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Government Requirements
The Integrated Planning Act provides for Local Government to prepare planning instruments for regulating the development of land and the use of premises. Relevant planning instruments will be contained in the Redlands Planning Scheme. (See Documentation)
Because the application to extend quarrying activities will be impact assessable, the proposal will need to be assessed against the whole of the Planning Scheme. The proposal will also require public notification, including making it available for 30 working days for inspection. The development Application will be subject to Referral Co-ordination, whereby the proposal will be assessed by relevant State Government referral agencies.
Being a concurrence agency, the Environmental Protection Agency will assess the proposal against the standard criteria and decide whether to refuse the application, grant the application or grant the application subject to conditions.
Standard Criteria for Proposal Assessment
- ensuring decision-making processes –
- are accountable, coordinated and efficient
- take account of short- and long-term environmental effects of the development at local, regional, State and wider levels
- apply the precautionary principle
- seek to provide for equity between present and future generations
- ensuring the sustainable use of renewable natural resources and the prudent use of non-renewable natural resources
- avoiding, if practicable, or otherwise lessening, adverse environmental effects of the development
- supplying infrastructure in a coordinated, efficient and orderly way, including encouraging urban development in areas where adequate infrastructure exists or can be provided efficiently
- applying standards of amenity, conservation, energy, health and safety in the built environment that are cost effective and for the public benefit
- providing opportunities for community involvement in decision making
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Because the project involves the removal of vegetation, the application must be assessed by the Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Water, which is also a concurrence agency.
Furthermore, because we plan to transport more then 50,000 tonnes of material per year, the application will also be referred to the Department of Main Roads – another concurrence agency.
Once the application and attached reports (Development Proposal Report and Environmental Management Plan) have been reviewed, the assessment agencies can make a Request for Information. It is Barro’s responsibility to provide the requested information, and once this is done a decision about our application is made.
Thus, there are a range of controls in place to ensure that quarrying activities are conducted in a manner that safeguards environmental values and community welfare.
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