Conservation zones proposed for 'deferred matters land'
Land around the Peninsula that has previously not been zoned according to the State's "standard template" will be zoned for conservation, under a planning proposal being put forward by Central Coast Council.
The land, known as Deferred Matters Land includes "Dillon's Farm", parts of Bull's Hill quarry, land between Woy Woy Bay and Phegans Bay, land fronting Correa Bay, land between Shoalhaven Dr and the Woy Woy tip, the Mt Ettalong escarpment in Pearl Beach and land along Patonga Creek.
The proposal will be on public exhibition until Wednesday, November 8.
Information sessions will be held at Erina library this Wednesday and Thursday, October 18 and 19, and online via Teams on Monday, October 23.
Registration for the sessions is required.
Under the proposal, land around the Peninsula will be zoned either C2 Environmental Conservation or C3 Environmental Management.
The C2 zone "is for areas with high ecological, scientific, cultural, or aesthetic values outside national parks and nature reserves", according to a statement on the council's consultation website.
"The zone provides the highest level of protection, management and restoration for such lands whilst allowing uses compatible with those values."
This zoning will apply to land adjacent to the tip, at Woy Woy Bay, at Mt Ettalong and along Patonga Creek.
The C3 zone "is for land where there are special ecological, scientific, cultural, or aesthetic attributes or environmental hazards and processes that require careful consideration and management".
It will apply to Bull's Hill quarry, and parts of Patonga and Pearl Beach.
The planning proposal would assign "like for like" zoning and development standards, based on the existing zones and environmental attributes of each land parcel, according to Council director of planning Dr Alice Howe.
"This will result in the phasing out of historic planning instruments, which have applied to these lands for approximately 50 years and replace them with modern planning provisions that are consistent with those operating across the remainder of the Central Coast.
"To support the review of the land proposals, a map has been created showing parcels of land affected and detailing their proposed new zones.
"The proposal has been developed to retain the existing high environmental value of land for protection and conservation, while allowing existing dwelling entitlements to be retained.
"The review has been informed by a Deferred Lands Land Use Assessment, that can be viewed in the proposal, and was guided by the Department of Planning Practice Environmental Protection measures."
More information on the Draft Deferred Matters Land Planning Proposal is available on the council's consultation website, https://yourvoiceourcoast.com/deferredlands.
SOURCE:.
Media release, 11 Oct 2023.
Alice Howe, Central Coast Council