Draft Housing and Settlement Strategy - South Gippsland Shire ...

Project Name | Introduction• The economic strengths of the region should be supportedthrough providing sufficient land supply in appropriate locationsand zones.• Land with high agricultural quality should be protected from urbanencroachment.• Sufficient industrial land should be made available for expansion ofkey food manufacturing businesses.• Large lot industrial land is required in strategic locations for dairyrelated and value-add industries.• Industrial land supply should be sufficient to allow for 15 years oforganic growth at the moderate growth scenario as a minimum.• Commercial land supply is sufficient to allow for 15 years of organicgrowth at the moderate growth scenario as a minimum,particularly in areas surrounding the commercial core of existingtown centres.• Towns with strong tourism activity/potential are appropriatelylocated for the development of tourist accommodation andassociated facilities.ZONE REFORMSIn July 2012 the State Government proposed a series of reforms to theexisting residential, commercial, industrial and farming zones contained inthe Victorian Planning Provisions. Public consultation on the zones ended inSeptember 2012. The Reformed Zones Advisory Committee submitted itsprogress report on the residential zones to the Minister for Planning on 14December 2012. The government has responded to this report with a set offinal residential zones.These changes are likely to impact the implementation of this Housing andSettlement Strategy.2.2 ENVIRONMENTAL & CULTURALNATURAL FEATURESWATER CATCHMENTThe Shire is located in the West Gippsland region and extends across theBunurong and Corner Inlet catchments. Significant waterways andwaterbodies include the Tarwin River, Bass River, and, importantly, theRamsar listed Corner Inlet wetland.South Gippsland Water notes that any future developments within theTarwin Lower catchment area can pose significant risk to the potable watersupply for Dumbalk and Meeniyan. The State Government has recentlyreleased revised guidelines for development in declared water catchments.Figure 3 identifies the areas subject to natural resources and features andenvironmental constraints.FAUNASouth Gippsland Shire Council is currently preparing an EnvironmentalSignificance Overlay for the Giant Gippsland Earthworm (GGE) to protectand manage populations and habitat of the species. The GGE is listed as athreatened species under both Commonwealth and State legislation and asan endangered species on the Department of Sustainability andEnvironment’s Advisory List of Threatened Invertebrate Fauna in Victoria –2009. The Victorian Biodiversity Atlas records GGE presence scatteredacross the Shire.VEGETATIONWilsons Promontory National Park and coastal areas to the north and to thenorth-west of the National Park contain large areas of native vegetation.Native forests and plantation forestry occur in the Strzelecki Ranges.© planisphere 2013 15