2018-02-06 Planning & Environment Committee Agenda

PLANNING & ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA   6 FEBRUARY 2018




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PLANNING & ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                         6 FEBRUARY 2018

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       3. NEW GRANT ROUND

       We are very excited to report that we began an Expressions of Interest (EOI) process for our next Grants
       Round which closed in September. $330,000 is available made up of $250,000 from the environmental
       levy and $80,000 from the economic development budget.
       To encourage community involvement, we announced a two tier approach for projects less than $20,000
       and those over that amount.

       We have asked that all projects contribute in some way to both “Prosperity and Protection”.
       The response was enormous with 54 applications split pretty evenly between large and small.
       All had a significant leverage for the money requested meeting our target of 2:1.
       A sub-committee of the Board was chosen to judge the entries that avoided any conflict of interest from
       Directors with links to submitters.

       In the end the Grants Committee chose 6 small projects and shortlisted 3 large ones. Details and
       agreements are being finalised with these organisations and we will be in a position to announce shortly.

       4, STRATEGY

       A number of workshops have been held and discussions are taking place to develop an updated Strategy
       for NBRF. One three pronged construct we are looking at suggests that we encourage major projects
       in the Waterways and in the Hinterland and concentrate on improving sustainable living in the major
       population area.

       5. 10 YEAR PERIODIC REVIEW TO UNESCO

       A significant project is in hand to report to UNESCO on the first 10 years of the Noosa Biosphere Reserve
       and the vision for the next 10. An extensive questionnaire has been received and is the required format.
       This is being worked on by our consultant, Kerri Watson, and involves many parties. The strategy work will
       be a significant input and a significant benefit from the process.

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