2018-08-07 P&E Agenda - Attachment 1 to Item 3 - Noosa Biosphere Reserve 10 Year Periodic Review

                                                                    Noosa Biosphere Reserve - Periodic Review 2018




USC/ NSC - Environmental Work Placement Program
The NSC has commenced a joint work placement program with the USC Engineering and Science
Faculty. The students’ coursework or research programs helps to provide data and information to
Council staff to inform environmental management programs. Current projects include a Bird of Prey
monitoring and conservation program, a Bushland Reserve weed mapping project, the production of an
environmental induction program and the development of Geographical Information System mapping
layer that links to ecological data and information.

NDL Programs
Environmental workshops
Environmental consultancy
Training programs
Native plant nursery and advisory program (free advice to the public)
Weed management
Riparian vegetation projects
Koala projects
Kin Kin planting and carbon offset projects
Waterwatch program

Department of Environment & Science
Private landholder Nature Refuge program
NRM and recreation management of the Great Sandy, Noosa, Tewantin, Woondum and Tuchekoi
National Parks.

University of Sunshine Coast (USC)
Environmental Work Placement Program (partnership with NSC)
Koala Health Mapping project – training ‘sniffer’ dogs to detect koala scats
BBTF project – manufacture and monitoring of artificial oyster reefs.

4.3   Links between conservation activities and sustainable development issues

Conservation activities are largely statutory and managed through legislation and the Noosa Plan which
controls land use activities in the biosphere reserve.

The NBR has benefited over the past decade from a strong commitment by both the NSC and the local
community to conservation of the environment. Unlike other parts of Queensland, land clearing has
been minimal (approximately 122 ha). The Noosa Shire retains strict policies on development zones,
retention of natural vegetation corridors and building heights. The Council has a development strategy
of low-rise development nodes interspersed with waterways and areas of natural bushland. This has
had a significant impact on the urban environment and has limited development that is ‘out of scale’ with
the natural environment. Other local government areas adjoining the NBR are developing rapidly, as the
population across the Sunshine Coast region is set to be more than half a million by 2036.

Sustainable living

The Noosa Plan - Noosa Shire’s town planning scheme - provides a strong regulatory framework to
ensure design principles of sustainable development continue into the future. The Noosa Plan has
established a population ‘carrying capacity’ for the Shire – an optimum population that can live
sustainably within the Shire. This is a unique policy position for local government throughout Australia,
                                                                       30
although there are renewed calls for a national population policy . The Noosa Plan also confines
development to specific zones, thereby protecting ecologically-important areas such as core habitat and
vegetation corridors.

The Noosa Plan has specific provisions to protect and enhance biodiversity through:
•     A confined urban footprint
•     Shire-wide tree protection provisions
•     An extensive vegetation network protected by the Biodiversity Overlay and Riparian Buffer to
      protect waterways

30 https://theconversation.com/australia-doesnt-have-a-population-policy-why-78188 (accessed 3/5/18)



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