|
|
Southern
Coastal Management Program Advisory Committee – Wednesday 15 January
2025
Page
1
|
SC24.3 Adoption
of the Lake Conjola Coastal Management Program
HPERM Ref: D24/477320
Department: Environmental
Services
Approver: Bruce
Gibbs, Acting Director - City Development
Attachments: 1. Final
Draft Lake Conjola Coastal Management Program – Full Document (under
separate cover) ⇨
2. Report - Lake Conjola Coastal
Management Program - Public Exhibition Response to Submissions Document (under
separate cover) ⇨
Purpose:
To present to the Southern
Coastal Management Program (CMP) Advisory Committee (the Committee) the Lake
Conjola CMP. The CMP is being presented to the Committee to request its
endorsement for Council to adopt the CMP and for the CMP to subsequently be submitted
to the relevant NSW Minister for certification, and then gazettal (pending
certification).
Summary and Key Points for
Consideration:
The Lake Conjola CMP has been
developed in accordance with the legislative requirements and framework
developed under the Coastal Management Act 2016 (NSW). The development
of the CMP has followed the required staged process and has involved the
consideration of historical studies, completion of additional technical
studies, and extensive consultation with the community and key stakeholders.
The CMP comprises a program of integrated management actions responding to
identified risks and opportunities that are to be implemented over a forward
10-year management timeframe under several overarching strategies. There are 30
management actions to be delivered through Stage 5 (Implementation) of the CMP.
A Business Plan has been
developed that outlines the key components of the funding strategy for the CMP
to implement the management actions, including the cost of proposed actions,
proposed cost-sharing arrangements, and other potential funding mechanisms.
Delivery of the CMP is estimated to cost $12.2 million (2024 dollars) over 10
years, with approximately $4 million of this funding proposed to be coming from
Council.
Following the completion of the
public exhibition of the CMP (25 October to 25 November 2024) (as required
under legislation), the CMP has been finalised and is being presented to the
Committee to gain their support and endorsement before the CMP is presented to
Council to request their adoption. Following this, the CMP is required to be
submitted to the relevant NSW Minister for certification before Council can
gazette the CMP and then commence Stage 5 (Implementation).
|
Recommendation (Item to be determined under delegated authority)
That
the Committee endorse that the Lake Conjola Coastal Management Program (CMP)
is provided to Council for adoption and submission to the relevant NSW
Minister for certification.
|
Options
1. As recommended.
Implications: Endorsing Council’s adoption of
the CMP will support the finalisation and certification of this document, and
subsequent implementation by Council. This CMP provides an integrated and
strategic approach to the management of the Lake Conjola coastal zone
consistent with the objectives of the Coastal Management Act 2016 and
has integrated community feedback following substantial consultation. Once
certified, Council can proceed with the implementation of the identified
management actions to ensure the comprehensive, risk-based management and
mitigation of coastal hazards within the CMP Study Area to meet the needs of
the community.
2. Seek further
modification to the draft Lake Conjola CMP.
Implications: Additional modifications to the draft
CMP, if significant, would require further public exhibition and reporting back
to the Committee and Council. Under such a scenario, additional Council
time and budget would be required for the project team to complete this work,
which would delay the implementation of high priority management actions to
address coastal hazards. This will also place further demands on community
members who have already provided significant input into the development of
this CMP. This project has been funded by the NSW Department of Climate Change,
Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) Coast and Estuary Grants Program
with a fifty percent contribution by Council. Applications for additional
funding and time, if significant, are likely not to be successful due to
several variations already approved on this project and is dependent on
available funding allocations from the NSW State Government and Council.
Background and Supplementary
information
In accordance with the Coastal
Management Act 2016 (NSW) (CM Act), local councils are to prepare CMPs to
meet the objectives of the CM Act. The CMP covers and apply to the coastal zone
of Lake Conjola – as legally defined in the CM Act and the State
Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021 (RH SEPP). The
Study Area for the purposes of the Lake Conjola CMP extends from the entrance
of the lake westward to the tidal limit and 500 metres beyond consistent
with the mapped Coastal Environment Area as prescribed by the RH SEPP.
The Lake Conjola CMP has been
developed in accordance with the CM Act and the staged process for developing
and implementing a CMP, as detailed in the NSW Coastal Management Manual. The
stages completed to support this CMP include the preparation of:
· Stage
1 – Shoalhaven Coastal Management Program Scoping Study: This
included a review of relevant background information, a first-pass risk
assessment, a data gap analysis, and formulation of a plan for the development
of the suite of CMPs covering the Shoalhaven’s coastline and estuaries.
· Stage
2 – Risks, Vulnerabilities and Opportunities: This included a
detailed assessment of the various threats and risks affecting the
environmental, social, cultural, and economic assets and values of Lake Conjola
and resulted in the development of the following reports:
o Lake
Conjola CMP Stage 2: Report A – Environmental, Social & Cultural
Assets and Attributes. Provides a review of the physical and social
attributes and assets within the Lake Conjola catchment, as well as noting the
various pieces of legislation that afford protection to these attributes.
o Lake
Conjola CMP Stage 2: Report B – Threats and Risk Assessment.
Describes the range of, extent, and potential impact of threats posed by
coastal hazards on the attributes, as well as providing initial consideration
of potential mitigation options and actions
o Lake
Conjola CMP Stage 2: Report C – Entrance Processes and Entrance
Management Options. Provides a review of coastal processes and entrance
dynamics, past and current entrance management practices, as well as
consideration of potential options for management of the entrance into the
future.
· Stage
3 – Lake Conjola CMP Stage 3: - Identify and Evaluate Options
Summary Report: This included stakeholder engagement and options
analysis to identify and prioritise coastal management actions that can
effectively address issues and risks, take advantage of new opportunities, and
give effect to the objectives of the CM Act.
· Stage
4 – Lake Conjola Coastal Management Program: This included the
preparation of a draft CMP for public exhibition and the finalisation of the
CMP following the exhibition. This document outlines the identified management
actions and business plan for their implementation over a 10-year period. It is
this document that is being presented to the Committee to endorse
Council’s adoption.
The CMP comprises a program of
integrated management actions that are intended to address key issues, and
harness new opportunities for the management of the Lake Conjola coastal zone.
It outlines specific actions that are to be implemented over a forward 10-year
management timeframe under several overarching strategies for managing the
coastal zone, which include:
· Overarching
Local Government Area (LGA) - Wide Management Actions
· Manage
Foreshore Areas and Bank Erosion
· Improve
Planning and Management Arrangements for the Lake Catchment Area
· Entrance
Management Interventions
· Maintain
and Improve Water Quality
· Protect
and Rehabilitate Estuarine and Riparian Vegetation and Habitat
· Maintain
and Improve Recreation and Amenity.
This has resulted in the
development of a total of 30 management actions to be delivered through Stage 5
(Implementation) of the CMP over the next 10-years.
A Business Plan has been
developed which outlines the key components of the funding strategy for the CMP
to implement the management actions, including the cost of proposed actions,
proposed cost-sharing arrangements, and other potential funding mechanisms.
Delivery of the CMP is estimated to cost $12.2 million (2024 dollars) over 10
years, with approximately $4 million of this funding proposed to be coming from
Council.
Sustainable funding and
financing arrangements for management actions will be established in
consultation with key stakeholders. Funding for management actions may be
gained from various sources, including competitive State and Federal Government
grant programs and Council’s internal funds.
The CMP document is being
presented to the Committee to gain their support and endorsement before the CMP
is presented to Council to request their adoption. Following this, the CMP is
required to be submitted to the relevant NSW Minister for certification before
Council can gazette the CMP and then commence Stage 5 (Implementation).
Internal Consultations
Throughout Stages 1-4 of the CMP
development, internal consultation was carried out within Council. This
included consultations across and within Council Directorates to obtain
feedback on the existing coastal hazards, risks and opportunities within the Lake
Conjola coastal zone, as well as the development and implementation of proposed
management actions. For actions that involve the construction of new or upgrade
of existing Council assets, asset custodians were consulted to ensure
integrated and consistent delivery of works across Council. Internal
consultations will be ongoing throughout the implementation of the CMP.
External Consultations
Throughout Stages 1-4 of the CMP
development, external consultation was carried with a range of representatives
from NSW State Government agencies, adjacent local councils and Non-Government
Organisations. These included:
· NSW
Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW)
· NSW
Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) –
Fisheries
· NSW
Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) – Crown Lands
and Planning
· Transport
for NSW (TfNSW)
· National
Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS)
· State
Emergency Services (SES)
· Local
Land Services (LLS)
· Jerrinja
Local Aboriginal Land Council (LALC)
· Jerrinja
Tribal Group
Consultations were undertaken to
obtain feedback on the existing coastal hazards, risks and opportunities within
the Shoalhaven LGA, as well as the development and implementation of proposed
management actions. Through this process, external entities provided
information to support Council in developing a CMP that meets statutory
obligations for the management of the coastal zone within the CMP Study Area.
Following the completion of the CMP Public Exhibition Period, Council is
currently seeking letters of support from the relevant NSW State Government
agencies listed as supporting agencies within the CMP. These letters are
required for submission of the CMP for certification by the relevant NSW
Minster. To date, all agencies have expressed in principle support for the CMP.
The management actions within
the CMP identify where these external entities have been identified as a
‘supporting partner’ in the implementation of the management
actions. Council will continue to engage with these entities throughout the implementation
of the CMP and to ensure that the relevant legislation under each of their
jurisdictional boundaries is appropriately complied with.
Community Consultations
Stakeholder and community
engagement has been implemented progressively through each stage of the CMP.
The various engagements were coordinated and developed
in line with CMP Engagement Guidelines developed by the NSW State Government
(DCCEEW), the Shoalhaven City Council Community Engagement Strategy, and the
use of the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2)
guidelines. This included engagement with Traditional Owner Groups, local
communities, and public authorities through a range of methods –
including workshops, drop-in sessions, surveys, one-on-one meetings and
interactive online map-based platforms. The draft CMP document outlines the
community consultation process employed throughout the lifecycle of the CMP.
To summarise the feedback
received during Stages 2 and 3 of the development of the CMP a ‘closing
the loop’ summary document was prepared and is available on the project Get
Involved webpage (linked below). The intention of this summary document was
to provide responses to all submissions received on the risks, vulnerabilities
and opportunities identified by the community for the Lake Conjola CMP, as well
as the potential management actions considered for the CMP. The document
outlines how and where feedback had been considered in the development of
management actions as presented in the Stage 4 draft CMP document.
The draft CMP was on public
exhibition from 25 October 2024 to 25 November 2024 to obtain final stakeholder
feedback on the proposed management actions included in the draft CMP.
Council is required under the CM Act to publicly exhibit the draft CMP for a
period of at least 28 days. The draft CMP was placed on public exhibition for a
total of 32 calendar days. The public exhibition process involved:
· Provision of
the document electronically on the Shoalhaven City Council Get Involved webpage
for the project: https://getinvolved.shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au/lake-conjola-cmp and the Documents on
Exhibition section of the Council website.
Other engagement methods deployed during the
Public Exhibition Period included Get Involved page posts and updates,
direct emails to Council community and stakeholder participation lists, and
Council attendance at the Lake Conjola Emergency Management Mini Expo hosted by
the NSW Reconstruction Authority on 19 November 2024.
The following summarises the engagement
achieved throughout the public exhibition process:
· 222
online submissions on the draft CMP through the Get Involved page.
Following the public exhibition
period, the draft CMP has been updated based on the submissions received. A
response to submissions (RTS) has also been prepared and is available as an
appendix to the final CMP (Attachment 2 to this report) outlining how each
submission has been considered in the finalisation of the CMP document.
Policy Implications
The CMP has been prepared in
accordance with the NSW Coastal Management Framework that is governed by the CM
Act. Council has prepared the CMP giving regard to the relevant legislation,
environmental planning instruments and statutory guidelines applicable to the
coastal zone within the CMP Study Area. Furthermore, as part of the CMP
development process, DCCEEW is required to confirm that the CMP satisfies the
objectives of the CM Act and the mandatory requirements for a CMP as set out in
the Coastal Management Manual. DCCEEW has indicated in principle support for
the draft CMP and is currently reviewing the final CMP to confirm that it meets
the objectives of the CM Act and mandatory requirements for a CMP.
The CMP has also been prepared
considering existing Council Policies for the management of the foreshore and
coastal environment including, but not limited to, Council’s Tree
Management Policy (Public Land) (POL21/51), Vegetation Vandalism Prevention
Policy (POL22/24), and the Foreshore Reserves Policy (POL19/76). In addition,
the CMP has been prepared giving consideration to Council’s suite of
CMPs, notably the certified and gazetted Shoalhaven Open Coast and Jervis Bay
CMP, to ensure consistent management of the coastal zone throughout the
Shoalhaven.
The CMP is considered a
‘living document’ that is to be reviewed and updated continually
throughout its lifecycle. A strategic review of the CMP should occur at least
once every ten years to assess the effectiveness of the CMP in achieving its
objectives and to incorporate changes, considering new information, legislative
and policy changes, and improved understanding of the local coastal processes.
Following the certification of
the CMP, existing resolutions from Council meetings relating to coastal
management that have been actioned by Council will be superseded, with the CMP
to become the overarching strategy for the management of the coastal zone
within the Shoalhaven. As outlined above, the CMP has been developed
considering Council’s statutory obligations for coastal management as
outlined with the CM Act, Council’s existing policies relevant to the
coastal environment, best practice coastal management as documented within
State guidelines and literature, as well as the outcomes of extensive
consultation with the community and NSW State Government agencies over the
preceding years. Subsequently, it is considered the CMP should be the primary
mechanism for Council to manage the coastal zone of Lake Conjola in an
integrated and holistic way.
A revised draft Entrance
Management Policy (EMP) for Lake Conjola has been developed as part of the CMP
process, consistent with management action EM1. This draft EMP has been
prepared in consultation with key internal Council and NSW State Government agency
stakeholders including DPIRD – Fisheries, DPHI – Crown Lands,
DCCEEW, and the NPWS. Following the completion and certification of the CMP,
Council will need to prepare a Review of Environmental Factors (REF) to support
the implementation of the revised EMP and obtain the necessary licenses and
permits to operate the EMP. Once this documentation has been prepared and
endorsed, the revised EMP will become the primary policy for the management of
the entrance of Lake Conjola.
Financial Implications
The CMP has been prepared by
Council with funding assistance received from NSW DCCEEW through a Coast and
Estuaries Grant. This grant funding has provided a fifty percent contribution
from the NSW State Government for the completion of the CMP. Delivery of the
CMP is estimated to cost $12.2 million (2024) over 10 years, with approximately
$4 million of this funding to come from Council, which will be subject to
inclusion in the long-term financial plan.
Following the certification of
the CMP, Council will be eligible to apply for grant funding for the
implementation of management actions through the DCCEEW Coast and Estuaries
Implementation Stream Grants. This funding has been specifically created to provide
a two-to-one funding ratio for actions within a certified CMP. This grant
funding program is contestable, prioritised to Council applications with
certified CMPs and subject to NSW State Government funding priorities and
allocations. However, the availability of these funding opportunities provides
a clear indication of the financial benefits a certified CMP provides to
Council for the implementation of the management actions identified through the
CMP.
Risk Implications
Consideration of Risk in the
CMP process
A First Pass Risk Assessment was
completed in the Stage 1 Scoping Study for the Shoalhaven CMPs. This provided a
high-level assessment the various issues, vulnerabilities, and opportunities
affecting the Lake Conjola coastal zone. The risk assessment was further
refined in Stage 2 of the CMP and included an updated and detailed risk
assessment of coastal hazards. This involved identifying and assessing risks
and benefits to environmental, social, and economic values across the
coastline, with the aim of informing the development of management options in
Stages 3 and 4.
The risk-based framework applied
in Stage 2 involved the completion of a two-step methodology including:
· Qualitative
Threat-Based Risk Assessment
o An
outcome-based approach that reflects the interests of the
community and agencies and enables consideration of catchment wide issues that
may impact on many assets and attributes.
· Quantitative
Asset-Based Risk Assessment
o An output-based
approach that reflects the interests of Council asset managers and enables
consideration of factors impacting on each asset so that accurate forward
planning for asset improvement / renewal / removal can be undertaken.
The threat-based risk assessment
considered a wide range of threats and the hazards they present. The potential
impact of these threats was evaluated for several key interconnected risk
assessment themes, comprising public safety, infrastructure, environmental, and
public amenity. The broad indicative control measures identified against each
risk were used as the basis for further prioritisation and refinement of
management actions in Stage 3 of the CMP process.
As required by the CM Act, the
key risks and threats have been considered over a range of timeframes,
including the present day, as well as future planning horizons 20 years, 50
years, and 100 years – to account for future climate changes impacts, and
the impacts of population growth and future development on the coastal zone.
Risk of not adopting the
recommendations of this report
Additional modifications to the
draft CMP, if significant, would require further public exhibition of the draft
document and reporting back to the Committee and Council. Under such a
scenario, additional time and budget would be required for the project team to
complete this work, which would delay the implementation of high priority
management actions. This project has been funded by the NSW DCCEEW Coast and
Estuary Grants Program with a fifty percent contribution by Council.
Applications for additional funding, if significant, are likely to be not
successful due to several variations already approved on this project and is
dependent on available funding allocations from the NSW State Government and
Council.
