Council are well placed to prioritise ecological and sustainable developments. Our region is growing very fast with an expected 30% increase in our population by 2036. With a focus on meeting the challenges of climate change both in what we build and what we protect, Council planners need to be supported to effectively plan for a changing world. Coffs Harbour Greens believe development can only succeed if adequate housing, transport, water, infrastructure and services are made available. Further, regional development must be ecologically sustainable and protect biodiversity.

Our community requires respectful decision making processes that maintains why people want to live in Coffs Harbour. We are not the Gold Coast and so protecting our regions values from over development should be a Council priority. We want to see Council extend the time and resources they spend in development approval process so that our existing community is respected as our population increases. As an example, Coffs Harbour Greens helped prevent a high-risk development on a coastal wetland at Emerald Beach subject to coast inundation that council staff recommended. The approvals process should plan for people, not profits!

According to Coffs Harbour Council’s Biodiversity Strategy, there is a major community concern for the maintenance of our biodiverse environment and it’s a credit to Council for developing a comprehensive plan. Coffs Harbour Greens are concerned, however, it appears many of the 21012-2030 strategy actions remain outstanding or have been shelved such as the report into the landscape corridors of the Coffs Harbour area. We deeply support the plans vision: Coffs Harbour is a model for sustainable living. We value, respect and protect our natural environment and acknowledge it that it sustains us and future generations. See the strategy here!

We would like to see Council incentivise local food production on small holdings especially with the prioritisation of designing youth pathways into a career in agriculture. The importance of local small-scale and sustainable agriculture has been seemingly omitted from the land use Chapter of the Local Growth Management Strategy. The NSW Greens encourage local food production and small scale sustainable cottage industry and manufacture in the regions including distribution such as farmers markets in their Regional Development policy. Please find it here!