Parliamentary Secretary for the Central Coast, Mr Scot MacDonald, is encouraging the Central Coast community to engage with the proposed State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP), Primary Production and Rural Development 2017, which is currently being drafted.
Changes proposed include consolidating five existing SEPPs to a new Primary Production and Rural Development SEPP, and includes Sydney Regional Environmental Plan 8, Central Coast Plateau Areas.
Primary production is one of the biggest industries in NSW, and it is a significant contributor to the NSW and national economies.
The NSW Government is proposing changes to the planning system to further support sustainable agriculture, aquaculture and rural development.
These changes will help ensure planning proposals affecting rural land are properly assessed and provide greater certainty to farmers on the types of activities that will require development consent.
“Primary production is vitally important to the Central Coast and the food manufacturing industry,” Mr MacDonald said.
“The proposed SEPP aims to consolidate existing policies to support sustainable agriculture and aquaculture, including on the Central Coast, where agricultural production is valued in excess of $150 million a year.
“The proposed reforms are in line with the Central Coast Regional Plan directives to support priority economic sectors and sustain and balance productive landscapes,” Mr MacDonald concluded.
Submissions are currently open until December 18.
Source:
Media release, Nov 13
Kit Hale, Office of Scot MacDonald MLC