Beyond the Edge: Australia's First National Peri-Urban Conference La Trobe University Oct 2013

1. Beyond the Edge
Australia's First Peri-Urban Conference
Planning and landscape in peri-urban
Victoria: setting environmental
objectives to assess the current state
Amanda LoCascio
Melissa Neave
Albert Llausàs
Ruth Beilin
Michael Buxton
Claire Collie
Francisco Gelves
La Trobe University, Bundoora Campus
October 1, 2013

2. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Background

3. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Background
WIP: Housing capacity and demand, demographic trends, migration, journey to work, etc.

4. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Topics of interest
Topography
Land use
Development
pressure

5. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
A changing landscape
Area and condition index of native vegetation

6. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
A changing landscape
38 endangered Ecological Vegetation Classes loss > 90% in some LGA’s

7. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
A changing landscape
Soils and Primary Production Landscapes

8. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
A changing landscape

9. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Aim
“What are the trends? Where is the region going in terms of its landscape? Are key
assets effectively protected by land use planning? What is the vision for the study area
in 2040? Is current planning delivering this vision? Where is it succeeding? Where is it
not? What is the vision of residents? Is it different to the one from planners? What
needs to be changed?”
Land use
Biodiversity conservation
Water quality and quantity
Sustainable agriculture
Landscape character
To critically analyse how current policy and planning
from different sectors and at a variety of scales relate
to natural resource management in the study area
Improvements in planning
OBJECTIVES-LED
STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL
ASSESSMENT

10. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Current planning
How are the environmental objectives implemented?
What are the environmental objectives that are made
explicit?

11. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Current planning – Explicit objectives
Common: per Section 4(1) of the Planning & Environment Act 1987:
-to provide for the fair, orderly, economic and sustainable use and development of
land;
-to provide for the protection of natural and man-made resources and the
maintenance of ecological processes and genetic diversity
Often not explicitly discussed
Focus on native vegetation protection
Increase productive capacity of the industry
Encourage ecologically sustainable farming practices
Supply fresh water to urban, rural and environmental users
Limiting polluted releases
Hardly mentioned beyond local heritage protection

12. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Current planning – Implementation

13. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Current planning – Implementation

14. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Current planning – Implementation

15. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Current planning – Implementation
Environmental Significance Overlay
(ESO)

16. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Current planning – Implementation
Approved land subdivisions
Significant Landscape Overlay (SLO)
Approved native vegetation clearings
Vegetation Protection Overlay (VPO)

17. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Current planning – Implementation
Distribution of very good condition native vegetation in planning zones

18. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Current planning – Implementation
Distribution of high potential for biodiversity in planning zones

19. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Current planning – Implementation
Spearman’s rho = -.829
(Sig. = 0.021)

20. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Community consultation
Online survey
Landscape perception
Landscape preference
Motivation for living in the area
Future expectations
Alignment with institutional vision
138 responses
Statistics (Descriptive + PCA)

21. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Community consultation
Online survey

22. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Community consultation
Online survey

23. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Community consultation
Online survey

24. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Community consultation
Interviews
40 face-to-face (0.5–2 hours) semistructured interviews:
24 residents
9 Landcare groups
3 Local councils
2 Farming organizations
2 Environmental organizations
Analysis:
Transcription
Coding
Software-assisted
Qualitative Data
Analysis

25. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Community consultation
- Quality of the environment is a key factor for most residents
- High level of satisfaction but concerns about:
Landscape character (linked to loss of wildlife and agricultural decline)
Water quantity
Intensive agriculture (but support for other farming options)
- Future:
Population growth and development
Decrease of industrial agriculture
No environmental improvement
- Strong support to further protect landscape character and natural resources.
Government seen as passive
High level of satisfaction among councils with what is being done

26. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state
Conclusions
- Planning works (with omissions)
Major improvements:
Rural land use capability
studies and strategies
Define and identify natural resource assets
Coordination
- Landscape character
- Demand for protection
of natural resources
- Wildlife decline
- Agricultural model
- Need to update (& upgrade) planning
Not addressed comprehensively
in current planning
Only remnants of high quality native
vegetation are effectively protected
Planning stuck in old paradigm
Reformed Rural Zones

27. Beyond the Edge
Australia's First Peri-Urban Conference
Thank you
Albert Llausàs
(albert.llausas@unimelb.edu.au)
Landscape Sociology Group
Department of Resource Management and Geography
Melbourne School of Land and Environment
The University of Melbourne, Building 379, Room 1.57
221 Bouverie Street, Carlton 3053 (VIC, Australia)
http://www.periurbanfutures.com/index.php/natural-resources
La Trobe University, Bundoora Campus
October 1, 2013

28. Planning and landscape in peri-urban Victoria: setting environmental objectives to assess the current state