTRODUCING THE GBPS TEAM Garret Barry Over 40 years in planning and development Previous Director of Planning and Development 8 years private practice Managing Director
Garret Barry
Over 40 years in planning and development Previous Director of Planning and Development 8 years private practice Managing Director GBPS Rural reviews for Bega, Palerang and Wellington Part-time beef farmer with 120 breeders Garret will personally coordinate all aspects of the consultancy
Stig Virtanen
Over 20 years’ experience as a land use planning consultant Extensive work with Local Government Rural land review for Bega Valley and Palerang Shires Experienced in community consultation Past work in the Eurobodalla Shire (ESC and NPWS) Successful tourism and hospitality manager Stig will work across all Strategy tasks in association with
Garret
PhD Economics A long standing interest in small business and regional
communities
Has previously assisted Council with urban economic assessments He has developed several programs for stimulating small rural and
regional businesses
He has prepared a range of economic development strategies for
Local Government in SE NSW
Kim will develop the Economic Direction Paper
Roland Breckwoldt
Qualifications in agriculture, geography, sociology. Qualified in
Wide experience in land and water management from beef
livestock officer to advisor on environmental policy at Federal level
Has served as a Local Government Councillor and a member of a
PP Board
Significant involvement in Indigenous land and water management
programs across Australia
Author of several books relating to land use issues Roland will produce the Agricultural Directions Paper
Stacey Stephens
Qualified town planner with 15 years experience in planning,
development and marketing
Has worked for property development companies and planning
consultants
Currently part-time employee of GBPS Stacey will provide background support and research for the
Strategy
Leanne Jackson
Leanne is a planning drafter with approximately 30 years
experience.
She has worked as a planning GIS officer in Local Government
and part-time for GBPS for 8 years.
Leanne is proficient in Mapinfo software and will coordinate
map production for the Strategy
Michelle Wutzke
Over 25 years of project management experience in both the
public and private sectors in the fields of information technology and human resources
M.B. Secretarial Services was established in 2007 and provides
worldwide
Award-winner for Service Excellence 2013 Wagga Wagga
Business Chamber
Michelle will provide secretarial, proofing and research
support for the Strategy
2011-2012: New LEP exhibited including proposals for placement of rural
lands in various zones available under the State wide template
These zones included RU1, RU3, RU4, RU5, R5, E1, E2, E3, E4, W1 and W2 Following various concerns raised in the exhibition, the lands proposed for
zoning E3 were deferred and retained their zoning under LEP 1987
Council resolved to prepare a strategy to guide the long term use of rural land
in the Shire, including resolution of appropriate zoning for the deferred areas
The Strategy development would follow a 9 stage process: (1) Background
research, (2) Establish Steering Committee, (3) Develop terms of reference,(4) Develop Community Engagement Strategy, (5) Develop rural lands issues paper, (6) Develop Social Analysis of Eurobodalla Report, (7) Develop Rural Opportunities and Constraints Study, (8) Develop Policy Directions Paper, (9) Develop Rural Lands Strategy.
We are currently in the final stage
State Policies
SC Regional Strategy SC Regional Conservation Plan Planning Legislation SEPPs
Past and Current ESC Planning
Settlement Strategy 2006 LEP 1987 LEP 2012 DCPs and Codes Community Strategic Plan Economic Development and Employment Lands Strategy 2011
State Changes
North Coast E Zone Review Review of Biodiversity Legislation New Planning Act New Regional Growth Plans
Strategy Preparation Documents so far
Community Engagement Strategy
See Draft Community Engagement Plan
Rural Lands Issues Paper 2013 Opportunities and Constraints Report Policy Workshops Report Draft Policy Directions Paper
A requirement to consider when making new plans State intention to replace with regional growth plans Very broad regional level strategies e.g. rural
Consolidate existing settlements/minimise new settlements Protect quality natural environments and corridors No new rural residential or fragmentation of agricultural land without a strategy Protect cultural heritage and coastal landscapes
Most people support the principles but little implementation detail and little
monitoring of success to date
Requires consideration when making new plans Elements of this Plan may be amended by the State level reviews under way State wide targets:
By 2015 there is an increase in native vegetation extent and an improvement in
native vegetation condition
By 2015 there is an increase in the number of sustainable populations of a range of
native fauna species
By 2015 there is an improvement in the condition of riverine ecosystems, marine
waters and ecosystems, and estuaries and coastal lake systems
By 2015 there is an improvement in the condition of important wetlands and the
extent of those wetlands is maintained
By 2015 there is an increase in the recovery of threatened species, populations and
ecological communities.
By 2015 there is a reduction in the impact of invasive species
Targets for this region:
By 2016 at least 40,000 additional hectares of the priority native vegetation
communities in the catchment will be actively managed for biodiversity conservation
By 2016 the regional status of key ecological communities and species in the
catchment improved or maintained
Progress on these targets will be researched as part of the Strategy Vegetation mapping: 2006 Tozer et al. regional scale - indicative only and
since improved with input from OEH (see Vol 2 Opportunities and Constraints Report)
“Poorly conserved” vegetation: The plan targets that 30% of vegetation types
that are not currently in reserves or protected by agreements be “managed for conservation”. Most of such vegetation is on private land. The Plan implies such land should be appropriately zoned/managed to protect this poorly conserved vegetation. It suggests such lands be mapped in LEP overlays
Wildlife corridors: The plan identifies a range of important corridors that
should be conserved or enhanced and placed in LEP overlays
LEP 2012 contains Terrestrial Biodiversity Mapping that identifies:
Extant native vegetation Bio corridors Endangered ecological communities
The Plan summarises strategies to “protect, enhance and restore”
landholders and others are regulatory such as suggesting “…areas of validated high conservation value should be protected in new LEP provisions”
The suggested strategies include:
LEP E zoning and use of overlays Biodiversity certification Voluntary agreements Requirements for consent for clearing as in force under the Native Vegetation Act
e.g. PVPs
Catchment management incentives e.g. Eurobodalla Biodiversity Program Further acquisition for reserves
Several of these mechanisms are under review by State Government, and
funding for incentives and agreements has either tightened or moved to new
Fund
Local Government Act 1993 - sets Council’s powers EPA Act 1979 - core planning requirements for turning strategic vision into
land use controls and guidelines. Also requires Councils to carry out their roles as a planning authority
Native Vegetation Act 2003 - approval regime/offsets/PVPs Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995
Lists threatened species, communities and populations, and plans for their
recovery and for threat abatement
Assessment requirements in new zonings and DAs where defined threatened
species are located
Licences needed to destroy Biodiversity certification
There are several SEPPS such as SEPP 14 Wetlands that have specific impacts on rural land but not much in the way of issues to be resolved in the Rural Strategy
SEPP Rural Lands 2008 specifies the following principles to apply in plans:
a)
The promotion and protection of opportunities for current and potential productive and sustainable economic activities in rural areas
b)
Recognition of the importance of rural lands and agriculture and the changing nature of agriculture and of trends, demands and issues in agriculture in the area, region or State
c)
Recognition of the significance of rural land uses to the State and rural communities, including the social and economic benefits of rural land use and development
d)
In planning for rural lands, to balance the social, economic and environmental interests of the community
e)
The identification and protection of natural resources, having regard to maintaining biodiversity, the protection of native vegetation, the importance of water resources and avoiding constrained land
f)
The provision of opportunities for rural lifestyle, settlement and housing that contribute to the social and economic welfare of rural communities
g)
The consideration of impacts on services and infrastructure and appropriate location when providing for rural housing
h)
Ensuring consistency with any applicable regional strategy of the Department of Planning or any applicable local strategy endorsed by the Director-General
SEPP Rural Lands:
Identifies State significant agricultural land – mapping covers ESC. It mostly applies
to the highest quality alluvial flats - mostly class 1 and 2 lands on the DPI system. Any development proposal that affects these lands that is not related to agriculture (such as mining) requires a State level assessment
9 years have seen:
Some of the nearly 60 rural related strategies implemented Some superseded (e.g. changes to legislation regarding how LEPs are made and the
style and role of DCPs)
However many are still of varying relevance for the coming Strategy and as a guide
to rural land use over next 10 to 20 years
Actions needed:
Develop a matrix of achievement of the nearly 60 strategies Research and recommend on those still with potential to implement or borrow
from
This LEP was largely replaced by the 2012 Plan but still applies to the
deferred lands
Most of these deferred lands remain zoned Rural 1(a) (Environmental
Constraints and Agriculture) or Rural 1(a1) (Environmental Constraints, Water Catchment Protection and Agriculture)
The objectives of these zones summarise as:
Limit additional dwellings and prevent subdivision (except for ag purposes) Conserve productive agricultural land Maintain rural land having significant scenic, habitat or other natural or cultural
conservation value
Encourage suitable tourism and recreation facilities Avoid hazards such as bushfire, flooding and slip Provide land for non ag uses where appropriate and compatible with ag
Commenced July 2012 Proposed E3 zones deferred Applies State template zoning basically as follows:
Cleared former 1(a) lands to RU1 Primary Production Some hobby and small farming areas as RU4 Primary Production Small Lots Rural residential areas mostly E4 Environmental Living or R5 Large Lot Residential Wetlands and some water way fringes zoned E2 Environmental Conservation or W1
Natural Waterway
Applies a range of overlay mapping for heritage, biodiversity, lot size,
development in a mapped area
Mostly rolls over the former dwelling and subdivision rules
DCP now a guideline for DAs A new DCP to apply to the rural areas will flow from the Strategy and from
the related aspects of Council’s Strategic Planning Program. The current DCPs
Main current DCP relevant to the rural strategy is Rural Subdivisions - it
applies requirements to the Deferred Lands for DAs proposing rural subdivision
Council also has a number of codes that apply to rural development
applications over the deferred lands:
Advertisement code Coastal hazard adaption code Landscaping code Signage code Soil and water management code Tree preservation code (where NV Act does not apply)
“Eurobodalla has good potential to embrace the growing trend of value
adding to existing agricultural industries and take advantage of growing export demand for niche markets, such as organic food and ‘non-traditional’ processed agricultural products. In addition, the growing trend towards agricultural self-containment as food security issues become more critical will drive the expansion and diversification of the agricultural industry.”
Supporting businesses to respond to local trends and drivers will require
flexible land-use planning policies and a coordinated approach to economic development and land use planning
There will be a need for additional employment land in the medium to long
term, as well as a range of initiatives to foster a more diverse local economy
Economic Development Strategies:
Narrow marketing focus to strategic advantages Link economic development actions to educational, social and environmental
infrastructure
Work closely with businesses in knowledge intensive service sector to help that
sector expand
Actively facilitate innovation across the Shire’s economy
Independent report by Parsons Brinckeroff 2013 The NSW Government has given “in-principle support” (July 2014) to some of
the report’s interim recommendations including:
Setting clear criteria for environmental zones known as E2 and E3 to ensure that
these zonings are based on strong evidence
Allowing grazing and other kinds of extensive farming activity with consent in some
environmental zones and without consent in others
Removing aesthetic value as an objective of the environmental management zone
known as E3
Independent review published December 2014. State yet to implement but
the current Government has made statements that it supports all recommendations
The report makes 43 recommendations including some significant changes to
the biodiversity legislation including:
Repeal of the Native Vegetation Act 2003
Return vegetation planning powers to Councils under the EPA Act. But improve skill base of Local Government and LLS
More voluntary guidelines and codes for local and small scale clearing
Development consent for clearing only to be necessary over defined vegetation and OEH to be resourced to map this
Some private forestry exemptions from the need to have approvals
Expand the biodiversity offsets fund
Regional Conservation Plans to be absorbed into the more general Regional Growth and Infrastructure Plans and to identify land targets for biodiversity certification
Ongoing monitoring of all vegetation at State level but recommends ongoing use of mapping linked to LEPs
Implement the above and other recommendations through a new “Biodiversity Conservation Act”
The proposals for a new Planning Act progressed to the stage of a draft Bill by
end of 2013. However, since then the matter appears to be in abeyance
If the proposals proceed as envisaged in the Bill and discussion papers, the
available options for zoning will change radically and the structure of LEPs and other plans also change
A Rural Strategy remains important but its implementation may be
significantly influenced if, as mooted, the State reactivates the review
A new State hierarchy of plans would replace the current State Plan and plans
like the South Coast Regional Strategy
Eurobodalla lies in the proposed South East and Tablelands Regional Growth
Plan which has yet to be released
Some draft material on the Regional Growth Plan may be provided to Council
to help inform the strategy
OEH has provided the updated vegetation mapping to DPE to inform their
work on the Regional Growth Plan
Objectives
To ensure all stakeholders have opportunities to provide input into all phases of the Rural
Land Strategy
To ensure the preparation of the Rural Lands Strategy occurs in a transparent manner
To effectively manage all risks
To ensure that the community gains a broad understanding of process and outcomes
Guiding considerations
How the outcomes/results of the CES will be used by Council
How the CES will be resourced
How the community will be involved in design of the community engagement process
The community engagement/information techniques
Key stakeholders
Community and stakeholder engagement – phases and methods:
Detailed actions for each of the 5 phases are recommended. We are up to phase 5
A Draft Community Engagement Plan is required for phase 5 - the preparation of the Draft Rural Land Strategy
A copy of our suggested draft Community Engagement Plan has been
circulated and Stig will now provide an overview and we seek your feedback in the 2 weeks after this presentation.
Provides a framework for engaging stakeholders in the final phase of the Rural Lands Strategy.
Engagement mechanisms
Steering Committee meetings Councillor briefings Media and online Liaison with the Project Manager Ongoing engagement with land owners and wider community- exhibitions and
workshops
Draft Rural Strategy Exhibition Events
Special Producers Workshop (27 July) Producers’ forums Regional information session – The ‘Open House’- to be conducted at 7 locations Ongoing engagement with land owners Review feedback Use of media and online communications
Rural community:
Ageing farmer population and general population Smaller households How much growth to the rural area? Expectations on private landowners to address environmental management
Rural Economy:
Falling real returns for commercial agriculture Local food potential More diversity in rural economy Poor employment growth prospects in traditional primary industry
Rural environment:
Planning for climate change Value of and protection for native flora and fauna Environmental volunteers
Rural legislation - (controls issues discussed previously)
10 major categories of opportunity and constraint. Strategy will develop
solutions for constraints and ideas to progress opportunities, where practical.
Rural economy: Opportunities - broadband, in-migration of skills and capital,
latent tourism, protect prime lands. Constraints - limited commercial land, infrastructure limitations, divergence of views.
Legislation: Opportunities - Rural Strategy 20 year vision, State changes.
Constraints - complexity, costly regulation.
Ag industry: Opportunities - value adding, farm tourism, horticulture, rural
aggregation cost prohibitive, changing demographics - lifestyle replacing commercial, transport costs and infrastructure.
Aquaculture: Opportunities - value add to tourism, quality branding.
Constraints - protecting water supply and quality, costly to expand.
Rural tourism: Opportunities - nature/food and farm stay potential, grow off season market. Constraints - protecting amenity of resource, infrastructure limitations (e.g. airport), seasonality.
Forestry: Opportunities - possibly some more private plantation and selective harvesting, value add to timber, focus on high value timbers. Constraints - environment v right to harvest, infrastructure limitations.
Other rural industry: Opportunities - secure extractive deposits, equine industry shows growth. Constraints - data limitations, maintaining amenity, skills shortages.
Rural living: Opportunities - natural growth and capacity, housing choice, niche commercial growth. Constraints - Coastal strip pressure, reduce commercial gross
Rural environment: Opportunities - improve private conservation, alternative economic land uses e.g. tourism. Constraints - development pressures both rural living and commercial, expectations on private owners, coastal development pressure.
Natural hazards: Opportunities - improve practices, climate change positives. Constraints – may change production methods and lower production.
Overview of Proceedings: Report on the stakeholder Policy Directions Workshops (June-July 2014) by Danny Wiggins The Workshops A difficult task due to significant opposition to Environmental zoning, participant hostility and concern about process
Two rounds of workshops were held with 5 separate target groups. Common
themes raised:
Private property rights and freedom from government intervention Trust and transparency in government decision making Public/private rights. Unfair for private lands to serve a public purpose Sustainability. Economic, environmental, social?
Policy directions raised
Innovation, diversification and flexibility Support and encourage local food production Mix of farm types and sizes and subdivision policy Prioritise production Public infrastructure Dwelling entitlements Farm viability Education and skills Reduce regulatory burden Native vegetation Rural tourism Rural residential development Forestry Equine industry Extractive industry Addressing constraints and risks Protect environmental values Agricultural land classification Management of public land Private property rights
On exhibition to 27 May. After review of submissions, Council will adopt a final
Encourage Primary Production:
Use RU1 and RU4 to define big and small primary production Mix lot sizes Rural dwellings where impacts acceptable Facilitate diversity and reduce conflicts Apply SEPP Rural Lands
Cut red tape:
Shorten processing times for LEP changes and major DAs Plain English simple directions One LEP Split zoning where landscapes or uses differ Advocate appropriate State changes
Promote and grow rural tourism
Protect the ag, environmental and scenic values that support tourism Promote more across general tourism Rural tourism as value adding for commercial producers Streamline planning guidelines for rural tourism DAs and encourage
Promote sustainable resource use
Facilitate:
Sustainable ag practices Suitable extractive industry Sustainable private forestry Water conservation for urban, ag and aquaculture
Recognise and manage environmental hazards and values
Facilitate:
Conservation of high value vegetation and waterways Accurately map hazards and natural values Local programs to encourage biodiversity protection Advice on preparing for climate change
Support rural residential living
Facilitate development of zoned land and identify extra supply if justified Annual monitoring of uptake and demand characteristics
ABS data on demography and rural use South East Food Plan Federal Government Agricultural Green Paper General review of NSW Council strategies - Wellington, Palerang, Yass, Tweed,
Cooma, Bega and others.
Interstate and overseas experience:
East Gippsland New Zealand UK, Canada, USA
Local Lands Service and its predecessors Research continuing and we invite you to pass on references
We will be obtaining detailed historic ABS data on primary production to be
able to map the past trends
The rural population grew quite strongly between 2001 and 2006 but declined
by 182 people between 2006 and 2011. We need to review why and develop projections based on more historic data and future trend analysis
Area 2011 Population 2001 Population % increase 2001-2011 Eurobodalla Shire 35741 32634 9% Batemans Bay Rural Hinterland 2555 2317 10.3% Moruya Rural Hinterland 2584 2314 12% Narooma Rural Hinterland 2538 2307 10%
High income = $2,500+/week; Low income = less than $600/week 1 in 5 people in the Eurobodalla Shire live in rural areas The Eurobodalla’s rural population is younger than the urban population An ageing Eurobodalla population may impact on the future availability of
labour for agricultural activities
Reducing household size in the Shire may lead to greater demand for rural
lifestyle subdivisions, dual occupancies or secondary dwellings (granny flats)
Indicator Batemans Bay Rural Moruya Rural Narooma Rural Eurobodalla Shire High household income 7.6% 6.9% 5.2% 5.4% Low household income 26.1% 23.6% 28.9% 33%
Objective: growing the regional food economy in South East NSW Strategies and Projects Increase local food production Improve local food supply systems Increase local food consumption
strengthen local producer support network
sustainable production methods
use of the Bega small species abattoir for poultry processing
increasing the availability and use of quality agricultural land
Web App
sell their food through local outlets
regional provedore services
menu challenge
supportive and exciting place to produce, experience and live on sustainably produced food
especially healthy fast food
The Australian Government sees agriculture as one of the 5 pillars of the
economy
The Australian Government is focused on an agricultural policy that:
Increases returns at the farm gate Keeps families as the cornerstone of farming Builds the infrastructure of the 21st Century Creates employment opportunities in agriculture Reduces unnecessary regulation at all levels of government Promotes access to key export markets Focuses on Australia’s competitive advantages Supports strong and vibrant regional communities Maintains access for all Australians to high quality and affordable fresh food
A white paper is being developed with more detailed policy
Seeking access to full paper Projects ag direction in Gippsland for up to 50 years Some transferability to Eurobodalla Includes things like planning for the effects of climate change on local
agriculture and international food impacts
Rural Economic Direction
The principles and assumptions in the strategy to date could benefit from a more
detailed economic review. Dr Kim Houghton and GBPS propose to do more road testing of the economic direction by addressing the following tasks
Recent economic history of the Eurobodalla and wide region rural areas:
ABS employment breakdowns for past 20 years in ESC - with focus on rural
employment
ABS Agricultural Census summaries for ESC for at least 4 past census and summarise
the data and note the trends
A search of ABARE archives for any relevant reports of past 20 years on agriculture
in ESC and wider region, summarise and draw out themes
Rural business location mapping using the Australian Business Register through
the Bugseye Australian Business Atlas
Kim and GBPS to then make economic projections and test various futures for
the Strategy conclusions
Agricultural directions in the South East Roland, supported by GBPS, would expand from the work by Kim on economic
direction to paint a picture of where agriculture might head in the next 20 years:
Roland will provide a candid overview of where agriculture is heading in
summary would form a section of the draft Strategy and be explored further with the community during the exhibition phase
Roland and GBPS will conduct a special rural producers workshop to test developing
theories and get feedback on where many rural businesses see their future
Condense and present past data, issues and policy directions Introduce, analyse and recommend on findings of preliminary work on Rural
Economic Direction and Agricultural Direction in the South East
Summarise issues and options to resolve Recommend rural economic initiatives for Council and others Recommend rural land use initiatives for Council and others Recommend changes in zoning, land use and subdivision for the 20 year vision
that can fit current legislation and State requirements including:
Resolution of deferred areas Reviewing dwelling entitlements Exempt and complying requirements Review overlay mapping
If appropriate, identify bigger change, outside the current system, to lobby
for with other government levels
Present draft strategies based on the 7 policy direction themes Council has
set in the Policy Directions Paper:
Rural production Legislation and policy Rural economic development Rural tourism Natural resources Environmental hazards and values Rural residential development
Much of the legislation and “rules of the game” are in transition The long term futures of agriculture and rural land use generally are difficult
to project.
There are limitations in Council’s role and resources. Some divergence of views in what should be done (not possible to please
everyone)
A history of many planning strategies across NSW failing to have clear
implementation paths or a failure in being monitored for successful and unsuccessful strategies