Have your say on a planning proposal to amend the Tweed Local Environmental Plan (LEP) 2014 by adding planning controls for the new conservation zones.
Tweed Shire Council is seeking community feedback on a planning proposal to amend the Tweed Local Environmental Plan (LEP) 2014, by adding planning controls for the new conservation zones. Council has moved into the next phase of its Tweed Conservation Zone Review and applied to the NSW Government to add the C2 Environmental Conservation and C3 Environmental Management zones into the Tweed Local Environmental Plan (LEP) 2014. Conservation zones, or C zones, are part of the NSW Government’s land use planning system. They define areas of the natural environment that need to be protected or carefully managed and have rules that ensure only appropriate development occurs on that land now and into the future. They are one tool that Council can use when planning for the future, so the Tweed grows and evolves in a sustainable way. Council’s Director of Planning and Regulation Vince Connell said at this stage, Council is asking the NSW Government to amend the Tweed LEP 2014 by adding the zone objectives and list of permitted and prohibited uses for the new c zones into the legislation. “It is important that landowners and the community understand that this first planning proposal is not making any changes to our land use zone maps and no land will get a conservation zone at this stage,” Mr Connell said. “All current land use zones, including deferred matters, will remain in place until a separate planning proposal to amend land use zone maps and apply the draft conservation zones to the Stage 1 Tweed Coast area is submitted later this year.” Mr Connell said the C2 and C3 zones were deferred under the NSW Government’s 2012 ‘Environmental Zone Review’, so they were never included in the Tweed LEP 2014 when it was written.
“There are private landowners who need to use conservation zones in rezoning applications, or who want to volunteer their land for a conservation zone and they are not currently able to. By adding them in, we are creating a legal pathway for those landowners to use them without having to wait for the broader conservation zone review to be completed.” Zoning for environmental protection has been in the NSW land use planning system for many decades, and Conservation zones in particular have been used by local governments in NSW since 2006. Tweed is one of only three local government areas in NSW (along with Ballina and Kyogle Shire councils) that still do not have the C2 and C3 zones in their main LEP. This is the first of a series of planning proposals which will ultimately apply C zones across the whole of the Tweed and bring deferred matter land into the Tweed LEP 2014. The draft planning proposal was submitted on 18 March 2023, and the NSW Government issued its in-principle support (Gateway Determination) on 3 April. The draft planning proposal will be on public exhibition from 2 May to 29 May 2023. Council encourages all interested community members and landowners to visit Council’s community engagement site yoursaytweed.com.au/czones to read more about the project, and to have your say on the proposed C2 and C3 zones.
Photo 1: New conservation zonesCaption: Have your say on a planning proposal to amend the Tweed Local Environmental Plan (LEP) 2014, by adding planning controls for the new conservation zones.
Connection to Council’s Community Strategic Plan:
Stay up to date with Council’s latest news and updates, follow us on social media or subscribe to get all the news direct to your inbox.
Call 02 6670 2136 or email for all media or interview requests.