Agenda of Biodiversity Advisory Committee Meeting

CONFLICT OF INTERESTS

What is a “Conflict of Interests” - A conflict of interests can be of two types:

Pecuniary - an interest that a person has in a matter because of a reasonable likelihood or expectation of appreciable financial gain or loss to the person or another person with whom the person is associated.

Non-pecuniary – a private or personal interest that a Council official has that does not amount to a pecuniary interest as defined in the Code of Conduct for Councillors (eg. A friendship, membership of an association, society or trade union or involvement or interest in an activity and may include an interest of a financial nature).

Remoteness – a person does not have a pecuniary interest in a matter if the interest is so remote or insignificant that it could not reasonably be regarded as likely to influence any decision the person might make in relation to a matter or if the interest is of a kind specified in the Code of Conduct for Councillors.

Who has a Pecuniary Interest? - a person has a pecuniary interest in a matter if the pecuniary interest is the interest of the person, or another person with whom the person is associated (see below).

Relatives, Partners - a person is taken to have a pecuniary interest in a matter if:

§ The person’s spouse or de facto partner or a relative of the person has a pecuniary interest in the matter, or

§ The person, or a nominee, partners or employer of the person, is a member of a company or other body that has a pecuniary interest in the matter.

N.B. “Relative”, in relation to a person means any of the following:

(a) the parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, lineal descends or adopted child of the person or of the person’s spouse;

(b) the spouse or de facto partners of the person or of a person referred to in paragraph (a)

No Interest in the Matter - however, a person is not taken to have a pecuniary interest in a matter:

§ If the person is unaware of the relevant pecuniary interest of the spouse, de facto partner, relative or company or other body, or

§ Just because the person is a member of, or is employed by, the Council.

§ Just because the person is a member of, or a delegate of the Council to, a company or other body that has a pecuniary interest in the matter provided that the person has no beneficial interest in any shares of the company or body.

Disclosure and participation in meetings

§ A Councillor or a member of a Council Committee who has a pecuniary interest in any matter with which the Council is concerned and who is present at a meeting of the Council or Committee at which the matter is being considered must disclose the nature of the interest to the meeting as soon as practicable.

§ The Councillor or member must not be present at, or in sight of, the meeting of the Council or Committee:

(a) at any time during which the matter is being considered or discussed by the Council or Committee, or

(b) at any time during which the Council or Committee is voting on any question in relation to the matter.

No Knowledge - a person does not breach this Clause if the person did not know and could not reasonably be expected to have known that the matter under consideration at the meeting was a matter in which he or she had a pecuniary interest.

Non-pecuniary Interests - Must be disclosed in meetings.

There are a broad range of options available for managing conflicts & the option chosen will depend on an assessment of the circumstances of the matter, the nature of the interest and the significance of the issue being dealt with. Non-pecuniary conflicts of interests must be dealt with in at least one of the following ways:

§ It may be appropriate that no action be taken where the potential for conflict is minimal. However, Councillors should consider providing an explanation of why they consider a conflict does not exist.

§ Limit involvement if practical (eg. Participate in discussion but not in decision making or vice-versa). Care needs to be taken when exercising this option.

§ Remove the source of the conflict (eg. Relinquishing or divesting the personal interest that creates the conflict)

§ Have no involvement by absenting yourself from and not taking part in any debate or voting on the issue as of the provisions in the Code of Conduct (particularly if you have a significant non-pecuniary interest)

RECORDING OF VOTING ON PLANNING MATTERS

Clause 375A of the Local Government Act 1993 – Recording of voting on planning matters

(1) In this section, planning decision means a decision made in the exercise of a function of a council under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979:

(a) including a decision relating to a development application, an environmental planning instrument, a development control plan or a development contribution plan under that Act, but

(b) not including the making of an order under that Act.

(2) The general manager is required to keep a register containing, for each planning decision made at a meeting of the council or a council committee, the names of the councillors who supported the decision and the names of any councillors who opposed (or are taken to have opposed) the decision.

(3) For the purpose of maintaining the register, a division is required to be called whenever a motion for a planning decision is put at a meeting of the council or a council committee.

(4) Each decision recorded in the register is to be described in the register or identified in a manner that enables the description to be obtained from another publicly available document, and is to include the information required by the regulations.

(5) This section extends to a meeting that is closed to the public.

BYRON SHIRE COUNCIL

Staff Reports - Sustainable Environment and Economy 4.1

Staff Reports - Sustainable Environment and Economy

Report No. 4.1 Biodiversity Projects and Operations Update

Directorate: Sustainable Environment and Economy

Report Author: Lizabeth Caddick, Biodiversity Officer

File No: I2020/1547

Summary:

This report provides the Biodiversity Advisory Committee with an update on current projects and programmes being undertaken by the Biodiversity team, including:

· Flying-fox Management Plan

· Pest Animal Management Plan

· Bringing Back the Bruns

· Agricultural Projects

· Biodiversity Conservation Strategy

· Draft Development Control Plan (DCP) Biodiversity; Tree and Vegetation Management

· Leash-Up Pilot Communication Project

· Domestic Cats – Awareness Raising

· Fire Management in Open Forest Ecosystems

· Development Control Plan (Biodiversity)

· Coastal Scoping Study for the Southern Byron Shire Coastline and Belongil Creek Estuary

RECOMMENDATION:

That the Biodiversity Advisory Committee note the update on current projects and programmes being undertaken by Council staff.

Attachments:

1 Bow Wow Dog Owner Survey Topline Results, E2020/78797 , page 20 ⇩

REPORT

Flying-fox Management Plan

The CSIRO August census was cancelled due to COVID-19. Byron Shire staff saw no added hazard or increased risk from the virus and counted the 5 camps for our records (results in the table below).

Most of the Flying-foxes have moved on from the managed camps over winter with a few hundred staying on in Middleton St. and a handful visiting at Beech Camp on an irregular basis. Flying-foxes remained at Bangalow sports ground, Mullumbimby showground and in the mangroves at New Brighton over the winter as well. These camps are not near homes and people and are not managed under the Camp Management Plan. All managed camps were occupied by the end of October and the November Census will tell us how many returned.

November is the end of the second year of the three year Flying Improvements Project funded by NSW Environmental Trust. The project is on track although community engagement has been delayed due to COVID-19 meeting restrictions. We plan to hold event early in the new year if restrictions permit.

	Aug 2018	Aug 2019	Aug 2020
Mullumbimby	0	0	0
Butler St	0	0	0
Middleton St	3214	1002	702
Beech	0	64	36
Paddy’s Ck	0	0	0

Pest Animal Management Plan

Wild Dogs, Cats and Foxes

Trapping is on-going in the Shire through our contractor- JR Trapping. JR Trapping is currently contracted under the Drought Pest and Weeds funded project to trap on private lands as well as Council Land. Jim has trapped a number of dogs and foxes, as well as two feral cats near Goonengerry and he is investigating the success of using cage traps to enable a greater trapping success of feral cats.

A log of all feral animals trapped, their sex and location is received each July. These records are forwarded to North Coast Local Land Services and also entered into FeralScan.

Feral Deer

Tweed Shire Council is advertising for a Feral Deer Control Project Officer to implement the Northern Rivers Feral Deer Control Program with funding from the Federal Government over 18 months from the Drought Pest and Weeds Program. The project will cover the areas of the northern Councils including Tweed, Byron, Ballina, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Kyogle.

Bringing Back the Bruns

Fish Habitat Restoration Program – successful grant

Council, in partnership with North Coast Local Land Services (NCLLS), was successful in its application of $186,844 as stage 2 of Bringing Back the Bruns under the Federal Fish Habitat Restoration Program.

The project is staged over 2 years and will protect, enhance and improve the aquatic habitat of 190m of riverbank in the upper estuary of the Brunswick River in Mullumbimby. Participating partners include the Cape Byron Marine Park, NSW Fisheries, the Brunswick River Angling and Deep Sea Fishing Club, OzFish and the landholder.

Council will oversee the project and manage the community engagement. NCLLS will manage the design, permits, materials supply and construction of the bank earthworks. The landholder will revegetate, fence and manage a minimum 16m riparian zone to protect the works and enhance riparian and aquatic habitat.

Preliminary surveys and planning will commence before the end of December.

Location of proposed project area in Mullumbimby River bank for rehabilitation

Fisheries Habitat Action Grant (2019) – Mullumbimby Riparian Riverbank Project

Weed control has commenced along 1.8km of Brunswick riverbank, following a community information afternoon on 24 August 2020. Bushland Restoration Services have the contract to control the riparian weeds on the northern bank from the Showground to the end of Riverview St. The $39,830 grant is funding the control of all ground, mid story and vine weeds, but unfortunately would not fund the removal and replacement of tall camphor laurels and giant bamboo along the reach. Funding is being sort for the control and removal of these weeds.

Location of the Mullumbimby Riparian Riverbank Project

Agriculture

Combating Pests and Weeds Grant (Commonwealth) 2020 - Agricultural advice, weed and pest animal control in Byron Shire

A contract to eradicate 5ha of Tropical Soda Apple (TSA) in the Shire has been awarded to Rous County Council (RCC). This is the known extent of the weed in the Shire and has been mapped. RCC will work with the landholders, revisiting the properties on a quarterly basis for 12 months. RCC will inspect and hand remove all TSA and inspect all properties to ensure there has been no spread or new outbreaks of the weed.

Council is currently planning the control of 3ha of environmental weeds and 80 ha of agricultural weeds as part of this project. Local Land Services and Rous County Council staff are working with Council, advising on the most appropriate weeds to control for the benefit of the environment and primary production.

Agricultural Extension Officer

Andrew Cameron commenced early November as Council’s new Agricultural Extension Officer as part of the pest and weeds project. This role is to assist new and long-term farmers improve their sustainability and productivity by changing their practices including adoption of holistic and regenerative farming techniques. Andrew is a member of the Biodiversity Team which acknowledges the connection with farmers as our largest landholders and the links between improving/changing farming practices for sustainability and the benefit of the environment.

Biodiversity Conservation Strategy

The 2020-2030 Byron Shire Biodiversity Conservation Strategy is now on Council’s website and was recently awarded the Local Government NSW Excellence in the Environment, overall winner award for Planning, Policies and Decision Making. A 2020 audit of Biodiversity Conservation Strategy actions is provided in a separate report.

Draft Development Control Plan (DCP) 2014 Chapter B1 Biodiversity

Delivering Action 1.1 within Council’s adopted Biodiversity Conservation Strategy 2020-2030 and endorsed by the BAC, Draft DCP 2014 Chapter B1 Biodiversity went on public exhibition from 19 October – 15 November 2020 (Res 20-533). As at 10 November, it has received zero submissions and one telephone call regarding the wildlife corridors. It is expected that there may be some submissions in the last five days of exhibition, and if so, an update will be provided to committee members on the day of the meeting.

The results of Draft DCP 2014 Chapter B1 Biodiversity public exhibition will be reported to Council (Planning) on 10 December 2020 with any amendments and recommendations.

Draft Development Control Plan (DCP) 2014 Chapter B2 Tree and Vegetation Management

Clauses 5.9 and 5.9AA within the Byron Local Environmental Plan 2014 and the Native Vegetation Act 2003 have been repealed and replaced with State Environmental Planning Policy (Vegetation in non-rural areas) 2017 and the Local Land Services Act 2013. Given the recent gazetting of our environmental zones (E2 and E3) Council is now required to declare such vegetation within a Development Control Plan (DCP) and administer its management through a tree removal permit system. As a result, DCP 2014 Chapter B2 Tree and Vegetation Management has been updated to include the information now required under the Vegetation SEPP.

Delivering Action 1.2 within of the Biodiversity Conservation Strategy 2020-2030, the Draft DCP 2014 Chapter B2 Tree and Vegetation Management is being reported to Council (Planning) on 19 November 2020 for recommendation to be placed on public exhibition for 28 days (23 November – 20 December 2020).

Koala habitat planting projects

Council is continuing to progress a number of projects focussed on creating or restoring koala habitat on private land, including:

· Byron Habitat Corridors Project - This Environment Trust funded project is in its final year of funding, which was extended to March 2021 due to the drought and Covid-19. Project funding of $17,025 is being used for ongoing maintenance of revegetation sites at Mullumbimby, Bangalow, Brunswick Heads, Myocum and Skinners Shoot.

· North East Hinterland Koala Conservation Project - This DPIE-funded project is a partnership between Tweed, Byron, Lismore and Ballina Councils and Friends of the Koala. Byron Shire Council has a budget of $45,000 over three years for koala habitat planting and restoration on private land. 14 sites, totalling around 15 ha have been identified for planting and restoration and work on these sites is in progress.

· Koala Food for the Future Project – the Saving our Species program has provided $18,000 funding for koala habitat restoration on private land, with a similar methodology to the North East Hinterland project. To date 9 sites, totalling 3.6 ha have been identified and planting is in progress.

· Council has been helping Mullumbimby High School students set up their Trees for Koalas - Connecting Communities project. This project started with students planting 400 trees at a Binna Burra property on 27 October. The next stage is for the Student Representative Council to call for expressions of interest for koala habitat planting among the school community. Council will be supporting the school with technical advice as the project progresses.

Leash-Up Pilot Communication Project

Byron Shire Council received grant funding of $39,890 through DPIE Saving Our Species for the development of an awareness and education program to help mitigate domestic dog impacts on koalas (and other wildlife). Following last year’s successful Bow Wow! Look at me now! event, the Bow Wow Dog Owner Research Survey was conducted to better understand some of the attitudes and opinions of dog owners, especially in relation to leashing. The survey findings provide an input to strategic communications planning and development. With 401 initial responses and a final completion rate of 70%, some of the top-line results show:

· 85% of dog owners use off-leash beaches as the most popular exercise venue

· 41% report encounters between their dogs and local wildlife (in general)

· 77% say wildlife protection is very important

· 86% say it’s the role of both community and council to protect wildlife and their habitat

· 49% spontaneously volunteer ‘koala’ as the most mentioned ‘threatened wildlife’

For more results see Attachment 1: Top-line Results one page infographic

Domestic Cats – Awareness Raising

Council is commencing an awareness raising campaign regarding the impact of domestic cats on native wildlife. The focus will be on engaging positively with cat-owners, and providing clear and simple tips on what people can do to minimise the impact of their pet cat on native animals. The campaign is in the preliminary stage of development and will include website updates, social media and media releases.

Fire Management in Open Forest Ecosystems

Council staff recently attended a planned hazard reduction and ecological burn at Broken Head, conducted by local landholders and the Rural Fire Service. This site contains high environmental value Blackbutt open woodland with a heathy understorey – a vegetation type that requires periodic disturbance, by fire, to maintain its health. Several planned burns have been carried out at the site this year, with small mosaics burnt each time. Burns have been a mixture of hazard reduction/ecological burns carried out by the RFS and cultural burns carried out by Firesticks Alliance. The project as whole is managed by Andy Baker (Wildsite Ecological Services) and Luke McConnell (BAC Community Member). Andy Baker works with national parks, local government and landowners to manage native habitat. He is an expert in fire ecology and passionate about the role of fire in maintaining healthy habitat. Andy has worked very hard to get the project off the ground with the help of committed local landholders and the RFS.

Coastal Management Program (CMP) Scoping Study for the Southern Byron Shire Coastline and the Belongil Creek estuary

Byron Shire Council has commenced preparation of a Stage 1 Scoping Study for the southern coastline of Byron Shire, the first of four stages in preparing a Coastal Management Program (CMP) legislated under the NSW Coastal Reforms.

The study area for the Scoping Study extends from Cape Byron to the southern limit of the Local Government Area at Seven Mile Beach and includes the Tallow Creek estuary, Ti-Tree (Taylors) Lakes (i.e. Broken Head Creek), as well as Belongil Creek estuary and their catchments. This Scoping Study will compliment the Scoping Study adopted by Council in June 2020 for the Cape Byron to South Golden Beach.

The purpose of a CMP Scoping Study is to:

· gather and collate existing information

· understand community and stakeholder values and key management issues

· identify whether there are any information gaps that need to be further investigated

· plan the forward pathway for the program (i.e. studies, stages and costs).

Future stages of the program may involve additional studies to fill any knowledge gaps and will entail a risk assessment to identify vulnerabilities of coastal values against key threats and conflicts and development of management strategies and actions for comprehensive management of the coastal zone by a range of coastal zone managers.

To prepare the Scoping Study, Council has engaged Rhelm Consulting in partnership with Bluecoast (coastal engineers), Coastal Zone Management and Planning (Angus Gordon, one of Australia’s most experienced coastal managers with significant experience in the Byron coastline) and H20 Consulting Group (Dr David Cummings, an aquatic, estuarine and marine ecological specialist). The preparation of the Scoping Study is equally funded by Council and the Department of Planning Industry and Environment (DPIE).

Stakeholder engagement commenced in late October 2020 with conversations, a site meeting and walkover of important cultural sites taking place with representatives from the local Aboriginal organisations (Jali and Tweed Byron Local Aboriginal Land Councils and the Arakwal Corporation), and a workshop held with key agency stakeholders. Engagement with the general community will take place via an online survey in December 2020/ January 2021 and through Council presence at community markets. Future engagement activities will also be undertaken to present the findings of the Scoping Study and during future stages of CMP preparation.

STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS

Community Strategic Plan and Operational Plan

CSP Objective	L2	CSP Strategy	L3	DP Action	L4	OP Activity
Community Objective 3: We protect and enhance our natural environment	3.1	Partner to protect and enhance our biodiversity, ecosystems and ecology	3.1.1	Protect and enhance our natural environment and biodiversity	3.1.1.3	Implement priority actions from the Biodiversity Conservation Strategy
Community Objective 3: We protect and enhance our natural environment	3.1	Partner to protect and enhance our biodiversity, ecosystems and ecology	3.1.1	Protect and enhance our natural environment and biodiversity	3.1.1.6	Implement the Flying Fox Camp Management Plan
Community Objective 3: We protect and enhance our natural environment	3.1	Partner to protect and enhance our biodiversity, ecosystems and ecology	3.1.1	Protect and enhance our natural environment and biodiversity	3.1.1.7	Continue to undertake the Flying Fox National Census
Community Objective 3: We protect and enhance our natural environment	3.1	Partner to protect and enhance our biodiversity, ecosystems and ecology	3.1.1	Protect and enhance our natural environment and biodiversity	3.1.1.8	Implement the Koala Plan of Management
Community Objective 3: We protect and enhance our natural environment	3.1	Partner to protect and enhance our biodiversity, ecosystems and ecology	3.1.1	Protect and enhance our natural environment and biodiversity	3.1.1.9	Implement the Pest Animal Management Plan
Community Objective 3: We protect and enhance our natural environment	3.1	Partner to protect and enhance our biodiversity, ecosystems and ecology	3.1.2	Restore degraded areas and habitats that have or provide significant or high environmental and or community value	3.1.2.2	Respond to biosecurity threats in a timely and efficient manner
Community Objective 3: We protect and enhance our natural environment	3.1	Partner to protect and enhance our biodiversity, ecosystems and ecology	3.1.2	Restore degraded areas and habitats that have or provide significant or high environmental and or community value	3.1.2.4	Identify new high profile sites for restoration works
Community Objective 3: We protect and enhance our natural environment	3.3	Partner to protect and enhance the health of the Shire’s coastlines, estuaries, waterways and catchments	3.3.1	Implement Coastal Management Program	3.3.1.3	Investigate Brunswick River Project

Legal/Statutory/Policy Considerations

N/A

Financial Considerations

Where relevant, budgets for specific projects noted above.

Consultation and Engagement

N/A

Venue	Conference Room, Station Street, Mullumbimby
Date	Monday, 23 November 2020
Time	3:15pm