The importance of the unique Coastal Open Spaces System (COSS) has been confirmed by Gosford Council as part of ongoing discussions about a proposal to review environmental zones and related issues.
Councillors and staff discussed the review at a strategy-policy workshop held on Tuesday, July 21 after Cr Gabby Bowles moved at the Council’s July 14 ordinary meeting that the matter be referred to the workshop.
Following the workshop, Cr Hillary Morris confirmed that recommendations relating to the review of environmental zones had been amended to exclude Coastal Open Spaces System land existing and proposed.
The initial recommendations put to the Tuesday, July 14 ordinary meeting of Gosford Council stated that the 30 per cent of land yet-to-beacquired for COSS and potentially existing COSS land, could have been subject to rezoning as part of a proposed Urban Fringe Study.
The amended recommendations that were to be re-presented to the Tuesday, July 28 ordinary meeting specifi cally excluded: “All land west of the M1; land owned by Gosford Council; crown land; and land that is existing or proposed COSS”.
Gosford Council CEO, Mr Paul Anderson said the environmental zones review was necessary because when the Gosford Local Environment Plan was drawn up in 2014, some land was “deferred” from being zoned in accordance with new categories determined by the NSW Government. In particular, he said the then minister for planning, Mr Brad Hazzard “decided our COSS land was no different to any other environmental land across NSW.
“We said we didn’t want educational establishments or dwellings that are allowed in some environmental zones in the COSS land. “So we said we were not going to rezone land into a temporary LEP zone and we are never going to do that until we get a zone suitable for COSS,” Mr Anderson said.
According to Mr Anderson, the current NSW minister for planning, Mr Rob Stokes MP is prepared to work with Gosford Council to create a special zone for COSS. “So we fi =nally got some sense out of state government but we have to do the review because we are now running three different planning instruments and we want to go to one planning instrument,” Mr Anderson said.
He said the NSW Government is in the process of enacting the special zone. “In reality our urban edge study gives a whole lot of protection to COSS because it reinforces our objectives and enhances what we have got in Gosford City,” he said.
“I am pleased that I have been able to confirm that COSS lands are excluded from the review and the COSS strategy will be continued,” said Cr Morris. “I commend Council for persevering with seeking to convince the government to create a separate zoning for COSS (E5), as COSS lands are community owned nature reserves and not part of the E1 National Parks and Nature Reserves Zoning,” she said.
Cr Morris, the Central Coast Greens and the Community Environment Network do, however, remain concerned about the proposal to revise the definition of Gosford’s urban fringes.
They are worried the review will allow further green field development within the Gosford Local Government Area (LGA) despite the Central Coast Regional Strategy recognising that Council should focus on urban infill rather than expand into rural or environmental lands.
“We already have extensive urban sprawl east of the freeway, and too few green belts protecting our smaller villages and towns,” said Greens spokesperson Ms Kate da Costa. The Council’s own Biodiversity Strategy says: “this concentration of urban development in the existing urban footprint assists in biodiversity conservation and management by minimising disturbance to the natural vegetated areas.”
According to Ms Jane Smith from the Community Environment Network, Gosford Council is approaching the environmental zone review with a sense of urgency in order to ensure the NSW Government honours its commitment to have a new environmental zone that is appropriate for COSS.
However, Ms Smith said the urban fringe review is not urgent and could put some environmentally sensitive land at risk of rezoning for future residential development. “Don’t be fooled by Council’s arguments about the need to plan for population growth.
“In the Central Coast Regional Strategy (2005), the state government planned for population growth of 100,000 by 2031 on the Central Coast with no new greenfi eld areas in Gosford LGA,” Ms Smith said. She said she believes the proposed urban fringe study is in direct confl ict with Council’s own biodiversity strategy.
“The deferred land holds environmental and scenic values,” she said. “There is no strategic basis for the urban fringe study rather it appears to be a land grab for residential development into environmental sensitive lands that have been identifi ed for over 30 years,” she said.
Agenda item SF.13,
28 July 2015
Gosford Council ordinary
meeting
Media release,
26 July 2015
Kate da Costa, Central
Coast Greens
Email, 27 July 2015
Jane Smith, Community
Environment Network
Interview, 28 July 2015
Paul Anderson,
Gosford Council
Jackie Pearson, journalist