Biodiversity Strategy - Gosford City Council - NSW Government

provides a range of mechanisms for integrating and funding biodiversity conservation outcomes
and categories for identifying regionally significant lands.
The conservation assessment determined that the current level of formal protection in national
parks and COSS reserves within the region did not meet the lowest conservation scenario of
15% (LHCCREMS 2003). Further, that half of the 58 communities mapped within the region did
not meet this most basic conservation requirement (JANIS criteria). Critical areas identified were
the Hunter Valley and Coastal Plains. These are where vegetation communities associated with
flat fertile environments conflict with coastal development zones. The authors concluded that
the communities are “largely cleared, poorly reserved and continue to face significant
development pressures”. The authors identified several priority areas for further investigation, in
the Gosford LGA these being Erina Creek, Somersby, and Somersby Plateau Gullies.
A - 2.3
Local Government role and responses
A - 2.3.1
Local Government Role
Council’s charter under the Local Government Act 1993 includes the following:
• to properly manage, develop, protect, restore, enhance and conserve the
environment of the area for which it is responsible, in a manner that is consistent
with and promotes the principles of ecologically sustainable development, and
• to have regard to the long term and cumulative effects of its decisions.
The concept of Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) is a key one for biodiversity
management. It includes the following principles:
1. The precautionary principle (lack of full scientific certainty should not be used as a
reason for postponing measures to prevent environmental degradation).
2. Inter-generational equity (the present generation should ensure that the health,
diversity and productivity of the environment is preserved and enhanced for future
generations.
3. Conservation of biological diversity and ecological integrity.
4. Improved valuation, pricing and incentive mechanisms (environmental factors to be
included in the valuation of assets and services). (Ferrier 1999).
Other legislation such as the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act
1999 and various State Acts also prescribe the roles and responsibilities of councils to conserve
biodiversity in their local area, including its roles in managing public lands, assessing and
regulating development, project development (such as roads and other infrastructure and
landuse planning) and pollution controls.
Key documents including the National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia's Biodiversity
and the National Local Government Biodiversity Strategy recognise that local government has
an important part to play in biodiversity conservation. For example, the Department of
Environment and Heritage states that: “Of all tiers of government within Australia, councils have
the greatest opportunity to interact directly with the community. This gives local government the
opportunity to show leadership within the community, and to offer vital support and
encouragement to local land and property owners to conserve native flora and fauna.”
(http://www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/toolbox/localgov.html)
Biodiversity - Technical Report Page 43