Committee will focus on waters around the Peninsula
Management plans for the waters around the Peninsula will be the main focus of a new Catchments and Coast Committee for Brisbane Water and Gosford Lagoons, which held its held its first meeting on June 21.
The role of the committee will be to advice Central Coast Council on the sustainable management of its coastal, estuarine, waterways, catchment and flood liable areas.
The Committee recommended to Council that Mayor Cr Jane Smith be appointed as chair.
It also recommended that Council staff write to the NSW Office and Environment and Heritage inviting them to have two non-voting representatives as regular committee members - one for environment management and one for floodplain management.
The meeting also mapped out an action plan for the next four quarters which included an overview of the Coastal and Estuary Management plans and vision for the committee at its second meeting in September.
In the third quarter the group will discuss the Floodplain Management Plans and review Development Control Plans.
At its March 2019 meeting it will discuss the Catchment Management Program and an overview of the Coastal Management Act.
The management plans in place that it will refer to are the Brisbane Water Estuary Management Plan, Pearl Beach Coastal Zone Management Plan, Gosford Beaches Coastal Zone Management Plan and Gosford Lagoons Floodplain Management Plan.
According to its terms of reference, the advisory group is responsible for providing advice and feedback to Council on ensuring current community values are considered in the development of local floodplain risk, estuary and coastal zone management planning.
It will also be responsible for helping Council to identify the flood, coastal and estuary health problem areas to be assessed and provide input into known hazard behaviour.
In undertaking its duties the committee will be required to include sustainable climate change adaptation actions based on widely accepted competent scientific opinion and ensure consistency with Council's climate change policy (which is currently under development).
The terms of reference also state the group will monitor and assess the effectiveness of local management plans during and after their implementation.
It will promote linkages and cooperation between community, Council, State and Federal Governments and other key stakeholders in the development and implementation of coastal, estuarine, catchment and floodplain management studies and plans.
It will advise on funding, capital works, maintenance and operations, environmental protection and a range of other associated policies, strategies and laws.
Another of its responsibilities was listed in the terms of reference as supporting, promoting and liaising with relevant authorities in the development of emergency management and catchment management strategies.
In addition to the Mayor, Cr Troy Marquart and Cr Richard Mehrtens are members of the committee.
Community members are listed as Ian Carruthers, Andrew Jones, Michael Kilp, Jenny McCulla, Adrian Williams and Samantha Willis.
SOURCE:
Central Coast Council agenda 3.2, 23 Jul 2018