Environmental Policy for Coastal Management in New South Wales

This briefing report discusses the Coastal Management Act 2016 and the strategies followed by the NSW Environmental Protection Authority to protect and enhance the coastal region in New South Wales. It explains the management areas, funding, planning controls, and regional offices involved in the implementation of the policy. The report also highlights the need for a well-balanced approach to manage the coastline and maintain its beauty and uniqueness that hosts wildlife. The report is relevant to students studying environmental policy, coastal management, and related subjects.

Environmental Policy briefing 1
Briefing report on an environmental policy
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Executive Summery
The need and demand for Coastal features for both recreational and residential purposes have
created pressure on the limited recourses along the coastline. The New South Wales
government through the NSW Environmental Protection Authority has come up with a
strategic plan and program that aim at protecting and enhancing the Coastal region. The
operations of the authority are described in the newly updated Environmental Management
Act 2016. The Act, which is an updated format of the Environmental Management Act 1979,
provides the framework on the strategies followed when managing the coastal region. The
local and field operations of the authority are coordinated by the local councils whose
operations are supported by the Office of Environment, both technically and financially. The
briefing indicates the possible impacts on the lives of the local inhabitants of the countries
coast. The funding of the operations comes from the government under the budget of coastal
management program. There are local programs and trainings that help educate the residents
and visitors at the coast concerning the need to protect the environment.

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Introduction
Recent studies show that the Coastline attracts interests from various sectors due to its nature
for enjoyment and residential purposes as well as the wild life. Sherval, M & Hardiman,
(2014) denote that people love setting homes along the coastline due to the cool weather
associated with the region, travelers throng coastal and beach hotels to enjoy their holidays.
This scramble for what the coast offers puts the region under intense pressure that in turn
endangers the existence of the inhabitant wildlife (Hatfield-Dodds & Wonhas 2015, p. 67).
This therefore means the management of the coastline must be a well thought approach to
provide a balancing point for the various needs of the region and still maintain the coastal
beauty and uniqueness that hosts wildlife. Lumumba (2016) denotes that the coast offers job
creation opportunities in the beach hotels, residential houses, community facilities as well as
infrastructure that service the occupants of the area.
The New South Wales government, through NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA)
works to improve the development plans taking place in the coastal region (Babb, McBurnie,
& Miller 2018, p. 78). Various departments like the Department of Planning and in
conjunction with the Office of Environment and Heritage have come up with policies that
define the coastal management framework backed with a budget of $83.6 million to give
guidelines on the developments at the coast.
Coastal Management Act 2016
The NSW EPA operates under the Coastal Management Act 2016 which replaced the initial
act, The Coastal Protection Act 1979 (Keele 2018, p. 290). The new Act provides the
guidelines, framework, and the objectives for managing issues related with the NSW coastal
regions. Based on the new act, the authority focuses on the developments that can be

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sustained ecologically. Under the new environmental act, the authority’s development
strategies meet the following standards;
The protection and improvement of vulnerable habitats, environments, and natural processes
at the coast
Maintains and improve accessibility of the coastal scenic areas at the coast
Management of consequences resulting from coastal risks (Bines 2013, p. 6)
The developments done by the authority should support the Marine Estate Management Act
2014
The authority works to secure and improve the exemplary character, culture and enhance the
heritage of the coastal region.
Management Areas
In order to achieve smooth operations, the authority has marked four management areas as
provided in the Coastal Management Act 2016. These management areas possess different
qualities but the characteristics may overlap and they include;
 The regions that exhibit the qualities of coastal wetland that were managed under the
State Environmental Policies 14 and 26. These areas include the littoral rainforest.
 Areas along the coast those are vulnerable to the natural processes at the coast such as
tidal inundation and erosion.
 The areas along the coast that contain the coastal features- These areas are referred to
as Coastal environment areas and include beaches, estuarine waters, lagoons, coastal
lakes, and undeveloped headlands.
 Coastal use areas- These are lands bordering the coastal waters.

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The management areas are assigned specific objectives that are carried out through coastal
management programs and local strategic planning. The management areas have the
responsibility of showing their values to local communities. Each coastal management area
has specific objectives in line with the social and environmental norms and main challenges.
The achievement of the objectives is realized through operations that are either strategic or
site specific actions in cases extraordinary requirement.
The local authorities help in the realization of these objectives by carrying out the detailed
operations in coastal management programs, the strategic part. They may use other strategic
planning tools such as complementary zoning. The local authorities can apply the
development principles described the planning policy when handling individual development
proposals. These operations carried out by the local council authorities are funded through the
Office of Environment. The office gives any technical support that the local authorities would
require when developing detailed Coastal Management Programs.
The functions and operations of the local authorities are explained in the new local planning
ministerial Direction. The councils are expected to develop strategic plans and planning
proposals in their respective suburbs. These functions must be supported by the results from
the Coastal Management Programs and may include zoning and the use of other local
planning measures. Additionally, the functions and responsibilities be in line with the aims
and objectives of Act and SEPP.
Funding
The operations of NSW EPA are described as the Coastal and Estuary Grant Program and
form a section of the $83.6 million budget that announced by the NSW government for the
Coastal Management Program. The program has received support from various international
organizations and local nonprofit making bodies. The owners of local businesses like beach

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hotels and local residents are of great support to this program. The business people view the
program as one of the main government activities that providing direct assistance to their
business ventures. The funds are pooled together and distributed by the Office of
Environment which also facilitates the provision of extensive support to the local councils
both strategically and in the field.
Proper implementations of the programs run by NSW Environment Support Authority would
lead improve the living standard of the locals and increase government revenue collection in
the regions.
Planning Seculars
The authority provide updates on its operations, the intended goals, achievements and the
future intended operations according to the provisions on the Coastal Management Act 2016.
The authority intend to update the stakeholders including the local councils, financiers,
approving authorities, and other players in the industry.
LINK DESCRIPTION
DATE
ISSUED
PSS
18-
001
The circular is to enlighten local councils and other
local teams on the threshold requirements for any
development at the coastal region. Such a circular
replaces any prior circular depending on the type of
updates it carries.
31 October
2018

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PSS
18-
002
This circular aims at explaining policies of the new
environmental Acts that guide the entire industry. It
updates the local council on the emerging trends in
the industry. It shows the procedures and
requirements for erecting any development projects
in the covered areas.
PSS
18-
003
This circular updates the local councils on the legal
impacts of the various Acts that govern the industry.
They need to understand the wordings in the policy
document to avoid any misinterpretations.
05November
2018
PSS
18-
004
The circular provides instructions on how to educate
the local civilian, the amount of information they
need to know.
13 November
2018
Local Environmental Plan
Local Environmental Plans (LEPs) provide the policies that guide the usage of land in the
coastal region and implemented by the local government areas they are the major planning
tool that directs the local developments and the future of the coastal communities. They carry
out these objectives through zoning and marinating the policies in the mother Act. The body
works closely with locals such as the local council to ensure inclusion of all the interested
individuals and organizations and ensure smooth operations.
The Standard Instrument LEP program

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The authority started this program back in 2006 so as to come up with a format and content
that applies to all the plans in place. And it ensures that all the 152 councils in NSW have a
comprehensive strategy and plans to achieve the objectives.
Planning controls update and review
The updates and reviews on planning controls are done through the gateway processes (Byrne
2016, p. 46). This is a five step process that includes the following;
 The planning proposal. The ministry appoints a joint team of professionals’ including
the local councils or any other relevant authority to formulate planning proposals.
 Delegates from the ministry makes a decision on whether the formulated proposal
meets the requirement or needs adjustments before its implementation.
 Community consultation. The proposal is made public and public hearing done to get
the views of the public. This is a requirement of the ministry.
 Assessments. The public submissions are assessed by the authorities after which the
Parliamentary counsel drafts local environmental plan.
 Making of LEP. The approved proposal in made public, published and becomes a law.
The operations of LEP can be followed online through the official website to be updated with
the emerging trends in the industry (Fisher 2016, p. 447). An individual can as well visit any
nearby local office assistance in areas of concern.
Regional offices
Hunter Region and Central Coast
Northern Region
Southern Region
Western Region

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Sydney West Region and
Sydney East Region
The regional teams are the main link between the Department, local councils and the local
residents in any coastal region. The teams carryout the implementation of planning regarding
land usage and local operations such as education of the locals. Their roles aim at coming up
with a balance on sustainable results. Their main objectives include;
 Formulating Regional programs
 Delivery of strategies of the local council
 They carryout making of Local environmental Plan and updating the zones.
 They educate the public on the environmental protection plans
 Give feedback to the Department for reviewing of planning policies
 They assess the cite compatibility for various activities happening at the coast.
Consultations
Various departments contributed to the formation of the policy and operations framework.
Such bodies include the Department of Environmental studies, the Ministry of Finance, The
Ministry of Health and the Department of Local Business Growth under the ministry of
Industrialization and Planning.

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List of References
Babb, YM, McBurnie, J & Miller, KK 2018, ‘Tracking the environment in Australian
children’s literature: the Children’s Book Council of Australia Picture Book of the
Year Awards 1955-2014’, Environmental Education Research, vol. 24, no. 5, pp.
716–730, viewed 1 October 2018, <http://search.ebscohost.com/ /login.aspx?
direct=true&db=aph&AN=128485030&site=ehost-live>.
Bines, JE P 2013, ‘Designing new collaborative learning spaces in clinical environments:
experiences from a children’s hospital in Australia’, Journal of Interprofessional
Care, vol. 27, pp. 63–68, viewed 1 October 2018,
<http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=aph&AN=89623807&site=ehost-live>.
Byrne, D 2016, ‘Heritage corridors: transnational flows and the built environment of
migration’, Journal of Ethnic & Migration Studies, vol. 42, no. 14, pp. 2351–2369,
viewed 1 October 2018, <http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=aph&AN=118835378&site =ehost-live>.
Fisher, A. 2016, ‘Policing built environment crime risks: the role of police in CPTED in New
South Wales, Australia’, Police Practice & Research, vol. 17, no. 5, pp. 477–488,
viewed 1 October 2018, <http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=aph&AN=116527478&site=ehost-live>.
Hatfield-Dodds, S & Wonhas, A 2015, ‘Australia is “free to choose” economic growth and
falling environmental pressures’, Nature, vol. 527, no. 7576, pp. 49–53, viewed 1
October 2018, <http://search.ebscoh host.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=aph&AN=110722036&site=ehost-live>.

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Keele, DM 2018, ‘Climate Change Litigation and the National Environmental Policy
Act’, Journal of Environmental Law, vol. 30, no. 2, pp. 285–309, viewed 1 October
2018, <http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=8gh&AN=130634671&site=ehost-live>.
Lumumba, JP 2016, ‘Historical Analysis: Does International Environmental Law Provide
Effective Environmental Protection?’, Environmental Policy & Law, pp. 408–419,
viewed 1 October 2018, <http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=buh&AN=121905155&site=ehost-live>.
Sherval, M & Hardiman, K 2014, ‘Competing Perceptions of the Rural Idyll: responses to
threats from coal seam gas development in Gloucester, NSW, Australia’, Australian
Geographer, vol. 45, no. 2, pp. 185–203, viewed 1 October 2018,
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=aph&AN=96010579&site=ehost-live.