40736 Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011
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Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011-2021 August 2014 edition Our waterways - valued, healthy, enjoyed. For further information www.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au (07) 5475 7272 Sunshine Coast Council™ is a registered trademark of Sunshine Coast Regional Council. © Sunshine Coast Regional Council 2009-current. Adopted by Council February 2011. Revised August 2014, due to Sunshine Coast Local Government Area boundary amendments. Acknowledgements Sunshine Coast Regional Council acknowledges the Traditional Owners of land across the Sunshine Coast and recognises their rich culture and intrinsic connection to the land and sea that stretches back over thousands of years. Council also wishes to thank all interested stakeholders for their valuable contributions towards the development of the Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011–2021. Disclaimer Information contained in this document is based on available information at the time of writing. All figures and diagrams are indicative only and should be referred to as such. This is a strategic document which deals with technical matters in a summary way only. Council or its officers accept no responsibility for any loss occasioned to any person acting or refraining from acting in reliance upon any material contained in this document. 2 Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011-2021 Table of contents 1 Executive Summary 44 Challenges 26 2 Background 8 4.1 Accommodating population 28 2.1 Waterways and coastal 10 growth and demand foreshores at a glance 4.2 Preparing for climate change 28 2.2 What are healthy waterways and 14 4.3 Managing the total water cycle 28 coastal foreshores? 4.4 Managing the quality of runoff 29 2.3 Legislative and policy framework 15 4.5 Managing groundwater 30 2.3.1 International, federal and state 15 4.6 Minimising other impacts on waterways 30 framework 4.7 Maintaining riparian and in-stream health 30 2.3.2 Sunshine Coast Council policy 16 4.8 Managing constructed water bodies 32 framework 4.9 Managing for coastal hazards 32 3 Values 19 4.10 Managing coastal lagoons 33 3.1 Ecological values 20 4.11 Managing coastal algal blooms, 33 3.1.1 Aquatic, riparian and coastal 20 weeds and pest animals ecosystems 5 Strategic Directions 34 3.1.2 Unique species and habitat 20 5.1 Waterways and coastal foreshores vision 36 3.2 Social values 22 5.2 Framework, principles, objectives and 36 3.2.1 Cultural heritage 22 strategic outcomes 3.2.2 Recreation and open space 23 6 Implementation 48 3.2.3 Active community, industry and 24 6.1 Partnerships 50 stakeholder groups 6.2 Funding 50 3.2.4 Coastal protection 24 6.3 Knowledge management 51 3.3 Economic values 24 6.4 Reporting 51 3.3.1 Tourism drawcard 24 7 Maps 52 3.3.2 Attractive setting for business and 24 8 Glossary 70 residential settlement 9 References 76 3.3.3 Primary industries 25 3.3.4 Extractive industries 25 3.3.5 On-site fill extraction for urban 25 development 3.3.6 Water supply 25 Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011-2021 3 4 Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011-2021 Section 1 Executive Summary Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011-2021 5 1 Executive summary The Sunshine Coast Council (Council) is committed The role of the Strategy is to: to the effective management of its waterways and coastal foreshores. Council’s corporate vision is Inform Council planning and operational activities and the development and implementation of for the Sunshine Coast to be 'Australia’s most the new Sunshine Coast planning scheme. sustainable region – vibrant, green, diverse'. Healthy waterways and foreshores are a critical Guide Council decision making and component of this vision and the Corporate Plan community initiatives. 2009-2014 identifi es these as a high priority.1 Drive a range of strategies and actions that will To assist in achieving its vision, Council has prepared the deliver the vision. Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Engage the community and key stakeholders to Strategy (the Strategy), which outlines key values, build and consolidate the partnerships and challenges and strategic directions to guide future resources required to make a difference. planning and implementation. The Sunshine Coast’s waterways and coastal foreshores include: • five major catchment areas: Maroochy and Mooloolah Rivers, Pumicestone Passage and its tributaries and the headwaters of the Mary and Stanley Rivers (see Figure 2.1). The Sunshine Coast region also includes a small section of the southern headwaters of the Noosa River (see Map 7.1) • a variety of permanent and intermittent (i.e. temporary) wetlands • a diverse range of ecosystems and fauna • coastal lagoons including Stumers Creek, Currimundi Lake, Coondibah Creek and Tooway Creek and other coastal streams • numerous constructed lakes, ponds and canals • approximately 130 kilometres of coastal foreshores stretching from Bribie Island to Coolum, including beaches, dune systems, rocky headlands, Mudjimba Island and near-shore marine environments. Waterways and coastal foreshores are valuable assets that provide multiple environmental, social and economic benefits. The Sunshine Coast’s waterways include unique and valuable aquatic ecosystems and play a major role in sustaining terrestrial environments. Moreover, they are fundamental to the coastal lifestyle that we all enjoy and they support many of the industries that contribute to the Sunshine Coast’s economy. 1 Sunshine Coast Council has adopted a new Corporate Plan 2014-2019 post the adoption of this Strategy in 2011. Refer to Grey mangrove (Avicennia marina) Council’s website for updated details. 6 Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011-2021 Our waterways and coastal foreshores are under determine community confidence and maintain the pressure from a range of management challenges efficiency and effectiveness of investments. This process including population growth and climate change. will allow the Strategy to be reviewed and modified where These challenges have potentially serious environmental, necessary to ensure that management initiatives continue economic and social consequences for a community to address relevant issues. highly reliant on these assets. These challenges are important considerations when developing waterway and coastal management initiatives to maintain healthy waterways and coastal foreshores, and the businesses that rely on them. The Strategy provides a framework and direction for the management of natural waterways, constructed water bodies and coastal foreshores. Because they are inherently different, each of these three water types is addressed separately and each has its own vision, principles, objectives and strategic outcomes. The vision of the Strategy is that: The Sunshine Coast’s waterways and coastal Natural waterway, Mary River foreshores are ecologically healthy, well-managed assets that underpin our livelihoods and lifestyles. Major deliverables under this Strategy include the development of: • holistic and integrated catchment and estuary management plans for each of the Sunshine Coast’s catchments • marine zones for the Maroochy and Mooloolah River estuaries and Pumicestone Passage Constructed water body, Mooloolaba Canals • a total water cycle management plan for the Sunshine Coast • a management framework and associated strategic asset management plan for constructed water bodies • a coastal land management plan for the Sunshine Coast and associated shoreline erosion management plans covering the entire coastline. Implementation of the Strategy will draw upon and consolidate the strengths of past waterways planning and on-ground achievements, while respecting differences in catchment pressures and waterway health. Implementation will also incorporate a monitoring, evaluation and reporting program, which is crucial to Coastal foreshore, Mudjimba Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011-2021 7 8 Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011-2021 Section 2 Background Sunshine Coast Waterways and Coastal Management Strategy 2011-2021 9 2 Background The Sunshine Coast’s waterways and coastal 2.1 Waterways and coastal foreshores (Figure 2.1) are central to the area’s foreshores at a glance relaxed, water-based lifestyle, wherein surfi ng, fi shing and swimming are popular leisure activities. A summary of Sunshine Coast waterways (including The Sunshine Coast community relies on these natural waterways and constructed water bodies) and assets, which attract millions of visitors each year. coastal foreshores, including definitions and their spatial extent follows. As such, the health of our waterways and coastal foreshores is critical to the local economy and the Natural waterways livelihoods and lifestyles of residents. Natural waterways are defined as watercourses, lakes and wetlands, including their beds, banks and adjoining buffers, where: • watercourses are freshwater or tidal rivers, creeks or other streams in which water flows permanently or intermittently, in a natural or modified channel, or in an artificial channel that has changed the course of the stream • lakes are wide, open-water ecosystems that are recharged by watercourses or groundwater • wetlands are vegetated, swamp- or marsh-like ecosystems that are permanently or intermittently inundated by water. Natural waterways are important landscape elements which provide a range of critical natural functions, including fauna