Following amalgamation of five former Councils in 1993, the new Dorset Council in north west Tasmania set about developing a planning strategy. This Strategy sets out guidelines for the future direction of the new municipality.
Located in one of the world’s most attractive and uncompromised natural environments, the area’s principle industries are agriculture and forestry. The strategy needed to reflect a workable compromise between the competing interests of industry, which provides the population’s livelihood, and the value of maintaining an unpolluted attractive environment.
To avoid potential conflict, widespread consultation, involving workshops, public forums and discussion groups, was carried out. This helped ensure the final document reflected community values and achieved ownership of its targets.
A broad cross section from industry, environmentalists, farmers and other community members were involved. Funded under the Commonwealth Integrated Local Area Planning (ILAP) Scheme, the Dorset Sustainable Development Strategy was launched in March this year.
Representing a radical departure from most planning strategies, it places the environment in a central role and the basis on which human enterprise must be geared for a sustainable future. Issues covered in the Strategy are water quality and resource, land use and sustainable land practises, natural environment and bio diversity, the Dorset community, community services and infrastructure, urban development and the local economy.
“This is a bottom driven document which places Dorset at the leading edge of planning,” said John Martin, Manager Corporate Services. “It minimises conflict over future directions in the community, establishes clear ground rules for developers who invest in the area and provides for a quality environment and sustainable future for the residents of Dorset.”
Performance targets in the strategy cover short term objectives to be achieved within a year, such as the incorporation of visual impact and streetscape objectives into the Planning scheme. Longer term objectives, over the next 25 years, include having groundwater resource managed and all pollution sources controlled.
As one of the first Government Strategies in the world to recognise the fundamental role of a healthy environment for a healthy economy and high quality of life, Dorset’s Strategy has attracted interest from other Local Government bodies not only in Australia but overseas.
For further information contact John Martin, telephone (003) 52 2444.
