Home Property Australia Release of Reef 2050 Long-Term Sustainability Plan

Release of Reef 2050 Long-Term Sustainability Plan

  • March 25, 2015

Release of Reef 20 Long-Term Sustainability Plan

The Commonwealth and Queensland governments recently released the Reef 20 Long Term Sustainability Plan. The Plan looks to address the challenges the Reef faces now and into the future.

The report outlines the Queensland Government’s commitment to ensuring that development in the Great Barrier Reef coastal zone occurs in an ecologically sustainable manner.

This includes:

  • Strengthening vegetation management laws to protect remnant and high value regrowth native vegetation (including riparian zones)
  • Strengthening coastal planning laws based on the best available science, making allowance for expected sea level rise, protecting ecologically important areas such as wetlands and prohibiting development in high-hazard greenfield areas
  • Ensuring ecologically sustainability regulation of water extraction in catchments leading to the Great Barrier Reef.

Recently, Natural Resources and Mines Minister Dr Anthony Lynham reassured stakeholders that the current vegetation management practices will remain in operation, and there will be no rushed changes to the Vegetation Management Act. Minister Lynham’s media statement can be found here.

The Property Council has raised serious concerns about the reintroduction of the former Labor Government’s Queensland Coastal Plan as it has the potential to devastate job generating development projects. The repealed Queensland Coastal Plan diminished the property rights of up to 10% of property owners across Queensland.

The report details more than a hundred major actions. Below are the actions that have the most potential to affect the property industry:

Ecosystem health – actions

EHA20 – Strengthen the Qld Government’s vegetation management legislation to protect remnant and high value regrowth native vegetation, including in riparian zones.

EHA23- Implement coastal planning laws based on the available science, which take into account expected sea level rise, protect ecologically significant areas such as wetlands, prohibit new development in high-hazard greenfield areas and protect the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.

EHA24 Work with local councils to build their capacity to effectively implement coastal planning laws and policies to protect the Reef.

Water Quality

WQA12 – Implement best practice stormwater management (e.g. erosion and sediment control water sensitive urban design and capture of gross pollutants) for new development in coastal catchments

WQA13 Build capacity for local government and industry to improve water quality management in urban areas.

Community

CBA5 – Ensure Community benefits derived from the Reef are considered in local and State-level policy and planning instruments and development and management decisions.

CBA6 – Establish and adopt standards to report on condition and trend of aesthetic values of the reefs, islands and coasts.

CBA7 – Ensure the aesthetic values of the reefs, islands and the coast are considered and protected through planning, and development decisions.

While there is no detail behind the actions an overarching implementation strategy for the Plan will be prepared by May 2015. Specific implementation plans will then be finalised from mid-2015.

The Property Council will monitor the implementation of the report and continue to engage directly with the Queensland Government on the actions impacting the property industry.