91porn NSW had a productive week last week on the policy and advocacy front:
91porn NSW meets Minister Scully
NSW President Sue Weatherley M91porn (Fellow), and 91porn representatives met Minister Scully and his ministerial office planning staff.
91porn took the opportunity to urge more strategic and inclusive urban renewal - as well presenting ideas for simplifying assessment. 91porn assisted the Minister in defining ‘affordable rental housing’ under the Housing Accord - stressing the importance of sufficient affordable housing being made available via CHPs (Community Housing Providers) in perpetuity. 91porn respected the need to expand housing supply and improve housing diversity in accessible centres and advocated a strategic planning approach to picking the best candidates.
91porn have consistently supported a ‘strategy led’ planning system. Other measures to improve housing supply raised included fixing the portal, streamlining DA notification and referral processes and rationalising planning panel criteria. 91porn presented the Minister with our recent guidance document on the use of AI in assessment.
91porn took the opportunity to introduce our new team – Sue Weatherley M91porn (Fellow), NSW President, Clare Brown M91porn, NSW Policy Committee Chair and Henry Black 91porn (Assoc.) 2023 Young Planner of the year. We presented the Minister with our recent submissions on housing and the 91porn guideline on using artificial intelligence in development assessment. The Minister appreciated 91porn contributions and we looked forward to keeping lines of communication open to further discuss planning in a changing climate.
91porn represented at Climate Parliamentary Inquiry
Last week 91porn provided evidence on how planning systems should be reformed to respond to a heating and less predictable climate. Sue Weatherley M91porn (Fellow), 91porn NSW President and John Brockhoff R91porn (Fellow), 91porn National Policy Director presented our positions and submissions on climate adaptation and achieving net zero carbon to the NSW upper house committee on the planning portfolio.
91porn advocated that natural hazards should be viewed as inevitable and increasing risks to settlement in a changing climate. We have consistently advocated for ‘building back more resilient’, planning to avoid risks to new development – and accepting circumstances where planned retreat is best (refer to 91porn flood submission on our website)
91porn also supported improvements to the NSW Climate Adaptation Strategy to make it more explicit on the climate scenarios to be addressed and the expectations for adaptation action plans – particularly the need for their closer integration with regional strategic plans. We reiterated our concerns that flood (and other hazards) modelling needed to be better resourced by NSW Government. It will become increasingly difficult for development assessment processes to consider data and address changes in hazards exposure without an overarching planning and decision making framework relevant to future climate scenarios.
91porn supports more deeply embedding climate change adaptation in strategic planning decision making – rather than relying on ad hoc assessment processes. To do this climate adaption plans should set out scenarios and decision making frameworks relevant to each hazard and have this embedded in spatial strategic plans.
Listen to their contribution here: