Interim Conservation Areas for Wyong Shire
Development Control Plan No. 13

Part 2 - Environmental Planning Criteria

2.1 Environmental Planning Criteria which are to be Applied to Lands Under Investigation for Conservation Potential

The following criteria shall apply to the determination of any development application which is proposed within lands which are identified as occurring within "potential conservation investigation areas". A range of physical, ecological and threatened species constraints may exist within these affected areas. Some locations may also contain wildlife corridors or possess regenerative potential.

Wyong Shire Council is in the process of conducting environmental investigations over large parts of the Shire, in order to develop a conservation strategy. To ensure that various land use options are not foreclosed by premature development decisions, specific criteria have been developed to evaluate the impacts of proposals within potential conservation areas. The environmental performance criteria outlined in Section 2.2 identify the environmental outcomes which must be satisfied by development proposals.

2.2 Purpose: to establish whether the land contains or is likely to contain species, communities, populations or critical habitat which is listed on the threatened species conservation act, 1995.

i. Ensuring that impacts on threatened species, endangered ecological communities, populations or critical habitat are assessed in full compliance with the Threatened Species Conservation Act, 1995 and all surveys are conducted in accordance with Council's Flora and Fauna Guidelines for Development and any other Council guidelines for threatened species.

ii. Ensuring that significant impacts on any threatened species, populations and critical habitat within the context of Section 5A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, 1979 are effectively managed until such time that specific conservation strategies are implemented.

2.3 Purpose: to ensure that native vegetation, corridor linkages or those which may contribute to the provision of a link in the future are not affected by premature development decisions.

i. To retain, enhance and provide ecologically sustainable fauna habitats and corridors.

ii. To ensure that areas identified on the map do not experience any significant fragmentation by roads, subdivision or other forms of development which will diminish the conservation values and potential for fauna movement.

iii. To Incorporate measures to avoid fragmentation of vegetation in natural areas by roads, tracks, service utilities and the like.

iv. Ensure that bushland fragments which occur within potential conservation areas are not reduced in size. Length to width ratios of bushland fragments should not be substantially increased.

v.To ensure that land which has the potential to be augmented or rehabilitated to form critical wildlife linkages between bushland fragments is not affected by pre-mature development decisions.

vi.To ensure that no additional clearing of native vegetation occurs to provide pasture for stock or animals in any of the areas affected by this policy.

2.4 Purpose: to ensure that development decisions facilitate biodiversity conservation and that appropriate restoration strategies are adopted.

i. To ensure that fauna habitat attributes are retained. In particular, old trees with hollows (both living and dead) and a diverse vegetation structure which maintains the diversity of understorey vegetation.

ii. Applying the principle of no-net loss to any proposals which will result in the removal of native vegetation. Where compensatory habitat is provided, rehabilitation strategies shall aim to ensure that new plantings take on the floristics and structure of the land where habitat removal is proposed to occur. Compensatory habitat should be provided on the basis of a 1:4 cleared/restored ratio.

iii. Ensuring that restoration or landscaping works associated with developments in conservation investigation areas only use plants grown from local seed.

iv. Ensuring that all activities and development proposals are to implement design measures and management strategies to act upon the processes causing weed invasion of bushland areas.

v. Ensuring that weed control techniques are undertaken in a manner which minimises negative environmental effects.

vi. Ensuring that landscaping proposed in association with development proposals provides habitat for an appropriate range of native fauna through the use of native plant species.

vii. Retaining and enhancing natural links between bushland areas to facilitate dispersal of genetic material and fauna movement.

2.5 Purpose: to protect lands which have a direct association through physical or ecological processes with wetlands, creeks and riparian areas.

i. Ensuring that natural hydrological processes are maintained. Natural vegetation and flow regimes are to be maintained to ensure creek line stability and protect the health of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

ii. Maintaining natural flows by minimising increases in the volume of stormwater discharged into natural wetland and riparian plant communities.

iii. Retaining native vegetation to promote bank stability and ensuring that accelerated bank or bed erosion does not occur.

iv. Ensuring that vegetation along riparian areas and creeks is retained to link vegetated land to other vegetation linkages and bushland patches.

v. Ensuring that the removal or disturbance of vegetation will not result in significant changes to wetland or riparian vegetation as a result of sedimentation, runoff flow or bank stability.

vi. Ensuring that vegetation or cleared lands which could potentially provide a buffering capacity to natural wetlands and riparian vegetation are retained.

2.6 Purpose: to establish whether the land makes a significant contribution to the landscape and amenity of the local area or contains items of cultural significance to the locality.

i. To ensure that the visual and landscape functions of the site are properly investigated.

ii. To ensure that development proposals make a positive contribution to the environment and local amenity.

iii. To consider the impact on items of heritage or cultural significance that might result from any alteration to the context or setting of the site.

Click here to return to the Development Control Plan 13 index page.

Click here to return to the Development Control Plan index page.

Page last updated: 04/03/2002