Sunshine Coast Hinterland Times

OSCAR is a non-partisan peak body of 22 Sunshine Coast community associations formed before the last Sunshine Coast council elections to support candidates who shared a vision similar to its members – a region that should develop sustainably.
The overwhelming mandate given to Mayor Bob Abbot was a very clear signal that local residents wanted to protect the region from more than 30 years of untrammelled growth.
We have on our doorstep an approach to sustainability that was endorsed by the state government as a good model in 1997. That model was the Noosa Strategic Plan which has clearly demonstrated that innovative planning and policy plus a committed community that shares similar values can influence population outcomes – the so called “population cap”.
However, OSCAR is not convinced that the concept of limiting growth to the carrying capacity of the land is well accepted in George Street. They are fast-tracking development and proposing higher densities in the draft SEQ plan beyond what our own council considers sustainable.
On the surface the vision and words of the Draft SEQ Regional Plan are positive. The aspirations reflect our member aspirations and we can find little or no fault with the desired regional outcome statements. However, when we look at the detail, there are a number of worrying aspects which turn the concept of sustainability on the Sunshine Coast into a pipe dream.
Our major concern is that the principles in the draft SEQRP for managing growth are not well grounded, based as they are on historical data and population projections. It is our fear that this approach will not achieve social, economic and environmental sustainability as it is not based on a full and proper assessment of the carrying capacity of the land.
The state government is projecting that growth in the Sunshine Coast region will increase from 295,000 currently to 518,500 in 2031 or an increase of 76% in the next 22 years. Using these projections – and that is all they are,projections- the state appears to be using the following argument: “because we are projecting this level of growth we must provide more land to build houses/units to accommodate everyone”.
We prefer the logic that asks a number of key questions such as: what suitable land is available for development? How much water do we have moving forward? What do we need to do to protect bio-diversity and areas of significant conservation value? How do we protect our increasingly important and valuable agricultural land? What amenity do the current residents value and what do they want preserved for future generations?
Once we can answer these questions, we can then determine the population that can be sustained over the next 20 years, and plan accordingly.
We argue that the government needs to develop policies and strategies designed to limit rather than manage projected growth.
The present focus of the government is to manage the growth through a number of strategies, some of which are laudable such as defining where the urban footprint should be and limiting this footprint to defined areas.
However, the draft plan undermines the protection provided by the concept of an urban footprint which is totally compromised by two things. Firstly the new regulations give the Minister the over-riding executive power to designate new urban uses without appropriate planning studies or public consultation. Secondly there is a change in definition of what can be developed outside the urban footprint such as allowing large tourist activities to occur in non urban areas.
Imagine the potential impact in the hinterland and the loss of our lovely village atmosphere!
The designation of Regional Landscape and Rural Production areas in the plan is another critical tool for effective planning and one which held so much promise when first introduced in 2005. This was the means whereby we could protect important agricultural land and we could preserve and protect green spaces between our villages that gave the Sunshine Cost its unique amenity. These areas are now themselves a threatened species!
The plan supports inter-urban breaks – green spaces that separate places from one another. However, history of retention of inter-urban breaks under the existing plan shows that the current break between Moreton Shire and the Sunshine Coast has been eroded at the rate of 2.7km per year since 2004 (a 40% reduction of this vital environmental and social component of the landscape). The new draft plan continues this erosion, reducing the size of the break from the previous plan. According to estimates, if this trend continues we will have wall to wall housing from Caloundra to the Tweed by 2015!
Without some change by the state we are in significant danger of over population placing impossible demands and strains on our current way of life, let alone soft and hard infrastructure provision. So what should be done?
Firstly we have argued that the state government should not fast-track proposed developments until there are clear principles for sustainable development in place and the necessary studies are undertaken.
In other words, let the Sunshine Coast Regional Council develop the new plan for the region with resident input that sets the framework for sustainability.
Secondly, we want to see in the final SEQ plan clear principles to determine carrying capacity as the basis for future decision making on land usage.
Thirdly, we need to educate and encourage the community to engage with our local council and the state to support policies and planning that fosters sustainable development.