Martin Fallding
Principal
Land & Environment Planning
PO Box 261
Singleton NSW 2330
lep@calli.com.au
However, local government is ideally placed to implement practical measures to conserve biodiversity, primarily because of its influence over land use and development practices which are directly or indirectly responsible for much habitat loss. Local government represents a key element in the achievement of national and international policies and strategies.
The Biodiversity Planning Guide for Local Government was conceived by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service as a guide to enable biodiversity to be incorporated in strategic planning at the local and regional scale, focussing on local government in NSW. In practice the Guide is likely to be used by councils mainly in preparing local environmental plans and developing strategic programs, but also in providing a context for assessing development projects.
The Guide seeks to improve the integration of ecological and biodiversity considerations in the established legislative land use and management frameworks under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995.
The Guide was commissioned and funded by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service under the NSW Biodiversity Strategy. It was prepared by Land & Environment Planning and Environs Australia: the Local Government Network. The project included extensive consultation with local government. The Guide is broadly supported by NSW government agencies and the project steering committee included representatives of National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Urban Affairs and Planning, Department of Land and Water Conservation, Department of Local Government and Local Government and Shires Associations.
The Biodiversity Planning Guide for Local Government is important because it is written specifically for NSW councils. The Guide:
- demonstrates why local government plays a key role in biodiversity conservation, and provides a comprehensive summary of legislative responsibilities and opportunities.
- considers the broad range of biodiversity, not simply listed threatened species.
- outlines principles for biodiversity plan making which can be used to develop both development and conservation criteria, and can be applied in planning.
- integrates ecological issues in conventional approaches to land use planning.
- highlights the importance of articulating clear objectives and ensuring that regulatory frameworks support these objectives.
- outlines opportunities for integrating a range of incentives with regulatory approaches normally used in plans.
- includes a comprehensive definition of terms intended to enable scientific and ecological terms to be used in statutory instruments and planning documents.
- provides sample plan documents that can be incorporated in local government planning documents, including provisions for LEPs, DCPs, management plans, contributions plans, or RVMPs.
- provides a framework for effective prioritisation of council actions to promote biodiversity conservation objectives, and specific technical guidance to staff who may be unfamiliar with ecological and scientific approaches.
- identifies key steps that local government must take if they are to contribute to biodiversity conservation and the achievement of ecologically sustainable development.
The Guide is likely to provide a framework for future approaches to biodiversity issues by local government in NSW. Therefore, it is important for ecological consultants to be aware of the Guide and to use the resource material contained within it to help support local government in fulfilling its roles. The Guide is expected to be made publicly available by NPWS before the end of 2000 and will be used immediately as a basis for a small number of pilot projects within councils.
