2018-09-11 Planning & Environment Committee Agenda

PLANNING & ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                            11 SEPTEMBER 2018


7                        CONSERVATION LAND GUIDELINES
DOCUMENT INFORM AT ION




Author                              Principal Environment Officer, Peter Milne
                                    Environment and Sustainable Development Department

Index                               ECM/ Environment Levy

Attachments                         1.    Policy Guideline - Conservation Land
                                    2.    Policy Guideline - Revolving Fund
                                    3.    Policy Guideline - Private Landholder Conservation Partnerships
                                    4.    Fact Sheet – Conserving Land in Noosa Shire



EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Environment Levy Policy provides the head of power for the acquisition of environmentally
significant land and the delivery of the Voluntary Conservation Agreement (VCA) Program. The
Environment Levy Policy requires that high priority land parcels be identified for voluntary
acquisition or the VCA program. Through a mapping methodology the Conservation Land
Guideline identifies high biodiversity value land parcels that help consolidate and connect Core
Protected Areas (CPAs) consisting of National Park, Conservation Park, Nature Refuge and
Bushland Reserves. In addition, the Land for Wildlife (LfW) program supports private land
conservation efforts and is also included in the guideline. In summary, the Conservation Land
Guideline provides the mapping methodology for public and private land conservation programs.
The Revolving Fund and Private Landholder Conservation Partnerships guidelines provide the
framework and additional detail to support the implementation of the Environment Levy Policy
and Conservation Land Guideline.
RECOMMENDATION
That Council note the report by the Principal Environment Officer to the Planning & Environment
Committee Meeting dated 11 September 2018 and adopt:
A.                       The Conservation Land Guideline provided at Attachment 1 to the report, which provides a
                         mapping methodology to support the Environment Levy Land Acquisition Program and
                         Private Landholder Conservation Partnerships Programs;
B.                       The Revolving Fund Guideline provided at Attachment 2 to the report, which provides a
                         framework to implement a revolving fund;
C.                       The Private Landholder Conservation Partnerships Guideline provided at Attachment 3 to
                         the report to guide the Voluntary Conservation Agreement (VCA) and Land for Wildlife
                         (LfW) Programs; and
D.                       The Fact Sheet - Conserving Land in Noosa Shire provided at Attachment 4 to the report.



REPORT
The Conservation Land Guideline provides guidance on the delivery of Council’s voluntary
environmental land acquisition and private landholder conservation partnerships programs.
Consistent with the Environment Levy Policy, the Conservation Land Guideline identifies and
prioritises land parcels of interest that can help consolidate and connect Core Protected Areas
(CPAs). CPAs are large areas of land under conservation protection consisting of National Park,
Conservation Park, Nature Refuge and Bushland Reserve. Noosa Shire has four significant
CPAs (see map 1):

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