BLUE MOUNTAINS STATE OF CITY REPORT 2008 – 2012
Blue Mountains City Council acknowledges that the City of Blue Mountains is located on the traditional lands of Darug and Gundungurra people.
In addition, Blue Mountains City Council (BMCC) recognises the unique position Aboriginal people have in the history and culture of the Blue Mountains. It is acknowledged that Aboriginal people in the Blue Mountains have strong and ongoing connections to their traditional lands, cultures, heritage and history. Aboriginal people are recognised as the “Traditional Owners of the land” and it is important that this unique position is incorporated into BMCC’s community protocols, official ceremonies and events.
BMCC’s acknowledgement and observance of Aboriginal cultural protocols demonstrates respect and commitment to equal partnerships with the local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.
© Blue Mountains City Council November 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 2 of 139
TABLE OF CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4 INTRODUCTION 8 BACKGROUND 9 ABOUT THIS REPORT 17 LOOKING AFTER ENVIRONMENT 19 USING LAND & MOVING AROUND 44 LOOKING AFTER PEOPLE 81 SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY 117 CIVIC LEADERSHIP 134
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 3 of 139
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Introduction
The 2008‐2012 State of City (SOC) report documents progress of the City against the objectives set out in our Community Strategic Plan, Sustainable Blue Mountains 2025 (SBM 2025). It is designed to assess progress achieved by all stakeholders – community, Council, other government and non‐ government agencies and to inform the legislatively required periodic updating of the Community Strategic Plan.
The SOC report is set out under the key directions of SBM 2025, which includes ‘Looking after Environment, Using Land and Moving Around, Sustainable Economy, Looking after People and Providing Good Government’. It meets the State of Environment (SOE) requirements of the Local Government Act 1993 – SECT 428A as well as providing a comprehensive view of the state of the City by also covering social, built environment, economic and civic leadership.
A diversity of projects that have been implemented by Council and other stakeholders to help the City progress towards its sustainability goals, are documented in this report. These programs range from the ‘Save our Swamps program,’ which is helping to conserve endangered swamp species through to the work of the Aboriginal Health Coalition which is establishing a coordinated service of health care for aboriginal people.
More than 30 ‘State of City’ measures are used to ascertain whether the City’s natural, built, human and social capital or assets have been strengthened or eroded. This measurement focus is important as it highlights ‐ regardless of the action taken by different stakeholders ‐ what the condition of the natural, social and built assets and capital underpinning our quality of life is.
The trend data measures have been drawn from a number of sources and presented in detail on separate data sheets in the report. It is important to note that a number of trends experienced in the LGA such as increasing incidence of diabetes and increasing number of threatened species are trends that are occurring across NSW as well as Australia.
The measures used reflect measures for which trend data is available. There are many measures for which data is not available. The intent of the report is to focus attention on key areas that reflect on our progress in becoming a more sustainable City.
What does the trend data show?
Looking after Environment
The measures for ‘Looking after Environment’ demonstrate a number of changing factors in the natural environment. The number of species and ecological communities listed under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act (1995) has been increasing. Urban waterways, although increasing in number of monitoring sites with ‘good to very good’ water quality ratings, are not meeting the community’s expectations in terms of cleanliness.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 4 of 139
In the Local Government Area, large contributors to greenhouse emissions and therefore climate, change include landfills, vehicle use, and electricity consumption. There has been a slight decrease in average truck numbers on the Great Western Highway. However the number of registered vehicles in the LGA has increased by 14% over the last 10 years. With the introduction of the new recycling bin, the waste entering landfill has reduced. Street‐lighting, a large consumer of electricity in the Local Government Area (LGA) has shown a negligible increase. Using Land and Moving Around
A number of measures are used to show the current condition of key built assets. This data has recently become available as a result of extensive work on asset management planning for the City. In future years the aim will be to track our progress in maintaining and / or improving the condition of our built assets. Results from annual community surveys indicate that the community is relatively satisfied with heritage, building development and cemeteries and ashes placement services. The percentage of medium density housing which allows for population growth in town centres has shown a marginal increase (1%). Public toilets, however are not meeting the community’s expectations.
Measures to show the impact of urban development on the natural environment are limited. The number of properties connected to the mains sewerage system has increased reducing the potential of sewage overflows to local waterways. Data to show the extent of land which is still vegetated in the urban footprint will become available in 2013. Measures to demonstrate accessible, integrated and sustainable transport have trended in varying directions. More train stations are now wheelchair accessible, however only 5 out of 15 stations are wheel chair accessible. The number of railway stations with bike lockers has not increased but the distance of off‐road shared footpaths (cycle‐ways and footpaths) has increased by 2.7km. Residents are also happy with pedestrian access to shopping centres and community facilities. The safety and maintenance of roads is showing more negative trends. The community is not satisfied with traffic safety or the condition of our sealed roads. There has been some increase in distance of link roads completed over the reporting period.
Looking after People
The health and well being of the community is showing some signs of deterioration. Although the rate of people hospitalised due to obesity has stabilised, numbers hospitalised due to diabetes and alcohol have increased. The index of relative socio‐economic disadvantage shows that the proportion of residents in the LGA who are disadvantaged in terms of income, educational attainment and unemployment has increased.
Data to measure how safe, caring and inclusive our community is shows varying trends. Earlier data indicates that people do feel a sense of belonging in the community and do have a person to turn to in times of crisis. However the number of one person households has increased, increasing the potential for people to feel vulnerable and isolated. Although the community is satisfied with protection from bushfires and other emergencies, nearly 50% of fire trails are assessed to be in poor condition. Data to assess the ‘City as a centre of culture and creativity’ shows fairly positive trends. The community is satisfied with cultural and arts facilities despite less than 50% of cultural physical assets
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 5 of 139 being assessed as in good condition. The community is also fairly satisfied with protection of heritage in the city.
The population has grown slightly and is ageing. All age groups below 50 have decreased in size with the greatest reduction occurring from those in the ‘young workforce’ age bracket at 25 to 34 years of age.
Sustainable Economy Although the Gross Regional Product of the Blue Mountains LGA has grown, the economic diversity of the area has declined. Employment conditions have shown some deterioration, with less residents working in the LGA that at previous times. The community has also been unsatisfied with local employment opportunities. In terms of vocational learning opportunities, the data shows more positive trends. More people in the LGA now have some level of qualification. There number of numbers of households with internet access has also increased by 15% between 2006 and 2011.
Summary of trend data
A table summarising how the city is progressing in terms of the trend data is given on the following page.
DOING WELL NOT DOING WELL
Looking after Environment
Increasing number of monitoring sites with good to More threatened plant and animal species very good water quality ratings More endangered ecological communities Emissions from street lighting has remained steady Urban creeks and waterways are not perceived to be Waste entering landfill has decreased clean Truck numbers have decreased slightly More registered vehicles, increasing greenhouse emissions
Using Land and Moving Around
Community pleased with heritage, building Traffic safety is an issue in the community development and Burials and Ashes placement Residents are not satisfied with sealed roads Medium density housing has increased Public toilets do not meet community expectations Number of properties connected to sewage has increased More train stations are now wheelchair accessible Cycle‐ways are increasing Residents happy with pedestrian access to shopping centres and community facilities Distance of link roads is increasing
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 6 of 139
DOING WELL NOT DOING WELL
Looking after People
Hospitalisation due to obesity has not increased Hospitalisations due to diabetes have increased People have a sense of belonging and person to turn Hospitalisations due to alcohol have increased to in times of crisis More residents are disadvantaged socio economically Community satisfied with cultural and arts facilities Less young people living in the City Community satisfied with protection of heritage
Sustainable Economy
Real Gross Regional Product has increased There is less economic diversity More people with qualifications Less people are working locally Number of households with internet access has Finding local employment is more difficult increased
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 7 of 139
INTRODUCTION
This State of City (SOC) reports on how well our Blue Mountains Local Government Area is progressing in relation to the objectives of the community strategic plan, Sustainable Blue Mountains 2025 (SBM 2025). SBM 2025 includes community objectives for environmental, social, economic, civic and built assets. The SOC report is prepared at the end of each four‐year Council term to assess progress achieved not only by council but by all stakeholders. Incorporated within this State of City report is the State of Environment (SOE) report. The SOE report is documented in accordance with the Local Government Act 1993‐SECT 428A. It is presented in the section of the report called Natural Environment – Looking After Environment, in which the typical SOE components, namely biodiversity, water, waste, climate, resource use, natural disasters and pollution events are discussed. Other subjects covered by SOE reporting such as land use, heritage, community education and transport are covered under the key directions, ‘Looking after People’ and ‘ Using Land and Moving Around.’ Trend data for measures developed to assess the progress of the city towards its environmental, social, economic and civic goals is presented and analysed. Key actions that have helped progress the city towards its strategic goals for each Direction are also documented.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 8 of 139
BACKGROUND
About Blue Mountains Local Government Area
The City of Blue Mountains is located on the western fringe of metropolitan Sydney ranging from 60 to 120 kilometres west of the Sydney GPO. The local government area covers 143,000 hectares of land, dominated by more than 1,000 square kilometres of World Heritage National Park, which constitutes some 70% of the City. Approximately 11 per cent of the total land area is in private ownership and available for human settlement.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 9 of 139
Urban development is predominantly residential and characterised by a string of 27 discreet towns and villages located primarily along the rail and road corridor running east‐west through the mountains. There are small pockets of rural development in Sun Valley to the east and Megalong Valley to the west.
The 2011 Census recorded a resident population for the Blue Mountains of 75,942, living in 33,348 dwellings. There has been a modest population increase of 2,858 people since 2006 when the population was 73,084.
The graph below highlights that the City of Blue Mountains has the lowest growth rate of all local government areas in Greater Sydney.
BLUE MOUNTAINS (West)
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 10 of 139
The graph below shows provides an overview of the distribution of the population in 2011 by age group:
Blue Mountains Population by Age-Group - 2011 Census
80‐84 years
70‐74 years
60‐64 years
50‐54 years
40‐44 years
30‐34 years
20‐24 years
10‐14 years
0‐4 years 0 1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000 6,000 7,000
Although the total population numbers have not changed much, the composition or structure of the Blue Mountains population has changed over time. There are two significant structural characteristics that will impact on the Blue Mountains community in coming years:
Population Ageing: The ageing of the population is typical for most first world nations including Australia nationally, and the Blue Mountains LGA. The older population groups include people who have ongoing residential status in the Blue Mountains and others who have relocated as a retirement choice. In 2011 there were 23,359 people aged 55 and over (Seniors) living in the Blue Mountains. This represents 30.75% of the total population. This population group is projected to rise to around 26,151 by 2021, which represents about 33.45% of the projected total population.
Loss of young workforce: Along with the loss of post‐school aged young people, who leave the mountains to attend tertiary institutions the City of the Blue Mountains has low representation in younger workers. There are limited opportunities for employment in the Blue Mountains and many people travel to work outside of the LGA. The Blue Mountains also has a high percentage of people who work part time only, as demonstrated in the following table:
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 11 of 139
Blue New South
Employment Mountains % % Australia % Wales (C)
People who reported being in the labour force, aged 15 years and over
Worked full-time 21,069 56.2 2,007,924 60.2 6,367,554 59.7
Worked part-time 12,478 33.3 939,465 28.2 3,062,976 28.7
Away from work 2,058 5.5 190,944 5.7 627,797 5.9
Unemployed 1,853 4.9 196,525 5.9 600,133 5.6
Total in labour force 37,458 -- 3,334,858 -- 10,658,460 --
There are some significant differences in the structure of the Blue Mountains population compared with that of Greater Sydney. These include:
A larger percentage of 'Older workers & pre‐retirees' (15.8% compared to 12.2%)
A larger percentage of 'Empty nesters and retirees' (12.5% compared to 9.0%)
A larger percentage of 'Seniors' (8.3% compared to 7.2%)
A smaller percentage of 'Young work‐force' (9.2% compared to 15.4%)
This is clearly demonstrated in the following table: Age and Sex Pyramid, 2011:
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 12 of 139
Development of the Community Strategic Plan
Between 2000 and 2003 an extensive community engagement and planning initiative was implemented culminating in the development of the 25 Year City Vision and Map for Action: Towards A More Sustainable Blue Mountains. Over 6000 people, representative of the Blue Mountains community, special needs groups, community organisations and government agency representatives, were engaged in shaping a Vision for the future of the City of Blue Mountains through workshops, focus groups, surveys, community events and public exhibition processes.
In July 2003 Council adopted the community endorsed 25‐year Vision and Map for Action as the policy framework for all stakeholders operating in the Blue Mountains. Concurrently, a set of measures that could monitor and determine progress was established. These measures are reflected in this State of City Report which aims to track our progress against the objectives set in Sustainable Blue Mountains 2025.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 13 of 139
The first major reviews of progress in becoming a more sustainable City were undertaken in 2007 and 2009 and resulted in the 2009 State of City Report, City of Blue Mountains.
In 2010 the NSW State Government introduced new Integrated Planning and Reporting legislation which required all Council to have long term Community Strategic Plans similar to our existing City Vision and Map for Action. In responding to this legislation the Map for Action was further reviewed and retitled Sustainable Blue Mountains 2025 (SBM 2025) The Community Strategic Plan provides direction for all stakeholders, including state and federal agencies and non‐government services to work together in response to the community endorsed vision of being a sustainable City socially, economically and environmentally.
Community Vision
SBM 2025 expresses the community’s main priorities and aspirations for the future. The community vision is presented in SBM 2025 as follows:
In 2025 we live in vibrant, healthy communities
Our towns and villages are distinctive and contained
We have maintained the bush between our settlements and protected the World Heritage environment that surrounds us
Our local economy is strong and diversified, providing employment and educational opportunities appropriate to our location in a World Heritage area.
We promote safe accessible and environmentally responsible ways for people to get where they need to go
Caring for each other, we sustain our communities. We recognise all Blue Mountains people especially our children and young people in whom we inspire the values that create a more sustainable future
We use our available resources wisely, ensuring their fair distribution
We celebrate the rich creativity, culture and heritage of the Blue Mountains
People of all cultures and backgrounds are respected and enjoy equal rights
We acknowledge the Aboriginal communities in the Blue Mountains
We have enhanced our Blue Mountains identity while forging strong regional partnerships. Our civic and community leadership and governance are inspirational and at one with community
The Blue Mountains is recognised nationally and internationally as a centre of excellence for learning about sustainable communities
Blue Mountains Sustainability Model
The model on the following page presents the Blue Mountains Sustainability model. This model is
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 14 of 139 based on the notion that all forms of life operate within one dynamic system. Within this system, there are natural, social/ human and built capital or assets that support our quality of life and the health of the planet. These are depicted in the triangle at the base of the model. As depicted in the top half of the model, achieving a more sustainable Blue Mountains requires action at all levels – individual, household, local and regional – that is environmentally responsible, fair and equitable, which uses resources wisely and efficiently and which contributes to liveable, vibrant and creative communities with a sense of place and belonging.
The model highlights the importance of understanding whether the actions we take are strengthening or eroding the natural, social/ human and built assets supporting our quality of life in the Blue Mountains. The following principles therefore underpin the model and our strategic plan of action ‐ Sustainable Blue Mountains 2025:
Improving our decision‐making processes at every level If we are to achieve a more sustainable Blue Mountains then our decision making and action at every level – individual, household, town, city, regional, global – needs to promote sustainability. Improving our decision‐making is therefore a key driver for achieving more sustainable action. Understanding the condition of our natural, built and social capital
It is important that action taken protects rather than erodes the essential natural, built and social capital or assets supporting our quality of life. Understanding the condition or state of this capital is important in tracking our progress in becoming a more sustainable City.
Building partnerships
Taking action in partnership with other stakeholders is critical to the achievement of a more sustainable Blue Mountains. Not only do such partnerships achieve shared visions and goals, they also enable more effective and efficient use of limited resources and provide a means of distributing the costs involved in taking action.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 15 of 139
Blue Mountains Sustainability Model
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 16 of 139
ABOUT THIS REPORT
Layout of the report
The SOC report is set out under the Key Direction framework of the SBM 2025 plan, as follows:
Natural Environment – Looking after Environment
Built Environment – Using Land and Moving Around
Social – Looking after people
Economic – Sustainable Economy
Civic Leadership – Providing Good Government For each key direction the objectives and strategies to achieve these objectives as identified by the community in SBM 2025 are presented. Many of these objectives and strategies align with the NSW Plan.
An assessment of how the city is progressing in relation to the trend data is presented. Key initiatives implemented by council as well as other stakeholders which have brought about on the ground changes in relation to each community objective are also documented.
Trend data
The trend data or measures used in this report are “state” or condition based measures. They provide an indication of how well the City is strengthening or eroding the natural, human, social and built capital or assets that under pin the City’s quality of life.
Most of the measures used are those identified in SBM 2025. The trend data is drawn from a variety of sources such as the Australian Bureau of Statistics Census data, NSW Ministry of Health, NSW Department of Transport, State Rail, Sydney Water, Blue Mountains City Council records and the Blue Mountains Community Surveys.
The measures are quantitative (time series data / Census etc), qualitative (Community Survey) and spatial (MapInfo / Census). The available data from the 2011 Australian Bureau of Statistics census data has been used in this report.
The availability of data to assess the State of City is limited. There are many important issues or aspects of the City such as the extent of feral animals or the condition of storm water assets and air quality for which there is no readily available data and hence these aspects are not reported on.
The provision of data is also not always regular. For instance data sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) census is only available every five years and often the actual measure itself changes over time or is not repeated in concurrent surveys.
Trend data is assumed for at least 2 annual data points over a period of at least five years. The trend data is shown in terms of whether it is moving in a desired direction or an undesired direction by the following arrows:
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 17 of 139
The 2012 data recorded by Council on condition of built assets also informs the report. Commentary is only made on asset condition data that is considered to have at least ‘medium’ reliability.
Detailed analysis of the trend data is shown on the data sheets at the end of each Key Direction chapter. Details on the data showing condition of built assets can be found in the ‘End of Council Term Report 2008‐2012.’
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 18 of 139
LOOKING AFTER ENVIRONMENT
Overview
The City of Blue Mountains is one of only two cities in the world that is wholly contained within a designated World Heritage Area. Geologically it is dominated by the Hawkesbury Sandstone formation in the east and the Narrabeen Sandstone formation in the west. Urban development occurs mainly on its ridgelines and plateau surfaces. The National Park covers approximately 74% of the landscape, and the total protected bushland area is 88%. The different geology, soil types, climates and altitudes of the area have combined to produce a high level of diversity among the flora and fauna within the region. A study by Smith and Smith (1995) revealed that 327 species of native animals and 946 species of native plants occurred in the LGA. A number of plant and animal species as well as ecological communities occurring in the area are listed under the NSW threatened Species Conservation Act 1995. Substantial areas of the natural environment have been protected not only by the inclusion in the National Park but also by the creation of Environmental Protection Zones and Protected Areas under the Local Environmental Plans (2005)
The Blue Mountains LGA lies completely in the Hawkesbury – Nepean catchment, which supplies 97% of the drinking water to Sydney. An area of 21300 ha in the LGA is designated drinking water supply catchment. The LGA is rich in creeks and waterways and groundwater resources. These water bodies support all biodiversity in the mountains, inclusive of the endangered hanging swamp communities.
There are many pressures on biodiversity and waterways and these include but are not limited to land clearing, predation from both feral and domesticated animals, the infiltration of weeds, the incidence of high frequency fires and effects of urban stormwater pollution, extraction of groundwater, sewage overflows and release of effluent into streams by sewage treatment plants and water consumption.
Although air quality in the Blue Mountains is generally good, hazard reduction burning, domestic wood heating and diesel vehicle emissions are causes of air pollution in the LGA.
The combustion of fossil fuels, clearing of forests and decomposition of waste in landfills are increasing levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere both locally and globally. This is contributing to global warming and an increase in extreme weather events. A climate change risk assessment study was undertaken of the LGA in 2009. The study showed that the most significant risk facing the region was the threat of bushfires (both in regards to human safety and the natural
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 19 of 139 environment) with over 40 000 residents living in the high bushfire risk area. Other threats included damage from extreme weather events such as wind and hail storms as well as heatwaves.
SBM 2025 Community Objectives and Strategies
The objectives and associated strategies identified by the community for this key direction in SBM 2025 are shown in Table 1.
Table 1. Objectives and strategies for Looking After Environment, SBM 2025
OBJECTIVES STRATEGIES
The diversity of native flora Protect and nurture the different flora, fauna and ecological and fauna is maintained* communities of the Blue Mountains
Manage the urban‐bushland interface to minimise urban development impacts The health of waterways Care for waterways and catchments* and water catchments is maintained and enhanced* Focus on how best to conserve groundwater
City activities contribute to Implement initiatives that address climate change* maintaining a healthy climate* Reduce reliance on private motor vehicles
Resources are used in an Waste minimisation – avoid, reduce and reuse waste* environmentally responsible way* Encourage low consumption environmentally aware lifestyles
Conserve and recycle water and encourage water sensitive urban design*
Reduce energy consumption and increase the use of renewable energy*
* Asterisk indicates alignment with 2010 NSW State Plan
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 20 of 139
Pollution Events and Natural Disasters
This section describes major natural and pollution events that occurred over the 2008‐2012 reporting period.
Toxic Spill at Leura Cascades
In October 2011 a truck accident resulted in a spill of approximately 12,500 litres of the hydraulic fluid ‘Quintolubric’ into a section of the Council’s stormwater system that drains into an upper tributary of Leura Falls Creek. In order to contain the spill, Council staff built a sandbag dam and approximately 38,000 litres of contaminated water was pumped into two suction tankers for appropriate disposal.
The Council implemented a post‐spill environmental monitoring program to assess the impact of the chemical on water quality in Leura Falls Creek, creek line vegetation, terrestrial animals, macroinvertebrates and other aquatic life. Initial results suggested that the creek’s macroinvertebrate community and some water quality parameters had been adversely impacted by the spill, though it was difficult to separate this from other urban impacts. Ongoing monitoring will track any recovery of the creek that may occur. For more information see Council’s Leura Falls Creek Catchment Condition & Management Report, 2012.
Frothy Leura Cascades following Quintolubric spill 2011 Wind Storm Event
Destructive winds of up to 140km/hour struck the Blue Mountains for 3 days from Tuesday 5 July 2011. The region was declared a natural disaster zone with a massive emergency response by the SES, RFS and the Council. The wind storm caused extensive damage to civil, rail and road infrastructure in the City and to residential homes and properties. The Council's emergency response and recovery efforts included clean up and recovery of public lands and assets and repair of significantly damaged Council infrastructure.
Eucalypt tree down after windstorm in 2011
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 21 of 139
Monitoring Progress against Community Objectives
In this section an assessment of the city’s progress in terms of the State of City measures developed for each community objective for ‘Looking after Environment’ is provided. A summary of the trend data for each of the ‘State of City’ measures is shown in Table 2. The 2012 data recorded by Council on condition of relevant built assets is also provided in Table 3. More detailed explanation and analysis of the data for ‘State of City’ measures is provided on the Data Sheets in the next section.
Table 2. Summary of trend data for the Key Direction, Environment – Natural Environment.
Community State of City Measure Most Desirable Observed Data Objective recent Trend Trend sheet year of number data
The diversity of native Number of threatened plant and flora and fauna is animal species in the Blue 2012 1 maintained Mountains
Number of endangered ecological communities in the Blue Mountains 2012 2
The health of % of urban water monitoring sites waterways and water with quality ratings of ‘good’‐‘very 2011 3 catchments is good’ (SIGNAL‐SF scores) maintained and enhanced’ The % difference between resident satisfaction with and their 2012 4 importance rating for clean creeks and waterways
City activities Number of truck movements on the contribute to Great Western Highway 2011 5 maintaining a healthy climate Number of registered vehicles 2011 6
Green house emissions from Street Lighting 2012 7
Resources are used in Proportion of residents undertaking an environmentally sustainability actions 2010 8 responsible way
Amount of waste to landfill 2011/2012 9
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 22 of 139
The diversity of native flora and fauna is maintained
The Blue Mountains LGA contains a steadily increasing number of species which are being listed as threatened species under both NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act and the Commonwealth Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. The number of species of animals and plants that are listed as threatened in the Blue Mountains has increased from 67 species to 97 species over the last ten years. Over the same period, the number of ecological communities that are listed as endangered has increased from 3 to 7 ecological communities.
It is important to note that these increases are considered to be largely due to improved monitoring of ecological communities and plant and animal species, as well as due to ongoing degradation of these communities and species across the state, rather than solely reflecting degradation at the local level.
One of the Endangered Ecological Communities in LGA is listed as critically endangered. This community called the Sun Valley Cabbage Gum Forest occurs only on the diatreme soils at Sun Valley. Although there is still a good cover of remnant trees and some regeneration occurring, much of the forest has been cleared for timber and grazing. The understorey has also been highly modified by grazing and disturbance. Only about 15 ha of the community remains, mostly in poor condition (NSW Department of Environment and Heritage 2102).
The health of waterways and water catchments is maintained and enhanced
The measure used for water quality is based on the macro‐invertebrate data. The data shows that the majority of urban waterways in the Blue Mountains consistently falls within the ‘good’‐‘very good’ categories for this measure. However compared to reference sites the urban sites do show signs of degradation. For more detailed analysis of results, refer to Council’s Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Sampling Program reports at www.bmcc.nsw.gov.au The health of waterways is an important priority for the community. In the IRIS Community Survey 2012 it was the number one priority for the community under the Key Direction, ‘Looking After Environment’ in 2012. Over the last twelve years the gap between level of community importance and satisfaction for ‘clean creeks and waterways’ has reduced but still remains large indicating that community expectations of waterways are not being met. Council manages a vast network of stormwater infrastructure in the LGA. It comprises 153km of pipes, 7,665 pits, 52km of open channels, 2,680 headwalls and 199 Stormwater Quality Improvement Devices (SQUIDs). There is currently no reliable data to what condition these assets are in.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 23 of 139
Table 3. Asset condition data to assess progress under community objectives for ‘Looking After Environment’
Asset Confidence Poor Fair Good in Data
Condition of stormwater assets provided by the Council (pipes, channels, pits, headwalls, SQUIDs) Low 4% 4% 92%
Condition of Blaxland waste management facilities provided by the Council High 15% 0% 85%
City activities contribute to maintaining a healthy climate
As well as adversely impacting air quality, motor vehicles release greenhouse gases which contribute to climate change. Data is available from the Mt Boyce Weigh station for the number of heavy vehicles or trucks (namely rigid trucks, semi‐trailers and 19‐metre B‐Double trucks) using the Great Western Highway. This indicates that on average the numbers of trucks moving both east and west bound on the highway has slightly decreased between 2008 and 2011. The number of registered vehicles in the Blue Mountains increased substantially between the last 2 census years, 2006 and 2011, while the population remained fairly stable indicating that the community is becoming increasing reliant on cars for transport. The main contributors of greenhouse emissions from the city’s landfills are organic materials, such as vegetation, food, paper, cardboard, timber, textiles, leather, rubber and nappies which comprise 44% of the material entering the landfill. Currently trend data is not available on greenhouse emissions from the two landfills in the LGA. However a study undertaken in 2009 by Hyder Consulting estimated that emissions from both Katoomba and Blaxland Landfill, was equivalent to more than 45,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases annually between 2008 and 2012.
A major contributor of indirect greenhouse emissions in the LGA was the use of coal fired power for electricity. Emissions from street lighting under Council’s jurisdiction showed a minimal increase of less than 1% from 3,490 tonnes of CO2e in 2005‐2006 to 3,509 tonnes of CO2e in 2011‐2012.
Resources are used in an environmentally responsible way
An indication of the community’s engagement with using resources wisely was given by the measure, ‘proportion of residents undertaking sustainability actions.’ Between 2008 and 2010 the proportion of residents undertaking sustainability actions increased. Sustainability actions comprised the following:
Recycle paper, plastics, glass and metals Recycle water /use water efficient fixtures /use water from a water tank Maintain a compost heap or worm farm Use non‐car transport for local trips
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 24 of 139
Maintain a vegetable garden Purchase green energy (green power) The improved recovery of resources was demonstrated by the reduction of waste going to landfill. With the introduction of a mobile recycling bin and the expansion of public recycling facilities in Katoomba, the amount of waste entering landfill fell by about 24% over the 11 year monitoring period. The asset condition data shows that the condition of Blaxland Waste Management Facilities is mostly in good condition.
Action highlights for ‐ Looking after Environment
This section highlights key initiatives undertaken by Council as well as other stakeholders, which have helped progress the city towards the community objectives for ‘Looking after Environment’ between 2008 and 2012.
The diversity of native flora and fauna is maintained Maintaining biodiversity
Blue Mountains City Council focused on maintaining the diversity of the native flora and fauna of the Blue Mountains LGA over the 2008‐2012 reporting period through ongoing bush regeneration, wetland and creek line restoration and degraded lands restoration programs. A good example of this work was the Council’s ‘Save our Swamps’ program in which Council undertook 30 swamp restoration projects to restore 18.04 ha of vulnerable Blue Swampcare volunteers tackle weeds invading into a Mountains Swamp Endangered Ecological Blue Mountains Swamp endangered ecological Communities across both public and private community land. Priority was given to swamps containing the endangered and endemic Blue Mountains Water Skink and the Giant Dragonfly.
Another key bush restoration program focused on the endemic and endangered Dwarf Mountain Pine. Creek lines above the specialised waterfall environments where this species lives in Katoomba Falls Reserve, Leura Cascades Reserve, Bonnie Doon Reserve and Jamison Creek Reserve were progressively restored to improve Swampcare volunteers learn how to treat weeds safely water quality and to prevent weed invasion. in sensitive swamp environments
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 25 of 139
The Blue Mountains community contributed in excess of 10,000 volunteer hours to on the ground biodiversity restoration programs on community programs such as Bushcare, Landcare, Swampcare and Streamwatch.
Managing the urban‐bushland interface
Council continued to manage the urban‐bushland interface through their Urban Weeds Control and Bush Regeneration Programs and other environmental restoration works programs protecting significant forests and woodlands across four key Conservation Landscapes in the Blue Mountains.
A particular focus over the reporting period has been the preservation of the Shale Based Endangered Ecological Forest restoration program, in partnership with the National Parks and Wildlife Service and other State Government agencies. These communities occur on both private and public lands across an area extending from Faulconbridge to Lapstone and exist in a specific geological area that supports five unique forest types. Council restoration works which has seen works on 32 sites addressing weed invasion, erosion and sediment mitigation. The program has been supported through funding from the Hawkesbury Nepean Catchment Management Authority (HNCMA) for:
Protection and restoration works of Threatened Ecological Communities (TECs) across Springwood / Winmalee townships
Weed control for Lantana, a "Weed of National Significance", in areas between Faulconbridge and Lapstone
The health of waterways and water catchments is maintained and enhanced
Monitoring water quality
Throughout the 2009‐2012 period, Council continued to monitor the health of waterways in the Blue Mountains sampling some 50 sites along different waterways annually for aquatic macro‐ invertebrates, as well as physical and chemical indicators to measure water quality. An external study conducted by Wright (2012) of 2008‐09 and 2009‐10 data, found that waterways in urbanised Blue Mountains catchments were mildly degraded compared to clean non‐urban reference streams, but were still in superior ecological condition relative to other streams with similar levels of urbanisation in the Sydney basin.
Restoring waterways
Numerous restoration projects of local waterways were undertaken by Council. At Glenbrook Lagoon, a focused weeding program was continued. Salvinia molesta a rampant weed which can regrow quickly from small fragments was kept at bay through ongoing inspections and handpicking. In 2011/12 season approximately 15 litres (4 ice cream buckets) Blue Mountains City Council undertaking waterway restoration work
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 26 of 139 of Salvinia was located and removed from the lagoon, achieving a 98‐99% reduction in the coverage of the weed.
Pope’s Glen Creek, Govett’s Creek, Katoomba Creek, Yosemite Creek, Kedumba Creek, Leura Creek, Wentworth Falls Lake, Jamison Creek, South Lawson Creek, Springwood Creek, Magdala Creek, Fitzgerald Creek and Lapstone Creek are all located in sub‐catchments interfaced by bushland as well as urban and industrial properties. These aquatic systems were observed to be adversely impacted by the modified hydrology and the subsequent urban runoff of urban and industrial development in their upper catchments. In response to this Council undertook creek line restoration works involving erosion and sediment control works and the stabilisation of stream bed and bank erosion utilising a range of soft engineering approaches at 22 sites along these waterways as depicted in the following pictures.
Save our Swamps project
A particularly successful environmental project which gained momentum over the reporting period was the ‘Save our Swamps’ (SOS) project. This Blue Mountains swamp restoration program was funded by Council’s Environmental Levy and a three year NSW Environmental Trust grant. The Project included a public lands swamp restoration program, a Blue Mountains Swamp community awareness raising and education program, a school education program, a private landholder extension and incentive program and an extensive community engagement program. A significant proportion of Blue Mountains Swamps are in private ownership so it is important for the broader community to be aware of the importance of these threatened, endangered ecological communities and ways to protect them. The SOS program is an innovative program which addresses the key threatening processes that are degrading vulnerable Blue Mountains Swamp endangered ecological communities on both public and private land and which fosters community awareness and engagement in protecting these unique and threatened wetland systems of the Blue Mountains.
As part of the SOS project, Council acted as the lead agency in building the capacity of 3 partner Councils, Lithgow City Council, Gosford City Council and Wingecaribee Shire Council, their communities, state agencies, and other landholders and land managers to deliver innovative soft engineering swamp rehabilitation techniques and a whole of catchment approach to dealing with source point threats.
Giant Dragonfly and exudia. Photo by Ian Baird.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 27 of 139
City activities contribute to maintaining a healthy climate
Reducing waste and greenhouse emissions
A major source of direct greenhouse gas pollution in the Blue Mountains is methane gas emanating from decomposing waste in the city’s landfills at Katoomba and Blaxland. As well as garden waste and kitchen scraps, materials that create greenhouse gases in landfill include paper, cardboard and textiles. The Blue Mountains community has diverted an average of 1600 tonnes of paper and cardboard from landfill annually since the introduction of the new kerbside recycling bin collection in 2008.
Increasing energy efficiency and renewable energy use
Numerous energy efficiency measures were installed as part of Council’s Sustainability Capital Works program to reduce Council’s energy consumption and included energy efficient lighting and controls, power factor correction, sealing works and insulation. The Federal Government’s Green Precinct program grant funded two large 9.9kW solar arrays on community buildings increasing Council’s use of renewable energy. A large solar hot water system was also installed on Lawson Swimming Pool. These projects assisted in reducing electricity use by 9% across Council’s buildings and facilities, equivalent to a reduction of 560 tonnes in greenhouse emissions over the reporting period. There was a large expansion of solar arrays installed across the LGA by Council residents as part of the NSW State Government’s Solar Bonus Scheme. Two local tennis clubs, Springwood Tennis club and Wentworth Falls Tennis Club tapped into this scheme by installing small solar array on their building roofs.
Solar panel arrays at Katoomba Civic Centre
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 28 of 139
Resources are used in an environmentally responsible way
Improving resource recovery
A major Council initiative in terms of waste minimisation or resource recovery was the replacement of the open recycling crate with a mobile recycling bin for the kerbside waste collection service in July 2008. This resulted in an increase in recycling material from approximately 6000 tonnes to 9000 tonnes per year and a corresponding reduction in waste going to landfill.
The opening of Katoomba Resource Recovery and Transfer Station in 2010 also improved resource recovery in the LGA, reducing the amount of waste previously transferred for burial to Blaxland landfill from Katoomba. The Transfer Station allowed for the introduction of mattress, soft plastics and textile recycling and increased recycling of green waste, tyres, bricks/masonry and reusable household items. Since the opening of the Katoomba Transfer Station, almost 2000 mattresses have been diverted from landfill in the last 21 months.
Truck collecting recycling waste in the LGA
Encouraging water sensitive urban design
Council progressed a number of initiatives to conserve water use and to encourage water sensitive urban design in partnership with external stakeholders. This was exemplified in late 2010 when Council worked closely with the Roads and Traffic Authority to encourage the inclusion of water sensitive urban design as part of the Lawson Town Centre upgrade. This enabled the provision of large tree planting capacity at the frontage of the Lawson shops which would simultaneously process the first flush of surface run‐off from the large shopping centre car‐park. Not only will the stormwater captured accommodate the growth of unusually large trees there but it will also result in a higher quality of stormwater runoff into local streams, and ultimately the National Park.
Another flagship water sensitive urban design project has been the stormwater harvesting and wetland filtration system installed at Echo Point and funded by the Federal Government’s Green Precincts program grant. Since the 150kL water tank was installed capturing stormwater and recycling this water in the Echo Point toilets, the annual water consumption has reduced by 45% at Echo Point. Wetland filtration system at Echo Point
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 29 of 139
DATA SHEETS FOR LOOKING AFTER ENVIRONMENT
These data sheets explain what we are monitoring, what is the trend, why is monitoring this trend important and the source of data. A linear trend line is drawn through charts of the data to indicate whether the data is trending up or down. For data from the community survey, an additional chart is provided which shows the difference between level of importance that the community place on that measure and level of satisfaction that the community place on that measure as a percentage of their level of importance.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 30 of 139
Data Sheet 1 The number of threatened plants and animals listed on the threatened species register within the Blue Mountains Local Government Area (LGA)
What is the trend?
The NSW Scientific Committee determines which species should be listed as threatened species under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act (1995). Listing is based on factors such as vulnerability and extent of that species across NSW. Hence some threatened species may be stable in the Blue Mountains but threatened on a NSW wide scale and therefore listed. Some species may also be listed because they have a naturally limited distribution making them inherently vulnerable to disturbance.
Data available to monitor biodiversity is limited. In 1995, Smith and Smith reported that there were 327 native animals and 946 native plants in the Blue Mountains local government area. A more recent analysis has not been undertaken and an assessment of the number of new species has not been attempted.
The number of plant and animal species listed as threatened species in the Blue Mountains has increased from 67 in 2000/2001 to 97 in 2011/2012. The increase in the number of threatened plant and animal species in the Blue Mountains since 2001 is considered to be the result of improved understanding of the distribution and threats to individual species, improved listing of threatened species and State wide impacts rather than as a result of adverse conditions in the Blue Mountains.
Number of threatened plant and animal species
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
Financial Year
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 31 of 139
Financial 2000/01 2001/02 2002/03 2003/04 2005/06 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 Year
Number of threatened 67 67 67 70 69 80 86 91 94 97 plants and animals
Why is monitoring this trend important? Conserving biodiversity is an essential part of safeguarding the biological life support systems on Earth. All living creatures, including humans, depend on these life support systems for the necessities of life. For example, humans need oxygen to breathe, clean water to drink, fertile soil for food production and physical materials for shelter and fuel. As the number or diversity of animal and plant species is reduced, the resilience of these biological life support systems or ecosystems is compromised.
The resilience of ecosystems in Australia is currently being reduced by a number of threats, including: habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation invasive species unsustainable use and management of natural resources changes to the aquatic environment and water flows changing fire regimes climate change For ecosystems to be resilient to these and other threats, they need a healthy diversity of individuals, species and populations.
Source: NSW Scientific Committee – Final determination http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/committee/FinalDeterminations.htm
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 32 of 139
Data sheet 2 The number of endangered ecological communities in the Blue Mountains
What is the trend? An ecological community is a group of species that occurs together in a particular geographical area. For example a particular group of plants and animals which lives in a wet swampy location. This measure represents the number of ecological communities listed as Endangered Ecological Communities under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act (1995) which exist in the Blue Mountains and are endangered across NSW. It includes those species that are vulnerable, endangered and critically endangered. Listing is based on factors such as vulnerability of an ecological community as well as extent of the ecological community across NSW. Hence some ecological communities may be stable in the Blue Mountains but actually threatened on a NSW wide scale. Eight endangered ecological communities are now recorded to exist in the Blue Mountains compared to 3 in 2001. This increase is considered to be largely due to improved monitoring and understanding of endangered ecological communities as well as a result of ongoing degradation of the endangered ecological communities at a state level; rather than as a direct result of any significant deterioration in the condition of endangered ecological communities in the Blue Mountains.
Number of endangered ecological communities
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
Year 00/01 01/02 02/03 03/04 05/06 07/08 08/09 09/10 10/11 11/12
No of endangered 3 4 4 4 6 8 8 8 8 8 ecological communities
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 33 of 139
Endangered Ecological Communities in the Blue Mountains
Species Date gazetted Status
Blue Mountains Shale Cap Forest 2000 Endangered
Shale Sandstone Transition Forest 1998 Endangered
Sydney Turpentine Ironbark Forest 1998 Endangered
Sun Valley Cabbage Gum Forest 2001 Critically Endangered
River‐flat Eucalypt Forest 2004 Endangered
Newnes Shrub Swamp 2005 Endangered
Blue Mountains Swamps 2007 Vulnerable
Montane Peatlands and Swamps 2004 Endangered
Why is monitoring this trend important? Ecological communities are specialised habitats which rely on the interaction between species, diversity of species and number of organisms occurring there. Threatened species may occur within ecological communities and hence protecting the community may also ensure that species survival. For example the Blue Mountains Water Skink is found only in upland swamps of the Blue Mountains. Identifying and monitoring threatened ecological communities provides a means of protecting these habitats and the species within them.
Source: NSW Scientific Committee – Final determinatio http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/committee/FinalDeterminations.htm
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 34 of 139
Data Sheet 3
The percentage of urban water monitoring sites with quality ratings of ‘good’ to ‘very good’
What is the trend?
Blue Mountains City Council conducts annual water quality audits of streams and standing water bodies within the urban catchment area using aquatic macro invertebrates as biological indicators. These organisms include mayflies, stoneflies, caddis flies, beetles, dragonflies, worms and crayfish. The types of macro invertebrates found in a system reflect the quality of the stream water and the health of the aquatic ecosystem.
The SIGNAL‐SF system is used to score macro invertebrates according to their sensitivity, with more sensitive families receiving higher scores. Sites are categorised as ‘very good’, ‘good’, ‘fair’, ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’, based on their SIGNAL‐SF scores. www.sustainablebluemountains.net.au/resources/publications/.
In 2011, 89.1% of ‘urban’ sites had ‘good’ SIGNAL‐SF scores (n=46) and 10.9% of urban sites had ‘fair’ SIGNAL‐SF scores.
The majority of ‘urban’ sites have fallen within the ‘good’ category each year since 1999. These results suggest that most of the waterways sampled exhibit consistently good aquatic biodiversity and that the water quality at these sampling sites is improving over time.
% of urban water sampling sites with a good / very good rating 100
90
80
70
Sites 60
% 50
40
30
20 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 35 of 139
Urban Stream Water Quality Ratings – sites rated GOOD or VERY GOOD
Year 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Sites 11 9 12 8 29 41 41 21 42 44 46
% 90.9 55.6 66.6 100 79.3 92.7 82.9 76.2 95.2 86.4 89.1
Why is monitoring this trend important? Monitoring the type and diversity of aquatic macro invertebrates present in Blue Mountains urban streams is an indicator of how well we are progressing in looking after our water resources. Changes in the type and diversity of macro invertebrate families can indicate declining or improving water quality and how healthy local water habitats are. Ideally, the proportion of monitored streams rated good or very good will increase – indicating improvements in water quality and the health of aquatic ecosystems. More detailed information on council’s water surveys is provided in Council’s Aquatic Macro invertebrate Sampling Program 2011 Report, available on the Council website, www.bmcc.nsw.gov.au
Source: Blue Mountains City Council 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 36 of 139
Data Sheet 4 Difference between resident satisfaction and their importance rating for clean creeks and waterways
What is the trend? Residents’ rating of importance for clean creeks and waterways has remained higher than their satisfaction with these assets over the last 12 years.
Clean creeks and waterways ‐ resident satisfaction and importance ratings
5 4 3 2 1 0 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
Although the gap or percentage difference between satisfaction and importance has reduced over time as shown in the chart below, it has averaged 33%. In the last three years, the percentage difference has been 26%. Quadrant and gap analysis conducted by IRIS Community Survey 2012 has also shown that resident expectations for ‘Clean Creeks and Waterways are not being met. It is considered that the health and associated cleanliness of our waterways requires priority attention.
Percentage difference between level of importance and level of satisfaction for clean creeks and waterways
45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Note: The black line is a linear line drawn through the data to show the overall trend.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 37 of 139
Clean Creeks and Waterways Satisfaction ratings Year 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012 Rating 2.8 3.1 3.1 2.9 3 3.1 3.2 3.4 3.4 3.4 Importance ratings Year 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012 Rating 4.9 4.7 4.8 4.7 4.7 4.8 4.8 4.6 4.6 4.6
Why is monitoring this trend important? The community rated ‘Clean Creeks and Waterways’ as their top priority for items under the Key Direction ‘Looking after the Environment’ in the Community Survey 2012. Clean creeks and waterways are an important part of protecting the environment, preserving biodiversity and enhancing people’s enjoyment of this natural asset. Resident perceptions of clean waterways relate to observable amounts of rubbish, silt and urban runoff in creeks and streams.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. The Survey is conducted every one to two years. Ratings are given on a 1‐5 scale, with 1 the lowest level of importance and satisfaction and 5 the highest
www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 38 of 139
Data Sheet 5 Number of truck movements on the Great Western Highway What is the trend?
This data represents the average number of trucks that pass through the weigh station at Mt Boyce in both an easterly and westerly direction on the Great Western Highway.
2010 data reflects the average truck movements over the January to June period. Data in other years reflects the average truck movements over the full year. It appears that the average number of heavy vehicle trucks has remained fairly constant between 2008 and 2011, with a slight decrease occurring between 2010 and 2011.
In 2011 heavy vehicle numbers comprised about 15 per cent of all vehicles that travelled on the Great Western Highway. There were approximately 277 rigid trucks, 601 semi‐trailers and 140 19‐ metre B‐Double trucks travelling along the highway on average per day in 2011.
Average daily truck movements on Great Western Highway 1400
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0 2008200920102011
2008 2009 2010 2011
Average truck movements (during operative days) 1084 1158 1145 1018
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Research shows that air quality is adversely impacted by traffic comprising both cars and trucks. However trucks cause much greater air pollution per vehicle than cars. In addition diesel particulate matter emitted by trucks is especially problematic for health. In terms of transporting freight the use of trucks is more greenhouse emissions intensive than the use of rail.
Source: Roads and Maritime Services Heavy Vehicle Weigh Station at Mt Boyce, 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 39 of 139
Data Sheet 6 Number of registered vehicles
What is the trend? This data‐records the number of registered motor vehicles, which are owned or used by members of a household, and which are garaged or parked near the occupied private dwelling on Census Night. It includes vans and company vehicles kept at home, but excludes motorbikes, scooters and tractors.
The total number of registered vehicles in the Blue Mountains has increased considerably between 2001 and 2011, while the population has remained fairly stable indicating that there is an increasing reliance on the use of vehicles for transport in the area. Between 2001 and 2011 an additional 5527 vehicles were registered in the Blue Mountains Local Government Area while the population grew by only 1619 people.
Number of registered vehicles in the Blue Mountains 45,000 44,000 43,000 42,000 41,000 40,000
Number 39,000 38,000 37,000 36,000 35,000 2001 2006 2011
Year 2001 2006 2011
Number of registered vehicles 38,291 40,850 43,818
Why is monitoring this trend important?
The number of vehicles provides insights into the usage and perception of public transport in addition to the transport options available and the transport choices that residents are making. Environmental impacts such as air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions are caused by a community’s increased reliance on cars.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing, 2012, 2006, 2001, 1996
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 40 of 139
Data sheet 7 Green house emissions from street lighting What is the trend?
This data records the greenhouse emissions created from street lighting in the Blue Mountains Local Government Area. This data represents electricity use for most of the street lighting which lights our residential streets as well as the Great Western Highway.
Overall between 2005/2006 and 2011/2012 the volume of greenhouse emissions (tonnes CO2e) has not changed greatly differing by less than 1%.
Greenhouse emissions (t CO2e) 4000 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 05‐06 06‐07 07‐08 08‐09 09‐10 10‐11 11‐12
Year 05‐06 06‐07 07‐08 08‐09 09‐10 10‐11 11‐12
Streetlighting emissions (tonnes) 3490 3490 3039 2887 2789 3398 3506
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Every night of every year our street lights light our streets from dusk to dawn. In fact, street lights are typically the largest user of energy for councils and a large energy cost for councils and communities. In the Blue Mountains the use of coal fired electricity for street lighting emits large volumes of greenhouse gases into our atmosphere.
Source: Planet Footprint Reporting 2012 based on billing data
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 41 of 139
Data Sheet 8 Proportion of residents undertaking sustainability actions
What is the trend? These results are from the annual Community Survey undertaken by the Council. A representative sample of Blue Mountains residents are asked “How many of the following actions do you make a conscious effort to do in normal day‐to‐day life?”
Between 2008 and 2010, over 50% of surveyed residents recycle and conserve water. The number of residents maintaining a vegetable garden, maintaining a compost heap or worm farm or using non‐ car transport locally has increased over this period.
Sustainability actions by the community
120
100
80 2008 60 2009 2010 40 Percentage
20
0 Recycle Recycle water Maintain a Use non-car Maintain a Purchase paper, /use water compost transport for vegetable green energy plastics, efficient heap or worm local trips garden (green glass and fixtures /use farm power) metals water from a water tank
2008 2009 2010 (%) (%) (%) Action Recycle paper, plastics, glass and metals 96.2 99.5 99.2 Conserve water by recycling water or using water efficient fixtures or 55.1 54.7 72.6 use water from a water tank Maintain a compost heap or worm farm 37.6 54.7 59.7 Use non‐car transport for local trips 48.4 46.1 58.2 Maintain a vegetable garden 37.6 39.7 47.1 Purchase green energy (green power) 26.1 26.5 22.4
Why is monitoring this trend important? Individual household actions are an integral component of an environmentally sustainable society.
Source: IRIS community survey 2008, 2009, 2010
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 42 of 139
Data Sheet 9 Amount of waste to landfill What is the trend?
Blue Mountains City Council provides two Waste Management Facilities (Katoomba & Blaxland) which receive waste only from premises within the Blue Mountains LGA. The landfill at Katoomba Waste Management Facility is now closed, with a Transfer Station & Resource Recovery Facility operating in its place. All waste that cannot be recycled or reused is now land filled at the Blaxland Waste Management Facility.
The amount of waste going to landfill overall has reduced by 24% over the past 11 years. The noticeable increase in waste for 2011/2012 is due, primarily, to inert bulky waste received at Katoomba during 2010/2011 being sent to the Blaxland landfill in 2011/12. Inert bulky waste comprises predominantly hard plastics, timber, metals (i.e. furniture, bulky household items) from the annual clean up service and unseparated construction and demolition waste.
Total tonnes of waste landfilled 70,000
60,000
50,000
40,000
30,000
20,000
10,000
0 00/0101/0202/0303/0404/0505/0606/0707/0808/0909/1010/1111/12
Year 00/01 01/02 02/03 03/04 04/05 05/06 06/07 07/08 08/09 09/10 10/11 11/12
Tonnes 61,393 58,029 65,749 63,115 56,123 51,761 46,291 45,950 44,493 47,765 42,577 46,619 Land filled
Population 77,021 77,389 77,504 77,003 76,497 76,066 76,075 76,181 76,409 76,587 76,558 75,942
Kilograms 797 750 849 820 734 680 607 599 580 624 556 614 per person
Why is monitoring this trend important? Reducing or avoiding waste is the most sustainable waste management method. Waste Management Facilities (WMF’s) are costly to manage and maintain and there will be limited opportunity to increase the space available to landfill waste into the future.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 43 of 139
USING LAND AND MOVING AROUND
Overview
The City of Blue Mountains is located on the western fringe of metropolitan Sydney ranging from 60 to 120 kilometres west of the Sydney GPO. The City’s area is dominated by more than 1,000 square kilometres of World Heritage National Park, which constitutes some 70% of the City.
The settlement pattern of the Blue Mountains has been shaped by the natural topography of the area and the major transport corridor that services western New South Wales. There are twenty‐six towns and villages located along nearly one hundred kilometres of curving ridgeline, running from Lapstone in the east to Mount Victoria and Bell in the west and Mount Irvine in the north. The historical settlement pattern has resulted in considerable duplication of facilities, and services in townships across the city while other areas have limited physical infrastructure and social support services. Residential development is often located in sensitive natural environments and subject to high to extreme levels of bushfire threat.
The character of the Blue Mountains urban area, and the associated historical and heritage fabric, derives from a number of factors including the historical pattern of European settlement, as it related to early road and rail routes, agricultural and mining enterprise, and the succession of residential and tourism developments with their associated landscaping and garden settings. The close proximity of urban areas to bushland and natural environments, the range of recreational opportunities, and the small‐scale village lifestyle of many of the urban settlements also contribute to the mountains character. The diverse and distinctive character of the Blue Mountains towns and villages is important not only for its own intrinsic value to local sense of place and community identity, but also for its significant contribution to the local economy. Although much of the appeal of the Blue Mountains to tourists relates to the spectacular natural environment, many visitors are attracted by the character, heritage and social and cultural events associated with the towns and villages.
The Blue Mountains serves as a bridge between Sydney and Central Western NSW with the main transport corridors for road and rail located on the central ridgeline across the City and the Bells Line of Road, and covering over 100km. These two roads provide the only direct vehicular connection between Sydney and the Central West. These transport corridors place pressures and impacts on the local Blue Mountains community and the natural environment and yet they also provide essential links for the Blue Mountains community, allowing access to local services along their routes and to employment and specialist services outside the City.
The Blue Mountains LGA has a range of public transport options. City Rail has twenty railway stations along the length of the LGA. The Blue Mountains Bus Company (BMBC) is the primary provider of school and route bus services and carries about 3.1 million children each year with regular route
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 44 of 139 services carrying just under 500,000 people per year. However there still are issues around frequency of services and access to public transport in the mountains. This creates problems such as social isolation and impacts on the more economically disadvantaged in the community, for assistance reducing their ability to access employment, health care and education. The commute time from the Blue Mountains LGA to employment areas in metropolitan Sydney is also a particular concern for residents.
SBM 2025 Community Objectives and Strategies
The objectives and associated strategies identified by the community for this key direction, Using Land and Built Environment in SBM 2025 are shown in the following table.
Table 4. Objectives and strategies for Using Land and Moving Around from SBM 2025
OBJECTIVES STRATEGIES
The liveability and . Develop accessible and sustainable town service centres vibrancy of towns and . Implement innovative and sustainable urban design villages is strengthened . Enhance the distinctive qualities of towns and villages
. Provide opportunities for people to live and work in town centres
. Provide a range of housing options to meet diverse needs
. Create vibrant liveable places and spaces within towns and villages for people of all ages and abilities
The impact of . Maintain the unique built and cultural heritage of the City development on the . Reduce urban development impacts on the environment built and natural environment is . Contain development within the existing urban footprint managed . Retrofit existing development sustainably
. Encourage developments with reduced reliance on cars
Integrated accessible . Provide a network of accessible cycle ways and walkways that link and sustainable choices with public transport for moving around are . Improve and integrate public transport services in the City provided . Develop sustainable transport links between towns and villages
other than the Great Western Highway
. Encourage transport solutions for those unable to access transport
. Provide accessible pathways of travel that lead to accessible services and facilities
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 45 of 139
OBJECTIVES STRATEGIES
A safe, well designed . Improve the safety and amenity of the local road network and maintained . Improve the Great Western Highway so that it adds to the City’s network of roads is safety, amenity and World Heritage identity provided . Promote reduced carriage of freight by large trucks on the Great Western Highway
Monitoring progress against our community objectives
In this section an assessment of the city’s progress in terms of the State of City measures developed for each community objective for ‘Using Land and Moving Around’ is provided. A summary of the trend data for each of the ‘State of City’ measures is shown in Table 5. More detailed explanation and analysis of this data is provided on the Data Sheets in the next section. The 2012 data recorded by Council on condition of relevant built assets is also provided in Table 6.
The Liveability and vibrancy of towns and villages is strengthened
The retention of places that have historical significance as well as the enhancement or development of buildings and streetcapes/town centres in a way that maintains the unique character of the town is integral to creating a sense of place and belonging for inhabitants. The Community Survey data indicates that the community’s needs are being met in terms of new public buildings and refurbishment of existing buildings. It also shows that the community is satisfied with the preservation of values and buildings associated with heritage. Places which have cultural and spiritual value, such as cemeteries and ashes sites are integral to creating a sense of belonging for residents. The community survey data showed that the community was well satisfied with ‘cemeteries and ashes placement’ in the LGA and in fact IRIS Community Survey 2012 showed this service has tended to exceed community expectations. It is interesting to note that the cemeteries and ashes placement sites are assessed as being in only poor to fair condition in 2012.
Another important component of a liveable city is how it is planned and laid out. A well planned city allows people to live closer to work and encourages community interaction and connection. A priority of the community as set out in SBM 2025 was to ‘Increase well designed housing choice in the larger town centres’ and to ‘Encourage any population growth in larger centres that have the infrastructure to support sustainable living.’ The Local Environmental Plan 2005 supports medium density development in appropriate zoning in and around Blue Mountains towns and villages.
Medium density development includes all semi‐detached, row, terrace, townhouse and villa units, as well as flats and apartments. The ABS data shows that the percentage of medium density housing has increased from 5% of all private dwellings in 2001 to 6% of all private dwellings in 2011, equating to an increase of 270 dwellings in the LGA.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 46 of 139
The community survey and asset condition data for public toilets is used as a measure of how well town infrastructure supports community health and safety. The data shows that public toilets are not meeting the community’s expectations and that public toilets are only in poor to fair condition, with no public toilets occurring in good condition.
Town settings at Wentworth Falls, Springwood and Blackheath
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 47 of 139
Table 5. Summary of trend data for measures to assess progress for ‘ Using Land and Moving Around
Community Measures Most Desirable Observed Data Objective recent Trend Trend year of Sheet data No
The Liveability Difference between resident and vibrancy of satisfaction with and their 2012 10 towns and villages importance rating for enhancing the is strengthened built environment
Difference between resident satisfaction with and their 2012 11 importance rating for protecting heritage values / buildings
The number of medium density occupied dwellings as a proportion 2012 12 of the total number of dwellings in the LGA
Difference between resident satisfaction with and their 2012 13 importance rating for burials and ashes placement sites
Difference between resident satisfaction with and their 2012 14 importance rating for public toilets
The impact of Number of properties connected to development on the reticulated sewerage 2012 15 the built and infrastructure natural environment is managed Area of undeveloped land – bushland remaining within the urban footprint 2012 N/A 16 of the city
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 48 of 139
Community Measures Most Observed Data Objectives recent Desirable Trend year of Trend Sheet data No
Integrated Number of railway stations with bike accessible and lockers 2012 17 sustainable choices for moving around are provided Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for pedestrian 2012 18 access around shopping centres and community facilities
Number of train stations that are 2012 19 wheelchair accessible
Length of off road cycle‐ways on footpaths 11/12 20
A safe well Difference between resident maintained satisfaction with and their 2012 21 network of roads is provided importance rating for traffic safety
Difference between resident satisfaction with and their 2012 22 importance rating for sealed roads
The number of kms of link roads providing alternative motor vehicle 2012 23 access to the Great Western Highway
The impact of development on the built and natural environment is managed
A useful measure for determining the impact of development on the natural environment is the ‘number of properties connected to the reticulated sewerage infrastructure.’ Increasing the proportion of properties connected to the reticulated sewerage system can reduce the occurrence of sewage overflows from onsite sewer systems and pollution of local water ways. There was a large increase in properties connected to sewerage between 2006 and 2010 with the expansion works of the Sydney Water Sewerage Scheme. Additional properties connecting since then are more a result of subdivisions and other buildings developments.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 49 of 139
The retention of natural bushland in urban areas helps support ecological communities and ecosystems as well as contributing to wildlife corridors. There is currently no trend data available for this measure. However we do know that the area of vacant land which is zoned residential is 1700 hectares and this amounts to 23% of that land zoned residential in 2012. The data sheet displays the area of vacant land, where building is allowed and not allowed according to LEP 2005.
Integrated, accessible and sustainable choices for moving around are provided
In terms of infrastructure supporting integrated and accessible transport in the Blue Mountains LGA, there has been some improvement over the last decade or so, however the rate of improvement has generally been slow.
The expansion of alternative modes of transport such as cycling, which contribute to an integrated transport system has varied. Since 2009, the number of railway stations with bike lockers has not changed with 7 out of 20 stations providing bike lockers. However the length of off‐road cycle‐ways also incorporating pedestrian walkways has increased by nearly 50% from 20.1 km in 2003/04 to 29.5 kilometres in 2011/12.
How accessible our public transport is to those with special needs is indicated by the percentage of wheelchair accessible train stations. The percentage of train stations which are wheelchair accessible has increased from 5% in 1998 to 26% in 2012. In 2012 only five out of 20 railway stations are accessible to people in wheelchairs.
Pedestrian access is a vital component of a liveable city allowing people a healthy alternative to access their daily goods and services and reducing reliance on cars. The community survey data indicates that the community perceive pedestrian access around shopping centres and community facilities to be adequate. Asset data however indicates that the current condition of footpaths which span 160km is less than satisfactory, with about half of them in poor condition. ‐+ Table 6. Asset condition data in 2012 for the Key Direction, Using Land and Moving Around
Confidence Asset Poor Fair Good in Data
Condition of public toilets provided by the Medium 20% 65% 15% Council
Condition of burials and ashes placement High 23% 70% 7% sites
Condition of car parks provided by the Medium 14% 78% 8% Council
Condition of footpaths provided by the Medium 51% 33% 16% Council
Condition of kerb and gutter provided by Medium 0% 100% 0% the Council
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 50 of 139
Confidence Asset Poor Fair Good in Data
Condition of unsealed roads provided by the Low 11% 57% 32% Council
Condition of sealed roads provided by the Medium 11% 57% 32% Council
A safe well maintained network of roads is provided
Topographical and climatic conditions as well as the busy expanding Great Western Highway, which is the dominant route for road freight from Sydney to the Central West necessitates the need in the Blue Mountains for a safe well maintained road network. The community rates ‘traffic safety’ as their highest priority for the Key Direction ‘Moving Around’ in the Community Survey 2012. However in the last three years residents have actually become less satisfied with traffic safety with the level of importance they place on this differing with their satisfaction ranging from 33% to 46%.
Sealed roads the next highest priority for the community in terms of importance ratings are also shown to require priority attention. Although the percentage difference between level of importance and satisfaction in the community surveys has decreased slightly over the 12 year monitoring period for sealed roads, it has remained well above 25% with an average score of 35%.
The 2012 asset condition report shows Avenue of oaks in Wentworth Falls that 57% of sealed roads are in fair condition, 32% are in good condition and 11% are in poor condition. Unfortunately reliable asset condition data for unsealed roads is not yet available. The 2012 asset condition data indicates that 100% of kerb and guttering in the LGA is in fair condition.
How well our network of roads is developing and offering alternative routes as well as access to the Great Western Highway is measured by the total distance of link roads completed. Between 2000 and 2012 two additional link roads were completed in the LGA, contributing to a total of 50km of link roads provided by Council.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 51 of 139
Key Action Highlights – Using Land and Moving Around
This section highlights key actions and programs undertaken by the Council and other agencies for ‘Using Land and Moving Around’ over the 2008 to 2012 reporting period.
The Liveability and vibrancy of towns and villages is strengthened
Volunteer gardening groups
A number of volunteer community‐based groups, supported by the Council undertook garden maintenance in towns and villages around the Blue Mountains LGA adding value to streetscapes and visual amenity of town centres. Over the reporting period, there were 5 volunteer gardening groups working in Leura, Wentworth Falls, Springwood and Hazelbrook. Town centre groups and chambers also maintained garden pots throughout the main streets of Wentworth Falls, Katoomba and Blackheath.
Katoomba Civic Centre
Major redevelopment works were Katoomba Civic Centre, Katoomba undertaken to rejuvenate Katoomba Civic Centre. Stage 1 of the redevelopment work was completed and created a new link from Katoomba Street to the new Blue Mountains Cultural Centre. The project comprised readjustments to retail shop fronts and building, construction of new toilets, new canopy, new stairs, pavement, landscape and urban design works, provision and adjustment of services, installation of a new lift, painting and refurbishment works.
Lawson Town Centre upgrade
The Lawson Town Centre upgrade was implemented through a co‐ordinated approach between Council and the NSW Roads and Traffic Authority as well as community and business input. This project involved the upgrade of built heritage in Lawson town centre during the widening of the Great Western Highway. Lawson Community Hall and Lawson Hotel were upgraded and the memorial walk along Honour Avenue was restored, with remnants from Mitchell’s original road incorporated into Douglass Square. All new buildings and facilities in the town centre inclusive of private retail shops, the park and public toilets were built in a way that was compatible with the character and heritage of the town.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 52 of 139
The impact of development on the built and natural environment is managed
Sydney Water supports water efficiencies
Sydney Water provided funding assistance to Council to reduce water consumption on high consuming sites. An Irrigation Feedback System which provides back to back satellite communications for irrigators and is governed by moisture content of soil was installed at a number of Council’s ovals. This system has contributed to more efficient water use and improved turf conditions at these sites.
Integrated accessible and sustainable choices for moving around are provided
Getting Around Community (GAIC) Project
A key project in supporting integrated transport has been the ‘Getting Around Community’ (GAIC) Project, a three year project that commenced in February 2011 with the intention of promoting, developing and increasing sustainable transport options in the Blue Mountains. The aim of the project was to build the capacity of residents through partnerships with community groups and organisations to develop environmentally friendly ways to getting around the community.
The GAIC project is auspiced by Mid Mountains Neighbourhood Centre with funding from Community Builders NSW. One of the key outcomes of the GAIC project has been the development and production of the Blue Mountains Sustainable Transport Guide to inform and educate the community about current transport options. The Guide has been developed through a partnership between Blue Mountains City Council and the Blue Mountains Integrated Transport Forum and represents the first localised resource of its type, providing a broad spectrum of information on transport options, infrastructure, resources and groups in the Blue Mountains. The Project has encouraged and empowered residents to become involved with transport issues and to contribute to the guide. In all 1000 copies of the guide have been distributed to community centres, neighbourhood centres and libraries.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 53 of 139
Blue Mountains Bike Plan 2020
The Blue Mountains Bike Plan produced in 2008 establishes a vision for cycling and incorporates a comprehensive range of initiatives from the ongoing support of well‐ established programs through to more aspirational actions. It sets out integrated principles, objectives and recommendations regarding safety, education and promotional programs whilst securing the delivery of cycling related Teaching local children road safety skills infrastructure, including a comprehensive cycleway network.
A Study Team was formed to work together to develop the Plan. The Team was coordinated by Council staff and included the Blue Mountains Bike Group, general cycling advocates from within the community and representatives from identified government agencies such as the National Parks & Wildlife Service, Blue Mountains Tourism and Department of Lands. Throughout the preparation of the Plan, on‐going review was undertaken with stakeholders, members of the community, Blue Mountains City Council staff and the Blue Mountains Cycling Committee. The ongoing delivery of the Bike Plan 2020 has seen the construction of over 2000 metres of off road shared path around the city.
A safe well maintained network of roads is provided
Road Safety Education requires a multi‐stakeholder approach
Education around road safety was implemented by a number of agencies. Council partnered with the Roads and Maritime Services to distribute over five hundred vouchers for a ‘Free Children Restraint Checking’ service.
The annual Council Bike Week event, which is now in its seventh year, was co‐ordinated by a large group of organisations namely Lower Mountains Neighbourhood Services, Mountains Outreach Community Service, Mid Mountains Neighbourhood Centre, NSW Police Local Area Command, Gateway Family Services, Connect Child and Family Services, Roads and Maritime Services and Council.
Other initiatives included a Road Safety Show and Shine event which encouraged safe motorcycle riding, and was attended by over 75 people and a ‘Slow Down In My Street’ media campaign which responded to resident concerns of high car speeds on local roads. NRMA also partnered with Council to deliver a Seniors “Staying Active” Road Safety calendar, featuring transport information and road safety messages to seniors in the LGA.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 54 of 139
Improving connectivity and access
The construction of shared footpaths as part of the Great Western Highway upgrades improved pedestrian and cyclist access to community facilities at Wentworth Falls, Lawson and Hazelbrook. Connectivity between the state road network and local roads was enhanced through upgrades to intersections and street lighting.
Improving safety of roads
The Council focused on improving the safety and reducing maintenance costs on the local road network over the reporting period. Nineteen percent of the road network was resealed. Traffic safety was improved through the construction of a pedestrian refuge at Explorers Road, Lapstone; a pedestrian refuge at Lurline Street, Katoomba; traffic calming at Railway Parade, Warrimoo; a raised children’s crossing at Mount Hay Road, Leura and the installation of 40km/h speed zone along Railway Parade, Hazelbrook.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 55 of 139
DATA SHEETS FOR USING LAND AND MOVING AROUND
These data sheets explain what we are monitoring, what is the trend, why is monitoring this trend important and the source of data.
A linear trend line is drawn through charts of the data to indicate whether the data is trending up or down. For data from the community survey, an additional chart is provided which shows the difference between level of importance that the community place on that measure and level of satisfaction that the community place on that measure as a percentage of their level of importance.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 56 of 139
Data Sheet 10
Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for enhancing the built environment
What is the trend?
‘Enhancing the built environment’ describes the construction of new public buildings and refurbishment of existing buildings and streetscapes in the Blue Mountains LGA. Residents’ rating of importance for enhancing the built environment stayed above their level of satisfaction over the twelve year monitoring period.
Enhancing the built environment ‐ resident satisfaction and importance ratings
5 4 3 2 1 0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
An average percentage difference of 24% between importance rating and satisfaction occurred over the monitoring period with the gap reducing slightly over the 12 year period. The IRIS Community Survey 2012 interpreted the 2012 data as showing that the service was of ‘relatively lower importance and relatively lower expectations’ for the community. Overall the data shows that the community’s expectations for ‘enhancing the built environment’ or the construction of new public buildings and refurbishment of existing buildings and streetscapes are being met.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 57 of 139
Percentage difference between importance and satisfaction for 'enhancing the built environment' 30
25
20
15
10
5
0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Linear Trend Line
Why is monitoring this trend important?
The construction of new public buildings and refurbishment of existing buildings and streetscapes is an important component of creating a vibrant and livable city. These buildings and streetscapes provide important places of work and recreation for local people as well as forming an integral component of tourism infrastructure.
Source: IRIS Blue Mountains City Council Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 58 of 139
Data Sheet 11 Percentage difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for protecting heritage values / buildings
What is the trend?
Residents’ rating of importance for protecting heritage values / buildings remained above their level of satisfaction with the service over the 12 year monitoring period.
Protecting heritage values/buildings ‐ resident satisfaction and importance ratings 5 4 3 2 1 0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
The percentage difference between level of satisfaction and level of importance has decreased over the 12 year reporting period, averaging 21.35%. According to the IRIS Community Survey 2012 the 2012 data for this measure shows that ‘protecting heritage values/buildings’ is one of Council’s service strengths. Overall it is considered that the community perceive protection of heritage value and buildings to be adequate.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 59 of 139
Percentage difference between resident satisfaction and importance ratings for heritage values/buildings 30.0
25.0
20.0
15.0
10.0
5.0
0.0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Protecting our heritage values and retaining heritage buildings is part of creating a city that is liveable, vibrant and creative. Maintaining historic elements of our built environment provides a link with our history and helps create the unique identities of individual townships in the Blue Mountains.
Source: IRIS Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 60 of 139
Data Sheet 12 The number of medium density private dwellings as a proportion of the total number of dwellings in the LGA
What is the trend?
‘Medium density’ includes all semi‐detached, row, terrace, townhouses and villa units, plus flats and apartments in blocks of 1 or 2 storeys, and flats attached to houses. The number of medium density occupied private dwellings has gradually increased over the last ten years as shown in the chart below. The number of private dwellings that are medium density as a percentage of total dwellings has also increased from 5% to 6% since 2001.
2001 2006 2011
No medium density dwellings 1723 1606 1993
Number of medium density dwellings 2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0 2001 2006 2011
Why is monitoring this trend important?
A diversity of housing caters for a range of socio‐economic groups in the community. Innovative urban planning incorporates higher density housing in which residents have ready access to public transport, town centres and park land. In this way land can also be freed up for purposes such as recreation growing food and nature conservation.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing, 2011, 2006, 2001.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 61 of 139
Data Sheet 13 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for the provision of cemeteries and ashes placement
What is the trend?
Residents’ rating of importance for the provision of cemeteries and ashes placement has stayed quite close to their rating of satisfaction for this service over the last three years. In 2010 and 2011 their rating of importance was nearly equivalent to their rating of satisfaction, and the gap between these two only widened slightly in 2012.
Provision of cemeteries and ashes placement 5
4
3
2
1 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
Over the last 3 years, the gap has remained well below 25% indicating that the community is well satisfied with the provision of burials and ashes placement. The IRIS Community Survey 2012 showed that this service exceeded the community’s expectations in 2012.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 62 of 139
Percentage difference between satisfaction and importance for burials and ashes placement 50
40
30
20
10
0 2010 2011 2012 Linear Trend Line
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Cemeteries and ashes are an important service to the residents of the Blue Mountains. Where people bury their dead has spiritual and cultural significance to them.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. The Survey is conducted every one to two years. Ratings are given on a 1‐5 scale, with 1 the lowest level of importance and satisfaction and 5 the highest. www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 63 of 139
Data Sheet 14 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for the provision of public toilets
What is the trend?
Residents’ rating of importance for the provision of public toilets has remained high between 2000 and 2012 consistently above a rating of 4. Satisfaction of residents with the provision of public toilets has remained below the importance they place on toilets and has only increased marginally from 2.6 to 2.9 over the same period.
Provision of public toilets ‐ resident satisfaction and importance ratings 5 4 3 2 1 0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
The difference between the community’s satisfaction and importance they place on this service has dropped slightly over the 12 year monitoring period. The percentage difference between importance and satisfaction however has averaged 36% and over the last 3 years well exceeded 25% as shown in the chart below. Gap analysis and quadrant analysis undertaken in the IRIS Community Survey 2012 indicated that public toilets were not meeting resident expectations. This data indicates that the community is not well satisfied with the provision of public toilets.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 64 of 139
Percentage difference between satisfaction and importance for provision of toilets 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Linear Trend Line
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Public toilets are an essential amenity for residents and visitors to the Blue Mountains, and the provision of adequate numbers of public toilets in townships and at tourist destinations is a minimum expectation for visitors and local residents.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. The Survey is conducted every one to two years. Ratings are given on a 1‐5 scale, with 1 the lowest level of importance and satisfaction and 5 the highest. www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 65 of 139
Data Sheet 15 Number of properties connected to reticulated sewerage infrastructure
What is the trend?
The sewerage reticulation system transports wastewater from properties in the Blue Mountains to the Winmalee Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) where it is subjected to tertiary treatment methods prior to discharge to a neighbouring creek.
The number of properties with access to the reticulated sewerage system has increased since the Sydney Water Upper Blue Mountains Sewerage Scheme expanded the sewerage infrastructure between 2006 and 2010. Properties connecting to the reticulated sewerage since then are a result of subdivisions and other building developments. In July 2012 there were 32819 properties connected to the sewerage.
Number of properties connected to reticulated sewerage
40000
35000
30000
25000
20000
15000
10000
5000
0 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Properties connected to reticulated Oct‐08 Oct‐10 Dec‐11 Jul‐12 sewerage infrastructure
Number of properties connected to 27835 32150 32562 32819 reticulated sewerage infrastructure Why is monitoring this trend important?
The Blue Mountains LGA houses a combination of on‐site and reticulated systems. Increasing the proportion of properties connected to the reticulated sewerage system can reduce negative impacts on water quality and counter weed infestation. This can in turn positively impact the health of the community and the natural environment. Source: Sydney Water
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 66 of 139
Data Sheet 16 The area of undeveloped land/ bushland remaining within the urban footprint of the City
What is the trend?
The Map that follows shows the areas of “vacant” land remaining within the zoned urban footprint of the City (excluding National Park), upon which development is allowed and not allowed according to LEP 2005 and LEP 1991. Hence this information will not change until the LEPs are reviewed.
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Retaining undeveloped and intact bushland is important as it creates habitat for native species of plants and animals and supports healthy indigenous ecological communities and ecosystems. Bushland within the urban footprint is an important natural asset both in terms of preserving the natural environment and maintaining quality of life. The less bushland retained in the City the more likely that there will be a decrease in biodiversity.
As shown on the Map there is only a small amount of vacant land available within the urban footprint where development is permitted. As the other vacant land is protected by the planning instruments LEP 1991 and LEP 2005, it is unlikely these areas will be developed significantly in future years unless the planning instruments are revised.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 67 of 139
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 68 of 139
Data Sheet 17
Number of railway stations in the LGA with bike lockers
What is the trend?
This data records the number of railway stations within the Blue Mountains that have bike lockers for public hire. These lockers provide secure storage for bicycles. The number of bike lockers has remained stable between 2009 and 2012, with 7 out of 20 stations providing lockers.
Table. Railway Stations with bike lockers
2009 2011 2012 Blackheath Blackheath Blackheath Blaxland Blaxland Blaxland Glenbrook Glenbrook Glenbrook Katoomba Katoomba Katoomba Springwood Springwood Springwood Wentworth Falls Wentworth Falls Wentworth Falls Woodford Woodford Woodford
Why is monitoring this trend important?
The provision of secure bike storage facilities at railway stations supports an integrated transport system. It encourages people to cycle to their local railway station rather than driving.
Source: NSW Ministry of Transport: City rail website, http://www.cityrail.info/stations/station_details.htm
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 69 of 139
Data Sheet 18 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for pedestrian access around shopping centres and community facilities
What is the trend?
Between 2000 and 2012 the importance that residents placed on pedestrian access around shops and community facilities remained well above their level of satisfaction for pedestrian access as shown in the chart below.
Pedestrian access at shops/comm facilities ‐ resident satisfaction and importance ratings 5
4
3
2
1
0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
The percentage difference between importance and satisfaction ranged between 18 to 22% over the 12 year monitoring period. As shown in the chart below the percentage difference has reduced slightly over the monitoring period and in the last 3 years remained below 25%. The IRIS Community Survey 2012 interpreted the 2012 data as meeting service expectations. The data indicates that pedestrian access to shops and community facilities in the LGA is perceived by the community to be adequate.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 70 of 139
Percentage difference between importance and satisfaction for pedestrian access to shops and community facilities 25
20
15
10
5
0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Linear Trend Line
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Pedestrian access around shopping centres and community facilities is an important aspect of a liveable city. The use of walkways by people reduces their reliance on cars and other motorised forms of transport. As well as accessing facilities, walkways provide people with a means of daily exercise, particularly if they combine their daily walk with a purpose such as shopping or travelling to work. Hence good pedestrian access contributes to not only the environment but also to human health and well being. Greater than 9 out of 10 residents rated ‘Pedestrian access around shopping centres and community facilities’ as of high importance in the 2012 IRIS Community Survey.
Source: Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. IRIS Research. www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 71 of 139
Data Sheet 19 The Number of Train Stations in the Blue Mountains LGA that are wheelchair accessible
What is the trend?
The percentage of train stations in the Blue Mountains that are wheelchair accessible has only increased from one station in 1998 to 5 stations in 2012. The Blue Mountains has 20 train stations. Those train stations that are wheelchair accessible are located at Blaxland, Springwood, Katoomba, Medlow Bath and Blackheath.
Percentage of wheelchair accessible train stations 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%
Train Stations in the Blue Mountains LGA that are wheelchair accessible
Location/ Year station upgraded Percentage of Blue Mountains Stations that are wheelchair accessible
Springwood 1998 5%
Katoomba 2001 11%
Blaxland 2005 16%
Medlow Bath and 2012 26% Blackheath
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 72 of 139 Why is monitoring this trend important?
It is important to provide public transport that is accessible to all people in the community. Those people who do not own or cannot drive cars are particularly reliant on public transport. Accessible public transport affects their level of independence and participation in work and community life.
Source: NSW Dept Transport, City Rail website, 2012.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 73 of 139 Data Sheet 20 The length of off‐road cycle ways on footpaths
What is the trend?
This data refers to pavements and paths constructed or modified by Blue Mountains City Council since 2001 with signage permitting cycling. These cycle ways are physically separated from vehicular traffic and not part of a road. Virtually all of these are shared with pedestrians. The data does not include fire trails and dirt tracks.
The length of off‐road cycle ways has increased from 20.1 km in 2003/04 to 29.5 kilometres in 2011/12.
Length of off-road cycleways
35
30
25
20
15 Kilometres 10
5
0 2003- 2004- 2005- 2006- 2007- 2008- 2009- 2010- 2011- 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
OFF ROAD CYCLEWAYS
Year 03/04 04/05 05/06 06/07 07/08 08/09 09/10 10/11 11/12
Kilometers 20.1 22.0 22.1 22.7 26.8 27.4 28.0 28.6 29.5
Why is monitoring this trend important?
There is increased recognition that the benefits of cycling contribute to the health and well being of our communities. Benefits to people include increased exercise and greater social interaction leading to improved health and well‐being. With reduced car usage there are benefits to the environment too such as reduced fuel use, less air pollution and fewer greenhouse emissions.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council July 2012.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 74 of 139 Data Sheet 21 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for traffic safety
What is the trend?
Between 2010 and 2012 the importance that residents placed on traffic safety was much higher than their level of satisfaction for this service as shown in the chart below.
Traffic Safety ‐ resident satisfaction and importance ratings 5.00
4.00
3.00
2.00
1.00
0.00 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
The percentage difference between importance and satisfaction traffic safety increased over the monitoring period with an average score of 41%. As shown in the following chart, it stayed well above 25% over the monitoring period. The IRIS Community Survey 2012 interpreted the data as not meeting service expectations and requiring priority attention. Overall it can be safely concluded that the community is not well satisfied with traffic safety and that this area is a major priority to be addressed for the community.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 75 of 139 Percentage difference between importance and satisfaction for traffic safety 50
40
30
20
10
0 2010 2011 2012 Linear Trend Line
Why is monitoring this trend important?
The provision of traffic safety is very important to Blue Mountains residents. Out of all the elements surveyed in the 2012 Community Survey under the Key Direction ‘Moving Around,’ traffic safety scored the highest in terms of importance ratings with a mean score of 4.71 out of 5. Road travel in the Blue Mountains can be hazardous due to the topography and weather conditions. The road network dominated by the expanding Great Western Highway and its use as a transport route from Sydney to the Central West only magnifies the hazards that local motorists face.
Source: Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. IRIS Research. www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 76 of 139 Data Sheet 22 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for sealed roads
What is the trend?
Between 2000 and 2012 the importance that residents placed on sealed roads stayed well above their level of satisfaction for this service as shown in the chart below.
Sealed Roads ‐ resident satisfaction and importance ratings 5
4
3
2
1
0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
Although the percentage difference between importance and satisfaction for sealed roads has been decreasing over the monitoring period as shown in the following chart, it has stayed well above 25% over this period with an average score of 35%. The IRIS Community Survey 2012 interpreted the data as not meeting community expectations in 2012 and as requiring priority attention for the last three years. Overall the data indicates that the community is not well satisfied by the provision of sealed roads in the LGA and that this is an important priority for the community.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 77 of 139 Percentage difference between importance and satisfaction for sealed roads 50
40
30
20
10
0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Linear Trend Line
Why is monitoring this trend important?
The provision of sealed roads is very important to Blue Mountains residents. Out of all the services surveyed in the 2012 Community Survey under the Key Direction ‘Moving Around,’ sealed roads ranked second only against traffic safety in terms of importance ratings with a mean score of 4.55 out of 5. In a landscape that is dominated by a high altitude climate and surrounded by national park, the provision of well designed and maintained sealed roads can be challenging but is also fundamental to safe accessible transport routes in the LGA.
Source: Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. IRIS Research. www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 78 of 139 Data Sheet 23 The number of km’s of link roads providing alternative motor vehicle access to the Great Western Highway
What is the trend?
In 1999 Council adopted a Local Link Road Strategy to improve road safety and to improve bush fire access. The other aims of the strategy were to provide alternative routes to the Great Western Highway and to reduce the need for local people to use the Great Western Highway.
Since the Local Link Strategy was adopted two link roads have been completed. In 2000 the 1.29km section of Waratah Rd from Railway Underpass to Green Parade in Warrimoo was completed. The sealing of Railway Parade from Wentworth Falls to Bullaburra took place over several years and was completed in 2009. Since then no further sealing or construction of roads has occurred. In 2012 the total length of link roads provided by Council was 50km.
Distance of link roads completed by BMCC 2000 ‐ 2012
60
50 K i l 40 o m 30 e t r 20 e s 10
0 1999 2000 2009 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 79 of 139
Link Roads
Year 2000 2009
No. Of Link Roads Completed 1 1
Link Road Location Waratah Rd ‐ Railway Railway Pde ‐ from Frenchman Underpass to Green Pde, Rd, Wentworth Falls to Field Rd, Warimoo Bullaburra
Km 1.29km 2.5km
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Alternative road links facilitate community access to towns and villages without requiring the use of the Great Western Highway. These link roads also provide emergency access for vehicles when the highway is blocked.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 80 of 139
LOOKING AFTER PEOPLE
Overview
The population of the Blue Mountains has been relatively stable for the past decade with a modest increase of 2.1% since 2001. The 2011 Census recorded a resident population for the Blue Mountains of 75,942, living in 33,348 dwellings. The average age of Blue Mountains residents was recorded as 42.
The average household size for the Blue Mountains is 2.5 persons. Compared with NSW the Blue Mountains has a high rate of home ownership with 78% of people either owning their home outright or having a home mortgage (ABS Census 2011). However according to the Mountains Community Resource Network (2012) Housing NSW estimates of homeless households by LGA based on the (2006 Census) indicate that the Blue Mountains LGA had the third highest number (490) of homeless households in the Greater Western Sydney region (after Parramatta and Blacktown).
The mix of population is changing, with the younger population decreasing and the older population growing. Compared to Greater Sydney there is a larger percentage of older workers, pre‐retirees, empty nesters, retirees and seniors. There is also a smaller percentage of young work‐force. Across the City the demographic profile varies and there are clusters of villages that share localised interests. The upper mountains towns of Blackheath and Wentworth Falls are attractive to retirees, and over time have experienced gentrification. This contrasts with the more highly populated towns of the lower mountains with higher working populations. There is also an increasing number of lone‐ person, or couple – only households.
The most disadvantaged people in the community live in the Katoomba area, while the most advantaged live in the lower mountains (Lapstone – Glenbrook). Some socio‐economic disparity issues are exacerbated by the ‘ribbon development’ (linear geography) of the Mountains. There are issues of isolation, high travel costs, lack of affordable housing, and lack of access to services (many offered only in Parramatta or Penrith). This creates a lack of equity and places additional burdens on the most disadvantaged in the community (MCRN 2012).
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 81 of 139 SBM 2025 Community Objectives and Strategies
The objectives and associated strategies identified by the community for this Key Direction in SBM 2025 are shown in the following table. Table 7. Objectives and strategies for the Key Direction, Looking after People from SBM 2025
OBJECTIVES STRATEGIES
Community health and . Ensure community has access to needed services and facilities, well being is improved particularly those most in need
. Address the needs of the community including Children and Families, Young People, Older People, People with Disabilities, Aboriginal People, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse People, Women, Men and People of Diverse Sexuality by implementing the 2007‐2012 Blue Mountains Community Plan
. Provide a range of recreational and sporting opportunities
. Provide well designed, accessible and affordable housing
. Provide healthy, clean and safe living environments
. Encourage and promote sustainable food initiatives
Blue Mountains . Work in partnership with other agencies and the community to communities are safe achieve a safe, crime free Blue MountainsManage the impact of caring and inclusive graffiti
. Encourage bushfire preparedness
. Resource Emergency Services to deal with threats to the City
. Facilitate positive family and community influences on child development
The City is a centre of . Provide needed cultural services and facilities culture and creativity . Provide a range of cultural opportunities and activities
. Create more formal and informal learning opportunities for residents Opportunities for lifelong learning are . Provide accessible facilities that support learning for people of all provided ages
. Provide opportunities to learn about sustainability
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 82 of 139
OBJECTIVES STRATEGIES
The population has a . Create a child, youth and family friendly City healthy balance of . Ensure people of different life stages have access to needed people of different ages services and facilities and life stages . Encourage young people to stay in the Blue Mountains
Monitoring Progress against Community Objectives
In this section an assessment of the city’s progress in terms of the State of City measures developed for each community objective for ‘Looking after People’ is provided. A summary of the trend data for each of the ‘State of City’ measures is shown in Table 8. More detailed explanation and analysis of this data is provided on the Data Sheets in the next section. 2012 data recorded by Council on condition of assets relevant to this Key Direction is also shown on Table 9.
Community health and well being is improved
In terms of physical health in the community the NSW Health data indicates that there is some possible deterioration. The data indicates a fairly stable rate of people hospitalised due to obesity or high body mass in the Blue Mountains LGA over the 10 year monitoring period. However the rate of hospitalisations attributable to diabetes as well as alcohol has been steadily increasing since 1998. In terms of access to facilities which support good health and well being the measures show more positive trends. The community is well satisfied with the provision of swimming pools and fairly satisfied with the provision of community centres and halls.
Table 8. Summary of trend data for measures to assess progress for ‘Looking after People’
Community Objectives State of City Measures Most Desirable Observed Data recent Trend Trend Sheet
year of No data
Community health and Rate of diabetes hospitalisations well being is improved 2011 24
Rate of high body mass 2010 25 hospitalisations
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 83 of 139
Community Objectives State of City Measures Most Desirable Observed Data recent Trend Trend Sheet
year of No data
Rate of alcohol attributable 2010 26 hospitalisations
Difference between resident satisfaction with and their 2012 27 importance rating for swimming pools
Difference between resident satisfaction with and their 2012 28 importance rating for community centres and halls
Blue Mountains Proportion of residents who are communities are safe, disadvantaged socio 2006 29 caring and inclusive economically
Proportion of residents who believe they belong in the 2009 30 community
Proportion of residents who have a non family member in 2009 31 their area to turn to in times of crisis
Difference between resident satisfaction with and their 2012 32 importance rating for protection from bushfires and emergencies
Difference between resident satisfaction with and their 2012 33 importance rating for cultural and arts facilities
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 84 of 139 Community Objectives State of City Measures Most Desirable Observed Data recent Trend Trend Sheet
year of No data
The City is a centre of Difference between resident culture and creativity satisfaction with and their 2012 34 importance rating for protecting heritage values/buildings
The population has a Percentage of the population healthy balance of people aged under 50 years 2011 35 of different ages and life stages
The proportion of residents who were disadvantaged socio‐economically, reflecting a number of factors such as income, educational attainment and unemployment levels increased slightly between 2001 and 2006.
Blue Mountains communities are safe, caring and inclusive
Community survey data was used to measure social cohesion or inclusiveness. The survey data in 2007 and 2009 showed that the great majority of people ‘have a sense of belonging in the community’ and ‘a non family member to turn to in times of crisis.’ The number of one person households in the LGA however has been increasing since 1996, increasing the potential for such people to become vulnerable and isolated.
Bushfires pose a major threat to residents in the Blue Mountains in the warmer months. In terms of bushfire preparedness only 11% of fire trails have been assessed to be in good condition. Asset management planning undertaken by Council has identified that fire trails which cover a total distance of 68km are under‐funded.
Table 9. Asset condition data in 2012 for the Key Direction, Looking after People
Confidence in Poor Fair Good Data
Condition of fire trails provided by the High 48% 41% 11% Council
Condition of cultural physical assets Medium 15% 41% 44% provided by the Council
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 85 of 139 The City is a centre of culture and creativity
The city’s culture is supported through the retention of its arts and heritage buildings. Although resident satisfaction has been less than the importance they place on cultural and arts facilities, satisfaction in 2012 differs from importance by less than 15% and indicates that the community is still fairly satisfied with these facilities in the LGA. The community is also fairly satisfied with the provision of heritage buildings and values, with their satisfaction differing from the importance they place on these assets by 20% in 2012. However only 44% of Council’s cultural physical assets, which are defined as those that commemorate or express a cultural or historical value (e.g. a war memorial), are in good condition.
Opportunities for lifelong learning are provided
There is currently no trend data to show how well the City has progressed against this community objective.
The population has a healthy balance of people of all different ages and life stages
The percentage of the population aged under 50 has reduced slightly between1996 and 2011 and in 2011 is reflective of the NSW figure. Population estimates by IRIS 2012 show that the population in the Blue Mountains is ageing conflicting with the objective of keeping a healthy balance of people of all ages.
Key Action Highlights – Looking after People
This section highlights key actions and programs undertaken by the Council for the Key Direction ‘Social – Looking after People.’
Community health and well being is improved
Blue Mountains Severe Domestic Squalor and Hoarding Working Group
A key multi‐stakeholder group working with people in need was the Blue Mountains Severe Domestic Squalor and Hoarding Working Group who is made up of:
Aftercare, HASI & PHAMS (Upper Blue Mountains & Lower Blue Mountains)
SWAHS, Blue Mountains Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT), Complex Aged and Chronic Care staff – Sydney Western Area Health Service
Katoomba/Springwood Mental Health Team – Sydney Western Area Health Service
Blue Mountains Food Services
Blue Mountains City Council
Eloura Garden and Ground Maintenance Service /Blue Mountains Disability Services
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 86 of 139 Home Care NSW
Pets of Older Persons – RSPCA
Uniting Care Community Care Services/Community Options
Uniting Care Mental Health/Parramatta Mission
Uniting Care (HASI)
Housing NSW (HNSW)
Wentworth Area Community Housing
Blue Mountains Neighbourhood Centres
The group targets people who are living in squalor and hoarding conditions that impact on their health. Many of these people are elderly, and may have a disability and or mental illness. In 2009‐ 2012 care plans were arranged for 60 people, supporting them with services such as financial planning, meals on wheels, relocation of housing and household clean ups
Aboriginal Health Coalition
A good example of a multi‐stakeholder project has been the work of the Medicare Local Aboriginal Health Coalition. The Blue Mountains Aboriginal Health Coalition established in 2008 is made up of a consortium partnership that consists of people from:
Nepean‐Blue Mountains Medicare Local
Blue Mountains & Lithgow Primary Care & Community Health Network
Blue Mountains City Council
Darug Tribal Aboriginal Corporation
Blue Mountains Aboriginal Culture and Resource Centre
Gundungurra Aboriginal Heritage Association Inc
Gundungurra Tribal Council Aboriginal Corporation
Link‐ up NSW
The coalition forms the steering committee for the Blue Mountains Aboriginal Healthy for Life program. In July 2010 the Blue Mountains Aboriginal Health Coalition was successful in securing funding to establish Phase 2 of the Healthy for Life (HFL) program. The HFL program has a vision to improve the health of the Blue Mountains Aboriginal population (in particular maternal, child health, men’s health and chronic disease) by establishing a collaborative primary health care service for Aboriginal people across existing health care providers, using virtual linkages. The purpose of the program is to engage primary care (general practice and community health) across the Blue Mountains in the provision of culturally appropriate health services for Aboriginal people and to utilise a dedicated team of health professionals who can act as a conduit between the Aboriginal
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 87 of 139 population and mainstream services. The program is supported by a dedicated project manager, two nurses and two aboriginal outreach workers. Improving recreational and sporting opportunities
Council continued to offer a large range of recreational and sporting facilities to the community ranging from walking tracks in natural bushland, through to sporting ovals and aquatic leisure centres fitted out with swimming gymnasiums and basketball courts. A number of new recreational facilities were introduced over reporting period which included:
Two new netball courts at Churchill Place
New local parks in Valley Heights (Benoit Park) and south Warrimoo (Arthur Street Park),
Eight new dog off‐leash sites
Expanded floodlighting at ovals
Accessibility improvements at Maple grove, Wentworth Falls Lake, Wilson Park and Outrim Park
Skate park for Winmalee youth
Encouraging healthy and sustainable food initiatives
To encourage and promote sustainable food initiatives, the Council in collaboration with Sydney West Area Health Service (SWAHS) developed ‘The Healthy and Sustainable Food Choices Guidelines in 2009.’
The Guidelines provide information, resources and tools (such as an annual monitoring tool, a food and drink classification tool and recipes) that can assist food providers through various Council managed outlets, to manage their menu’s or their food ordering to ensure that more healthy and sustainable foods are offered to staff and the community. The Guidelines are designed to lead to a better understanding of nutrition and food sustainability issues as well an improvement in health amongst staff and the community. Outlets that use the Guidelines include:
Council‐operated leisure centre kiosks and vending machines;
Vending machines at Council facilities;
The coffee cart at Kids Kingdom (Katoomba);
The coffee cart at Council headquarters;
External catering provided for the Council.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 88 of 139 Blue Mountains communities are safe, caring and inclusive
Stronger Families Alliance
The Stronger Families Alliance has played an active role in fostering a ‘safe, caring and inclusive community’ in the Blue Mountains. This multi‐stakeholder group (guided by the Stronger Families Alliance’s Child and Family Plan) oversees a broad range of programs supporting children and their families in the community, ranging from the Paint the Blue REaD early literacy program & the Bush‐ Trackers program through to the Blue Mountains Consortium which uses an integrated service model to move children and their families beyond vulnerability. A key initiative has been the ongoing ‐ development of School Community Hubs through a working group comprising of:
Council
NSW Department of Human Services
Community Services
Community Health
Blue Mountains Aboriginal Culture and Resource Centre
Blackheath Area Neighbourhood Centre
Connect Child and Family Services
Mountains Outreach Community Service, and
Gateway Family Support
Children at Winmalee Hub’s Playgroup
There are now 5 hubs, including the ones funded as projects of Families NSW. These hubs are each governed by a local steering committee of services, early childhood centres and participating schools.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 89 of 139 Together the services work to provide a coordinated single point of entry into a program of activities aimed at supporting the development of children in the 0 to 12 age group and at strengthening the communities around them. The community hub program now extends through Mt Victoria, Blackheath, Katoomba, Lawson, Hazelbrook, Winmalee, Blaxland, East Blaxland and Warrimoo. Since 2010 the Stronger Families Alliance has overseen the roll out of a professional development program focusing on child friendly communities for the child, family and community sectors. In 2010 this began with a group of 10 services reviewing the evidence about what makes a child friendly community and converting this into a roadmap for community action in the Child and Family Plan. The year ended with a large summit where 160 people from government, community and business organisations heard from Professor Karen Malone, an international authority in creating child friendly communities. In 2011 Professor Karen Malone returned to the Mountains to work with another 180 professionals over a two day program focusing on different areas of creating a child friendly community – urban planning, connecting children to nature and child & youth participation in policy & service and urban design processes.
District Bushfire Management Committee
A well informed and prepared community is crucial to building resilience to natural disaster such as bushfires. The Rural Fire Service, Fire & Rescue NSW and Blue Mountains City Council encourage resident preparation for bushfires through the framework of the District Bush Fire Management Committee. Over the reporting period, the committee undertook a number of projects including successfully acquiring funding for major fire trail upgrade/maintenance works, reviewing the Bush Fire Risk Management Plan (2010,) community engagement, piloting a community protection plan and reviewing fire management zones. Ongoing hazard reduction works comprising both burning and mechanical slashing of Asset Protection Zones was also conducted.
Graffiti Management requires a multi‐stakeholder approach
The incidence of graffiti impacts on sense of community and safety. It poses financial impacts on business through damaged property and loss of customers. In 2010, the Council, in collaboration with community stakeholders, adopted a four‐year Graffiti Management Plan to guide its approach to the prevention and removal of graffiti. The stakeholder group included the State Member for Penrith; State Member for the Blue Mountains; NSW Police; Integral Energy; Sydney Water; Mt Riverview Public School; Lower Mountains Neighbourhood Centre; Mountains Youth Services Team; The Hazelbrook Association; interested residents and various Council Staff & Councillors. A key outcome of the plan was the training volunteer graffiti removal teams who focused on graffiti removal from private property. Council received funding from the NSW Department of Attorney General and Justice in 2011 for the ‘Graffiti Hot‐Spot Removal Project’ which aims to remove graffiti in the form of etching on glass surfaces. This resulted in the repair of damaged glass at several locations including bus shelters and the Springwood Aquatic Centre. The glass was also covered with anti‐graffiti coating protecting it from future attacks.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 90 of 139
The City is a centre of culture and creativity
Cultural Partnerships Program
The Cultural Partnerships Program hosted by Council is held on an annual basis and fosters the development of professional skills in artists and cultural organisations. The program provides a stimulus for engaging people in arts and culture as both participant and audience. One of the successful projects funded by the program in 2011 was the ‘Solas’ Art Trail. This project directed by David Ryan of Shiney Pictures was hosted by the Love Lawson Festival and Mid Mountains Neighbourhood Centre. In addition to a sound and light sculpture display, it involved a series of workshops where participants could create their own low voltage installation from electronic waste or a sound sculpture powered by wind or solar energy. More than 100 people attended workshops associated with the display creating some 30 light sculptures.
Sound and light sculpture display in
the Solas Art Project, Cultural Partnerships Program
Supporting local indigenous people
Council was active in a broad range of programs related to Aboriginal people in the Blue Mountains. A highlight of this work was the adoption of Council’s Aboriginal Cultural protocol in 2010 and the establishment of the Council First Peoples Advisory Committee in 2011. Council collaborated with the Stronger Family Alliance, The Glue Factory Youth and Aboriginal community Elders to develop an’ Aboriginal family and whole of life ‘approach to their social services programs associated with Aboriginal peoples in the Blue Mountains. An Aboriginal cultural camp was held at the Salvation Army Youth Centre in Collaroy for all Aboriginal students at Katoomba High School in May 2012, which was attended by 26 adolescents and 9 adults.
Living Catchments Program
Between 2008 and 2012, Council delivered a range of environmental education programs. A notable example was the community engagement component of the 3 year ‘Living Catchments’ program, which was funded by the NSW state government through its Office of Environment and Heritage Environmental Trust. This program aimed to educate residents about the impacts of their lifestyle on the local environment, to provide them with tools and advice to assist behaviour‐change and to encourage property retrofits through rebate assistance. Key outcomes included:
58 residents participated in sustainability workshops in household water and energy efficiency
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 91 of 139 22 households participated in on‐site training through property visits focused on sustainable property management.
University students participated in 5 catchment tours within restoration areas, including hanging swamps.
42 residents subscribed to compost bins
Residents subscribed to household incentives program (installation of solar hot water, instantaneous gas hot water and PV panels supported by a Council subsidy).
Libraries play an important educational role in the community
Over the reporting period Blue Mountains libraries provided a multitude of information facilities and education programs to the community. Programs offered catered for people of all ages ranging from baby‐story time sessions to weekly afternoon art workshops for primary aged children. For instance in 2011/2012 members borrowed 581,226 items and customers used 24,106 hours of internet time. In addition 13,032 people attended 419 programs run by the library.
A unique program supported by Megalong Books, the Wentworth Falls Friends of Blue Mountains Libraries and Blue Mountains District ANZAC Memorial Hospital was the ‘Books 4 Babies’ program which was designed to promote literacy skills in children. By June 2012, over 1200 kits to support reading in the family home were handed out as part of the program. In terms of internet training, 2 hour internet training sessions were held once a week at each library branch. It is estimated that at least 248 people received this informal training over 2008 ‐ 2012. Additional to this, 108 seniors received one‐on‐one tutorials in internet skills as part of Seniors Week over this period.
The Summer Reading Challenge also encouraged readers to consume more than 10 books by awarding them with prizes of plant saplings and book vouchers. Over the four summers of 2008‐ 2012 a total of 1870 children participated.
The population has a healthy balance of people of different ages and life stages
Leadership Team for Excellence in Supporting Young People
Council employs two part‐time Youth Services Development Officers. Increasingly, Council officers are playing a facilitative or collaborative leadership role in bringing partners to the table to deal with a number of complex youth issues.
This is a planning partnership created to build cross‐sector capacity in promoting young people’s wellbeing and positive mental health outcomes in the Blue Mountains. Initial invitations to join the Leadership Team extended to women working with young people across a range of sectors of our community. Representatives from Blue Mountains High Schools, community organisations and Council were invited to commit to an action‐ research project spanning one year with a focus on “nurturing authentic leadership in young women”. This was an innovative project using a facilitated
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 92 of 139 group process to develop a collaborative leadership model. The project’s aim was to generate meaningful and practical responses to the complex needs of young women, and, more broadly, the young people in the Blue Mountains. The Leadership Team met for four half day planning workshops over 2011 and it. Participant evaluations were overwhelmingly positive toward continuing the project into 2012 and building the connection with schools and young people. Youth Council
Established in 2003, the Youth Council has been a valuable vehicle to connect young people with the civic role of local government. Youth Council provides an accessible leadership opportunity for local young people in building communication skills, providing experience of meeting processes, and exposure to the decision‐making processes employed by Council. It enables an engagement with local planning processes, projects and issues. The Youth Council also provides an opportunity for Councillors and Council staff to consult directly with young people on areas they would often not be exposed to, and to build a culture of recognising the value and importance of including young people’s viewpoint in decisions made by the Council.
Youth Mental Illness Substance Abuse Network
A key network supporting young people was the Blue Mountains is the Youth Mental Illness and Substance Abuse (YMISA) Network. This network comprising the Mountains Youth Services Team, local schools, Medicare Local, Department of Education and Sydney West Area Health Service as well as Council aimed to ensure that young people have access to mental health facilities, information and support services. YMISA has provided three parent forums since 2008 on topics such as Adolescent Happiness and Drug and Alcohol issues. These forums which were designed to maximise youth resilience and wellbeing were attended by 250 people. The network was also successful in securing a grant from the Department of Family and Community Services‐Community Builders Program for a 2 year position which started in 2010 to provide a peer‐education program to at risk young people.
Young people painting a mural in the Blue Mountains area
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 93 of 139
DATA SHEETS FOR LOOKING AFTER PEOPLE
These data sheets explain what we are monitoring, what is the trend, why is monitoring this trend important and the source of data.
A linear trend line is drawn through charts of the data to indicate whether the data is trending up or down. For data from the community survey, an additional chart is provided which shows the difference between level of importance that the community place on that measure and level of satisfaction that the community place on that measure as a percentage of their level of importance.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 94 of 139 Data Sheet 24 Rate of diabetes hospitalisations
What is the trend?
This data portrays the rate of people hospitalised in the LGA due to diabetes as the principal diagnosis. To minimise the random variability in the data, the data has been smoothed using a Bayesian smoothing method, with the data encompassing the number of people hospitalised per 100 000 head of population.
Over the thirteen year monitoring period the rate of hospitalisations in the LGA due to diabetes has increased. Between 2008 and 2011 there was a drop in this rate, however this is considered to be more a reflection of the change in diagnosis procedures rather than due a change in the general population.
The way the primary diagnosis is recorded changed in 2009. For example people admitted with a primary diagnosis of cataracts or ulcers which may be directly related to their diabetes were only recorded with a primary diagnosis of cataracts and ulcers, with diabetes being listed as an additional diagnosis. This data represents only those hospitalised with diabetes as a principal diagnosis.
Rate of hospitalisations due to diabetes 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 95 of 139 Year Smoothed Rate per 100,000 population
1998‐00 108.4
1999‐01 122.4
2000‐02 176.7
2001‐03 195.1
2002‐04 196.7
2003‐05 211.6
2004‐06 261.8
2005‐07 303.8
2006‐08 282.5
2007‐09 274.3
2008‐10 272.4
2009‐11 192.1
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Diabetes is a group of metabolic diseases in which a person has high blood sugar, either because the body does not produce enough insulin, or because cells do not respond to the insulin that is produced. Of the three types of diabetes, Type II diabetes is a preventable life style disease that carries a range of associated problems. It increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and premature death. People who have adequate physical activity, do not smoke or drink at risky levels have reduced risk of developing Type II diabetes.
Source: Health Statistics – New South Wales – Selected Reports, NSW Ministry of Health 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 96 of 139 Data Sheet 25 Rate of high body mass hospitalisations
What is the trend?
This data portrays the rate of people hospitalised in the LGA due to their high body mass. To minimise the random variability in the data, the data has been smoothed using a Bayesian smoothing method, in which the value is presented as the number of people hospitalised per 100 000 head of population.
As shown in the chart below, there has been a minimal increase in the rate of hospitalisations in the LGA due to high body mass over the monitoring period. According to the Health Services NSW team (2012), the trend appears to be fairly stable given that random variation (a change due to chance alone) can occur from year to year. Variation also needs to be allowed for multiple admissions of the same person. For example several persons admitted several times a year for the same condition can greatly affect results in small populations.
It is also important to note that those accepted into the hospital with their illness attributed to high body mass do not necessarily reflect the level of people in the community with high body mass. High body mass attributable hospitalisations are largely for chronic diseases. There tends to be a lag period between an increase in the population prevalence of obesity and the development of chronic diseases.
Rate of hospitalisations due to high body mass 600 500 400 300 200 100 0
Linear Trend Line
Why is monitoring this trend important?
The health problems and consequences of obesity include musculo‐skeletal problems, cardiovascular disease, some cancers, sleep apnoea, type 2 diabetes, and hypertension to name a few. Many of these are often preventable though a healthy and active lifestyle. Studies indicate that there is a clear relationship between excessive body weight and increased mortality and morbidity and that is
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 97 of 139 related to the amount of weight gained in adult life. For example, a weight gain of 10kg or more since young adulthood is associated with increased mortality, coronary heart disease, hypertension, stroke and type 2 diabetes (Australian Government of Ageing and Health 2012)
Source: Health Statistics, New South Wales, Selected Reports, NSW Ministry of Health 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 98 of 139 Data Sheet 26 Rate of alcohol attributable hospitalisations
What is the trend?
This data portrays the rate of people hospitalised in the LGA due to alcohol. To minimise the random variability in the data, the data has been smoothed using a Bayesian smoothing method, in which the value is presented as the number of people hospitalised per 100 000 head of population. As shown in the chart below, there has been a substantial increase in the rate of hospitalisations in the LGA due to alcohol over the 10 year monitoring period.
Alcohol Attributable hospitalisations 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Alcohol is the most widely used drug in Australia. It is a drug that slows down the brain and nervous system. Regular excessive consumption of alcohol causes physical, emotional or social problems. Some of these problems include:
stomach problems
frequent infections
skin problems
liver and brain damage
damage to reproductive organs
memory loss/confusion
heart and blood disorder
depression
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 99 of 139 relationship problems
work problems
money or legal troubles
Source: NSW Department of Health 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 100 of 139 Data Sheet 27 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for provision of swimming pools
What is the trend?
Residents’ rating of importance for the provision of swimming pools has increased from 3.8 in 2000 to 4.1 in 2012. Their satisfaction with pools has also increased and remains only slightly below the importance they place on pools in 2012.
Provision of swimming pools ‐ resident satisfaction vs importance 5.0
4.0
3.0
2.0
1.0
0.0 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012 Importance Satsifaction
The trend in gap or percentage difference between level of importance and level of satisfaction has gradually decreased over the monitoring period indicating that the provision of swimming pools is meeting the community’s needs and that the community satisfaction for this service is growing. The IRIS Community Survey 2012 depicted swimming pools as representing a low priority service area and meeting the needs of the community for the last three years.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 101 of 139 Percentage difference between level of importance and level of satisfaction for provision of swimming pools 30
25
20
15
10
5
0 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Importance 3.8 3.9 3.9 4.1 3.9 3.7 3.7 4.2 4.1 4.1
Satisfaction 3.4 3.3 2.9 3.4 3.7 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.7 3.8
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Swimming pools are key recreational facilities in the Blue Mountains and well utilised by residents in the community. As well as offering opportunities for physical activity, health and fitness training they provide venues for people to meet and socialise.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 102 of 139 Data Sheet 28 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for the provision of community centres and halls
What is the trend?
Residents’ rating of importance for the maintenance of parks / playgrounds has increased from 3.6 in 2000 to 4.1 in 2012 while their satisfaction has remained slightly below this over the same period and ranged from 3.4 to 3.5.
Provision of community centres and halls ‐ resident satisfaction and importance ratings 5 4 3 2 1 0 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
The percentage difference or gap between satisfaction and importance is slowly increasing as shown below indicating that the community’s satisfaction with the provision of community centres and halls is lessoning. Though as this gap remains well below 25% in 2012, it is not considered substantial at this stage. The IRIS Community Survey 2012 depicted community centres and halls as meeting the needs of the community for the last three years.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 103 of 139 Percentage difference between level of satisfaction and level of importance for provision of community centres and halls 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
PROVISION OF COMMUNITY CENTRES AND HALLS Satisfaction ratings
Year 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Average rating 3.4 3.4 3.4 3.4 3.4 3.3 3.4 3.4 3.4 3.5
Importance ratings
Year 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Average rating 3.6 3.9 3.6 3.9 4 3.8 3.9 4.1 4.1 4.1
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Community centres and halls are places where people can meet, learn and participate in activities. These facilities foster community interaction and connection. This issue was ranked as highly important by 75% of community survey respondents in 2011.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2011, 2012. www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 104 of 139 Data Sheet 29 The proportion of residents who are disadvantaged socio‐economically
What is the trend?
Currently there is only data available for the Index of Socio‐economic Disadvantage from the 2001 and 2006 census. The 2011 data will be available from 20 March 2013. The proportion of disadvantaged residents in the Blue Mountains Local Government Area (LGA) increased slightly between 2001 and 2006 as measured by the Index of Relative Socio‐economic Disadvantage (IRSD).
The IRSD provides an indication of the proportion of disadvantaged people within a population. It is derived from Census variables like low income, low educational attainment, unemployment, and dwellings without motor vehicles. Relative socio‐economic disadvantage in an LGA is measured over time and ranked against all LGAs in NSW. The higher the IRSD the less disadvantaged the population. The IRSD for the Blue Mountains Local Government Area dropped from 1051 to 1060 between the 2001 census and the 2006 census indicating that the proportion of disadvantaged residents increased slightly. However in comparison to the rest of NSW, the Blue Mountains level of socio‐economic disadvantage is relatively low. The Blue Mountains LGA ranked 130th out of 152 LGAs in NSW in terms of socio‐economic disadvantage in 2006. Mosman was the least disadvantaged and Brewarrina in Western NSW was the most disadvantaged.
2001 2006
Relative socioeconomic disadvantage 1060 1051
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Monitoring the index of relative socioeconomic disadvantage of the Blue Mountains LGA allows comparisons to be made between this LGA and others in the wider Sydney region and Australia. It is
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 105 of 139 possible to see, that compared to most other LGAs, Blue Mountains LGA has a relatively low level of disadvantage. IRSD can also be used for other applications such as research into the relationship between socio‐economic status and various health and educational outcomes, determining areas that require funding and services, and identifying new business opportunities.
Source: Australian Census Products – Socio‐Economic Indexes for Area (SEIFA) – 2001, 2006
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 106 of 139 Data Sheet 30 Proportion of residents who believe they belong in the community
What is the trend?
For the issue of ‘sense of belonging’ surveyed residents were asked to respond to the statement “I feel I belong to the community I live in’ on a sliding scale which showed whether they had a low level, medium level or high level of agreement.
Recent trend data is not available for this measure. Data has only been collected in 2007 and 2009. In both years Blue Mountains residents’ perceived a strong sense of belonging in their community.
Percentage of people who feel a medium to high sense of belonging 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 2007 2009
% Agree Mean STATEMENT OF COMMUNITY CONNECTEDNESS Rating ‐ I feel I belong to the community I live in Low Medium High out of 5
2009 3.5% 15.2% 80.9% 4.2
2007 4.1% 15.2% 80.5% 4.2
Why is monitoring this trend important?
A sense of belonging to a community is a powerful positive emotion, contributing to individual well being and self identity. This feeling also underlies community strength both in times of celebration and when people help each one other in times of crisis. Fostering a sense of belonging is an essential part of building an inclusive society and is a value central to the wider Blue Mountains community and the many communities within.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, Blue Mountains Community Survey: 2007, 2009. www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 107 of 139 Data Sheet 31 The proportion of residents who have a non family member in their area to turn to in times of crisis
What is the trend?
This measure is based on the community survey data. Residents were asked to respond to the statement “I have someone in my area outside my immediate family to turn to in a time of crisis,” on a sliding scale which showed whether they had a low level, medium level or high level of agreement. Data was only collected in 2007 and 2009 for this measure. In both years the great majority of residents felt that there was someone in their area they could turn to in a time of crisis.
Proportion of residents who have a non family member to turn to in times of crises 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 2007 2009
STATEMENT OF COMMUNITY % Agree CONNECTEDNESS ‐ I have someone in my Mean
area outside my immediate family to turn to Low Medium High Rating
in a time of crisis
2007 9.4% 8.3% 82.0% 4.2
2009 10.5% 6.3% 82.6% 4.3
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Having someone local to turn to in a time of crisis is an important measure of community connectedness. If most people feel they can call on someone in their area when needed, it indicates a strong community where people willingly help each other.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, Blue Mountains Community Survey: 2007, 2009 www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 108 of 139 Data Sheet 31 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for protection from bushfires and emergencies
What is the trend?
Residents’ rating of importance for protection from bushfires and emergencies has stayed very high at around 4.8/4.9 for the last 3 years. However their level of satisfaction with protection from bushfires has remained below this by an average difference of 23%. This result could be just as much a reflection of the vulnerability of the Blue Mountains area to natural disasters as it is a reflection of agencies work in the area of bushfire protection.
Protection from bushfires and emergencies 5
4
3
2
1
0 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
The gap between the community’s level of satisfaction and level of importance for protection from bushfires and emergencies has reduced over the monitoring period. There has been no substantial increase in hazard reduction burning over the monitoring period. It is considered that the community perception of protection from bushfires may be more a consequence of the reduced incidence of major fires in the LGA in recent years. The last major fire occurred in the Blue Mountains in 2001.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 109 of 139 Percentage difference between level of satisfaction and importance for protection from bushfires and emergencies 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 2010 2011 2012
Year 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction rating 3.6 3.7 3.9
Year 2010 2011 2012
Importance rating 4.9 4.9 4.8
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Sitting in a world heritage national park on a high mountain range, the Blue Mountains LGA is sometimes subjected to fires and other natural disasters such as high wind storms and hail events. These events can be life threatening and can contribute to people’s sense of vulnerability. Ensuring people’s sense of safety and security is an important contributor to their health and well‐being.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2010, 2011, 2012.
www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 110 of 139 Data Sheet 33 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for providing cultural and arts facilities
What is the trend?
Residents’ rating of importance for providing cultural and arts facilities has risen slightly over the last 5 years from 3.5 and 4. The community’s satisfaction rating has followed this rise increasing from 3.1 to 3.4.
Providing cultural and arts facilities ‐ resident satisfaction and importance ratings 5 4.5 4 3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
Over the monitoring period, there has been a slight increase in the percentage difference between level of importance and level of satisfaction. However as this has remained well below 25% for the last 5 years, this is not considered to be any concern. The data indicates that the community is generally well satisfied with the provision of cultural and arts facilities.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 111 of 139 Percentage difference between level of importance and satisfaction for cultural and arts facilities 30
25 P e r 20 c e 15 n t a 10 g e 5
0 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Cultural and Arts facilities
Satisfaction ratings
Year 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Average rating 3.1 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4
Importance ratings
Year 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Average rating 3.5 3.6 4 3.9 4
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Cultural and arts facilities provide venues and other facilities for the community to meet, network, exhibit, perform, work, present, view art and to participate in cultural activities and events. Maintaining these facilities to a high quality standard keeps our city liveable, vibrant and creative.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. The Survey is conducted every one to two years. Ratings are given on a 1‐5 scale, with 1 the lowest level of importance and satisfaction and 5 the highest. www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 112 of 139 Data Sheet 34 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for protecting heritage values / buildings
What is the trend?
Residents’ rating of importance for protecting heritage values / buildings has remained fairly constant over the last 12 years, varying between 4.1 and 4.4. The community’s satisfaction rating for heritage values/buildings has increased in the last 6 years from 3.2 to 3.5.
Protecting heritage values/buildings ‐ resident satisfaction and importance ratings 5 4 3 2 1 0 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Satisfaction Importance
Over the monitoring period, the percentage difference in level of satisfaction with level of importance has gradually decreased as shown in the chart below. Hence the gap between level of satisfaction and importance has reduced over time and indicates that the community is becoming more satisfied with the level of protection of heritage values/buildings.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 113 of 139 Percentage difference between level of importance and satisfaction for protection of heritage values 30
25
20
15
10
5
0 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
PROTECTING HERITAGE VALUES / BUILIDINGS
Satisfaction ratings
Year 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Average rating 3.4 3.3 3.3 3.2 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.4 3.5 3.5
Importance ratings
Year 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Average rating 4.3 4.1 4.3 4.3 4.2 4.3 4.2 4.2 4.3 4.4
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Protecting our heritage values and retaining heritage buildings is part of creating a city that is liveable, vibrant and creative. Maintaining historic elements of our built environment provides a link with our history and helps create the unique identities of individual townships in the Blue Mountains.
Source: Blue Mountains City Council, Blue Mountains Community Surveys: 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. The Survey is conducted every one to two years. Ratings are given on a 1‐5 scale, with 1 the lowest level of importance and satisfaction and 5 the highest. www.Council.nsw.gov.au/yourcommunity/communitysurvey
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 114 of 139 Data Sheet 35 The percentage of the population aged under 50 years
What is the trend?
The percentage of the Blue Mountains population aged under 50 years has dropped over the last four census years, indicating that there are fewer young people or those aged under 50 per head of population.
Percentage of the Population Aged Under 50
100 90 80 70 60 50 40 Percantage 30 20 10 0 1996 2001 2006 2011
In 2011, the percentage of those people aged over 50 in the Blue Mountains was the same as that percentage of aged people over 50 in NSW.
POPULATION AGED UNDER 50 YEARS
Year 1996 2001 2006 2011
BMLGA 73% 71% 69% 69%
NSW 70% 69% 69%
The age group which increased most in population size between 2001 and 2011 were the empty nesters and retirees at 60 to 69 years of age. In fact all age groups above the age of 50 increased in size. All age groups below 50 decreased in size with the greatest reduction occurring from those in the ‘young workforce’ age bracket at 25 to 34 years of age.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 115 of 139
Change from 2001 to 2001 2006 2011 2006
Service age group (years) Number Number Number %
Babies and pre‐schoolers (0 to 4) 4870 4711 4697 ‐4
Primary schoolers (5 to 11) 7774 7106 7042 ‐9
Secondary schoolers (12 to 17) 6970 6688 6184 ‐11
Tertiary education & independence (18 to 24) 5983 5874 5614 ‐6
Young workforce (25 to 34) 8677 7666 6998 ‐19
Parents and homebuilders (35 to 49) 17830 16692 15986 ‐10
Older workers & pre‐retirees (50 to 59) 9858 11361 12019 22
Empty nesters and retirees (60 to 69) 5689 6992 9529 67
Seniors (70 to 84) 5551 5730 6318 14
Frail aged (85 and over) 1107 1239 1555 40
Total population 74309 74059 75942 100
Why is monitoring this trend important?
A diversity of age groups in the population contributes to a sustainable Blue Mountains. The Blue Mountains population is aging with an increasing number of younger people leaving the Blue Mountains. Younger people are more likely to be economically active and make fewer demands on health and social service infrastructure. People aged between 25 and 34 are also at the primary age for childbearing. Reductions in this age group will reduce the number of children in the Blue Mountains. The Australian population is ageing generally, with the proportion of people aged under 50 declining at a national and state level. In the Blue Mountains, the proportion of the population aged under 50 has followed the same trend as the state.
Reference: ABS Survey 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 116 of 139
SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY
Overview
The Blue Mountains economy is largely shaped by tourism. One of the top five tourist destinations in Australia, it is the only World Heritage Area in Australia readily accessibility by public transport from a major capital and Sydney airport, and attracts millions of visitors each year.
The estimated Gross Regional Product for the Blue Mountains economy was $1.9B in 2011. The most recent Australian Business Register indicated there were an estimated 5,607 businesses (i.e. actively trading and registered for GST) operating in the City of Blue Mountains in June 2011, which represented a small annual increase of 0.3%.
In terms of business numbers by industry, the Construction sector was the largest, with 18.4% of total businesses, followed by Professional, Scientific & Technical Services (16.9%), Retail Trade (8.0%) and Rental, Hiring & Real Estate Services (8.0%).
The unemployment rate in the Blue Mountains is 4.1% and below the averages for the Sydney Region (5.1%), New South Wales (5.2%) and Australia (5.1%). The estimated number of employed persons in the Blue Mountains was 41,913 in the March Quarter 2012, representing a slight annual decrease of 1.3% from the March Quarter 2011 (Lawrence Consulting 2012). The key challenges for the region include an ageing population, low population growth and the loss of young people to other regions. Growing markets include the arts and publishing sector and food and creative (knowledge, videography, performing arts) industries.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 117 of 139 SBM 2025 Community Objectives and Strategies
In putting together the Community Strategic Plan (SBM 2025), the community identified a number of objectives, and a number of strategies to achieve these objectives under the key direction, Economy – Sustainable Economy. These objectives and their associated strategies are shown in the following table.
OBJECTIVES STRATEGIES
The local economy is . Increase the range of sustainable industries in the City of Blue strengthened and Mountains diversified . Establish green industries
. Support cultural and arts‐based industries
. Provide required infrastructure to support sustainable economic development
Access to local . Relocate government agencies to the City of Blue Mountains employment is . Build a sustainable tourism industry that delivers local and regional improved benefits
. Create local employment opportunities
The City of Blue . Develop the Blue Mountains as a leader in responsible and Mountains is a model sustainable tourism for sustainable business . Encourage sustainable business practices
. Support and strengthen local businesses
Residents have access . Enhance existing and establish new centres of research and to vocational learning vocational learning opportunities
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 118 of 139 Monitoring Progress against Community Objectives
In this section an assessment of the city’s progress in terms of the State of City measures developed for each community objective for ‘Sustainable Economy’ is provided. A summary of the trend data for each of the ‘State of City’ measures is shown in Table 9. More detailed explanation and analysis of this data is provided on the Data Sheets in the next section.
The local economy is strengthened and diversified
Gross Regional Product which represents the market value of all final goods and services produced within a metropolitan area is a good measure of the size of the economy. The Gross Regional Product data shows that the Blue Mountains economy has grown slowly from 2005/2006 to 2010/11. In 2010/2011, key contributors to GRP were the Health Care and Social Assistance Sector (10.7%), Education and Training (8.7%), Retail Trade (6.8%), and Public Administration and Training (6.6%).
The greater variety of industries or businesses in an area, the more able it is to weather economic downturns that may impact different sectors. The data shows that economic diversity declined slightly between 2001 and 2006, both as compared to the NSW index and as compared to the Australian index.
Access to local employment is improved
Employment figures provide a good indication of economic health. The trend data suggests that employment opportunities are worsening. Less residents are working in the LGA than at previous times and the community is not well satisfied by local employment opportunities. It is interesting to note that of all the items assessed by the IRIS Community Survey 2012 over the last 3 years, the community was least satisfied with the item – ‘generating local employment opportunities.’
The City of Blue Mountains is a model for sustainable business
There is currently no trend data available for assessing the City’s progress towards the community objective ‘The City of Blue Mountains is a model for sustainable business.’
Residents have access to vocational learning opportunities
The level of education of Blue Mountains residents reflects to some extent what access they have had to vocational education and their ability to contribute to the local economy. The data on qualification levels shows that the percentage of people with no qualifications has dropped over the 15 year monitoring period (1991 to 2006). Those with Bachelor or higher degrees have shown the greatest increase over this period while those attaining advanced diploma and or diploma and vocational qualifications have also shown a percentage increase.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 119 of 139 Internet access and therefore opportunities to access online education and other information has increased substantially in the LGA. Between 2006 and 2011, there was an increase from 67% to 82% of households in the LGA with internet access.
Table 9: Summary of trend data for ‘State of City’ Measures under the Key Direction, Sustainable Economy
Community Objective ‘State of City’ Measures Most Desirable Observed Data recent Trend Trend Sheet No year of
data
The local economy is Economic diversity of the LGA strengthened and against the NSW Economic 2006 37 diversified Diversity Index
Gross regional product 10/11 38
Access to local Number of residents working within the LGA as a employment is improved 2006 39 proportion of the total working population
Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for 2012 40 generating local employment opportunities
Residents have access to Percentage of households in vocational learning the Blue Mountains with 2012 41 opportunities internet connections
Percentage of residents with recognised tertiary 2006 42 qualifications
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 120 of 139 Key Action Highlights – Sustainable Economy
This section highlights key actions and programs undertaken by the Council and other agencies in relation to community objectives for the Key Direction ‘Sustainable Economy.’
The local economy is strengthened and diversified
Publish! Builds the publishing sector
A number of initiatives were implemented to support cultural and arts‐based industries over the reporting period. A good example of this was Publish! Blue Mountains, a non profit association established by the local business community, and the Council through a $50,000 NSW Government ‘Enterprise Connect’ grant. Members of Publish! Blue Mountains produce a range of related products and face common challenges and opportunities. The business cluster has developed its own website and serves by attracting and growing the business of its participants individually and collectively. The website shows an average of 600 visits per month from 400 unique visitors.
Home page for Publish! Blue Mountains website
New infrastructure in Lawson supports economic development
A flagship project for supporting sustainable economic development was the infrastructure upgrade of Lawson Industrial Estate with a $3.5 million Australian Government Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program grant. The upgrade integrated water sensitive urban design with new storm water drainage systems and improved landscaping. It included new cycleway and footpaths as well as entrance signage to improve the amenity of the park and to prepare it for a clean technology focus.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 121 of 139
The City of Blue Mountains is a model for sustainable business
The Blue Mountains leads in sustainable tourism Blue Mountains, Lithgow and Oberon Tourism (BMLOT) continued to develop the Blue Mountains as a leader in responsible and sustainable tourism. Council who acted as secretariat for this group provided and operated the key Visitor Information Centres in the LGA. The Tourism Centres won the 2010 Regional Award for Visitor Information Centres and the 2010 Silver Award in the NSW State Tourism Awards for Visitor Information Centres. Council invested over $1.6 million into the local Tourism Industry over the four year reporting period attracting an average 500,000 domestic and 60,000 international overnight visitors to the region. A new tourism organisation, the Blue Mountains Accommodation and Tourism Association was developed.
Business Waste Reduction Project gets started Sustainable business practises are being encouraged through the Business Waste Reduction Project (BWRP). This project initiated in 2011 aims to reduce waste to landfill from the commercial/industrial sector as well as reducing energy and water use by businesses. More then 100 Blue Mountains businesses and other organisations including BIZNET, the regional tourism organisation, the Office of Environment and Heritage and Sydney Water, have contributed to the project design that will assist businesses through practical assistance to improve energy, waste and water efficiency while promoting their sustainability achievements.
Access to local employment is improved
SSHED program boosts local employment
Council partnered with the Sutherland Shire Council to deliver a small Business Sustainable Hub for Economic Development (SSHED) program. In this program, targeted businesses wanting to grow their businesses and employ more people, undertook an intensive training and mentoring program to understand individual business problems and to take on improvement strategies. Ten businesses completed the program, resulting in 20 new local jobs.
Residents have access to vocational learning opportunities
BIZNET supports local businesses
As the regional chamber of commerce for the Blue Mountains, Biznet has undertaken a multitude of programs and events to support and strengthen local businesses. As well as networking events Biznet provides regular training sessions for local businesses which cover a range a range of business
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 122 of 139 topics. Biznet rolled out the state government funded ‘Women in Business Program,’ which provided a series of workshops for 25 local businesses on how to strengthen their business models between April and June 2011.
Finalists at the Blue Mountains Business Awards, hosted by Biznet 2012
Blue Mountains Business Advantage Program encourages sustainable business practises
A diversity of industries signed up to Blue Mountains Business Advantage Program (BMBA) program, a sustainable business program. This program highlighted the economic benefits of environmental and social accountability and provided a framework for continuous improvement. Tailored to uniquely reflect the region’s business goals, BMBA was rolled out through a working partnership between Biznet, (the Regional Chamber of Commerce), the Council and Blue Mountains Lithgow and Oberon Tourism. A total of 450 local business people became accredited BMBA partners over the reporting period.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 123 of 139
DATA SHEETS FOR SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY
These data sheets explain what we are monitoring, what is the trend, why is monitoring this trend important and the source of data.
A linear trend line is drawn through charts of the data to indicate whether the data is trending up or down. For data from the community survey, an additional chart is provided which shows the difference between level of importance that the community place on that measure and level of satisfaction that the community place on that measure as a percentage of their level of importance.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 124 of 139 Data Sheet 37
Economic diversity of the LGA against the NSW Index of Economic Diversity
What is the trend?
The Index of Economic Diversity measures economic or industrial diversity within a region by determining the degree to which the region’s industry mix differs from that of the state or national economy. When the index value is close to one, the industrial profile of a region mirrors that of the state / national economy and is considered more diverse. This measure is based on economic data released from the ABS survey. The 2011 data is not yet available.
The economic diversity of the LGA declined slightly between 2001 and 2006, both as compared to NSW and as compared to Australia. The Blue Mountains ranked 6th out of the 14 LGAs in Greater Western Sydney in 2006 reflecting a relatively diverse industry mix in the region. According to Lawrence Consulting (2008) ‘of the 67 industry sub‐divisions in the City of Blue Mountains, the largest contribution to the total Gross Regional Product in 2006 was made by the Business Services sector, with approximately $161.2. This was followed by the Education ($138.1 million), Health Services ($113.1 million), Accommodation, Cafes & Restaurants ($104.0 million) and Government Administration ($60.6 million) industry sub‐divisions.’
Index of Economic Diversity
0.735 0.730 0.725 0.720 0.715 0.710 0.705 0.700 0.695
Index of Economic Diversity of Index 0.690 0.685 2001 2006
Blue Mountains against NSW index Blue Mountains against Aust. index
INDEX OF ECONOMIC DIVERSITY 2001 2006
Blue Mountains against NSW 0.729 0.702
Blue Mountains against Australia 0.724 0.701
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 125 of 139 INDEX OF ECONOMIC DIVERSITY – BLUE MOUNTAINS COMPARED TO GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY LGAS LGA Diversity Index Rank (Greater Diversity Index Rank (Greater (Australia) Western Sydney) (New South Wales) Western Sydney) City of Blue 0.701 6 0.702 6 Mountains Penrith 0.830 1 0.814 1 Camden 0.745 2 0.742 2 Campbelltown 0.725 3 0.712 4 Liverpool 0.717 4 0.699 7 Blacktown 0.716 5 0.708 5 Baulkham Hills 0.692 7 0.729 3 Parramatta 0.670 8 0.697 8 Bankstown 0.639 9 0.608 10 Fairfield 0.630 10 0.612 9 Auburn 0.509 11 0.536 11 Holroyd 0.487 12 0.467 12 Hawkesbury 0.474 13 0.435 13 Wollondilly 0.148 14 0.183 14
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Economic diversity contributes to economic stability in a region – for example, when there is a downturn in one sector of the regional economy (e.g. tourism) the existence of a number of other areas of activity and employment can reduce the impact on workers and the overall regional economy. Therefore, for the Blue Mountains, maintaining a relatively high level of economic diversity is desirable.
Source: Lawrence Consulting (2008). City of Blue Mountains: Economic indicators 2008.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 126 of 139 Data Sheet 38 Gross Regional Product
What is the trend?
There has only been a minor increase in real Gross Regional Product of 5% over the 5 year monitoring period.
The City of Blue Mountains contributed 0.7% and 0.4%, respectively, to the gross regional / state products of the Sydney Region ($275.2 billion) and New South Wales ($438.5 billion) in 2010/11 (Lawrence Consulting 2012).
Real Gross Regional Product ($billion) 2.0 1.8 1.6 1.4 1.2 1.0 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0.0 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11
With regard to industry, the largest contribution was made by the Health Care & Social Assistance sector, with approximately $204.3 million, or 10.7% of the total GRP of the Blue Mountains. Other significant contributors to GRP were the Education & Training (8.7%), Retail Trade (6.8%) and Public Administration & Safety (6.6%) sectors.
The Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing industry experienced the highest annual increase in contribution to real GRP in 2010/11, rising significantly by 38.8% from the level recorded in 2009/10, followed by Construction (up 8.5%), Manufacturing (up 6.9%) and Arts & Recreation Services (up 4.1%).
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Gross Regional Product (GRP) is used to measure the size of an economy. It is defined as the market value of all final goods and services produced within a metropolitan area over a given period of time.
Source: Blue Mountains Economic Brief. Lawrence Consulting, August 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 127 of 139 Data Sheet 39
The number of residents working outside and within the LGA as a proportion of the total working population
What is the trend?
Between 2001 and 2006, the total working population in the LGA increased by 4,408. Relative to the total working population, the percentage of residents working within the LGA decreased between 2001 and 2006 while the percentage of residents working outside the LGA increased.
WORKPLACE ADDRESS – BLUE MOUNTAINS WORKING POPULATION
YEAR 2001 2006 2001 2006 (Persons) (Persons) (%) (%)
Within the Blue Mountains 13,819 14,013 45 40
Outside the Blue Mountains 16,946 18,406 55 52
Unknown N/A 2,754 N/A 8
TOTAL 30,765 35,173 100 100
Why is monitoring this trend important?
According to the ABS Census Data 2006 more than half the Blue Mountains workforce (52%) commuted to work each day. There are significant impacts associated with commuting, including increased traffic congestion, air and noise pollution, as well as reduced time and energy to spend with family and build relationships in the local community. Watching this trend will increase our
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 128 of 139 understanding about the impacts of commuting on our social and environmental assets, particularly when looked at in the context of other trends ‐ for example an increase in local employment.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Census of Population and Housing (2001, 2006)
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 129 of 139 Data Sheet 40 Difference between resident satisfaction with and their importance rating for generating local employment opportunities
What is the trend?
In 2012 there remains a large gap of nearly 40% between the importance that residents place on generating local employment opportunities and their level of satisfaction with such opportunities. This gap has remained fairly constant over the last 12 years.
Importance vs satisfaction for generation of local employment opportunities 5 4 3
2
1
0 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Importance Satisfaction
Although the gap or percentage difference between level of importance and satisfaction for local employment opportunities has reduced slightly over time, it still remains high at an average percentage difference of 39%. The IRIS 2012 Community Survey ranked ‘Generating Local Employment Opportunities’ as the highest priority in terms of not meeting resident expectations for the last 3 years. This data shows that the community’s expectations are far from being met in terms of local employment opportunities.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 130 of 139 Percentage difference between level of importance and level of satisfaction for generation of local employment opportunities 50
40
30
20
10
0 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 2010 2011 2012
Importance 4.6 4.3 4.5 4.4 4.3 4.5 4.6 4.6 4.6 4.6
Satisfaction 2.5 2.7 2.7 2.7 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.9 2.8 2.9
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Employment opportunities affect an LGA on many levels. Employment opportunities have broad social and financial impacts. Lack of available employment can lead to lack of financial security and poor physical and mental health. In particular it affects young people’s willingness to stay in an area. The Blue Mountains community has rated ‘Generating local employment opportunities’ as their most important service in ‘Sustainable Economy’ for the last three years.
Source: IRIS Blue Mountains Community Survey 2012
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 131 of 139 Data Sheet 41 Number of households with internet connections
What is the trend?
The total number of households in the LGA with internet connections increased from 18929 households to 22,848 households, with 93% of these households having broadband connections. This equated to an increase in percentage of households with internet connection from 67% in 2006 to 82% of households in 2011.
Total number of households with internet connections 25,000
20,000
15,000
10,000
5,000
0 2006 2011
Why is monitoring this trend important?
Telecommunications infrastructure is increasingly underpinning our way of life both socially and economically. Most information, programs and media is now readily available on the internet. In this way having internet access available keeps people in their homes connected with the world around them.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing, 2012, 2006, 2001, 1996, and 1991.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 132 of 139 Data Sheet 42 Percentage of residents with recognised tertiary qualifications
What is the trend?
The number of people with recognised tertiary qualifications has increased significantly in the last 15 years from 36.0 % of the population to 50.9% in 2006.The majority of educational growth has been in the Bachelor or higher degrees with a 10% increase in the proportion of the population with these qualifications in the last 15 years. The number of people with vocational awards has also increased from 16.5% in 1991 to 19.3% in 2006.
Qualifications levels
60.0
50.0
40.0
30.0
20.0
10.0
0.0 Percentage of Blue Mountains residents Mountains Blue of Percentage 1991 1996 2001 2006
Bachelor or Higher degree Advanced Diploma or Diploma Vocational No qualifications Not Stated
Qualification/Year 1991 (%) 1996 (%) 2001 (%) 2006 (%)
Bachelor or Higher degree 11.1 14.7 18.5 21.5
Advanced Diploma or Diploma 8.4 9.4 8.7 10.1
Vocational 16.5 16 18.7 19.3
No qualifications 50.9 47.7 43.7 38
Not stated 13.1 12.2 10.4 11.1
Total 100 100 100 100
Why is monitoring this trend important?
This trend data provides information on the skills and knowledge capability of Blue Mountains residents ‐ an important component of the City's human assets. An increasingly qualified population has potential economic, environmental and social benefits for the City.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Census of Population and Housing (1991, 1996, 2001, 2006)
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 133 of 139 CIVIC LEADERSHIP
Overview
Civic leadership – Good Government, focuses on leadership in the realm of public affairs and human actions affecting the whole community. It aspires to transform our local communities so that they will be better places for all residents to live in. As part of its charter, local government has important civic leadership and advocacy role. Increasingly councils and other levels of government are coming under pressure to demonstrate leadership within a sustainability framework and to have regard for the long‐term cumulative effects of their decisions on the community and quality of life.
Key priorities for civic leadership identified by the Blue Mountains community include:
Increasing community partnerships and inclusiveness in decision making
Improving governmental efficiency and inter‐governmental collaboration
Developing community incentives such as community housing programmes that look to government for ongoing co‐ordination and management
Developing mechanisms and partnerships to ensure that the City can provide the services needed by an ageing community living in a sensitive environment within the existing resource base
Involving community in delivering on‐ground results such as Bush care groups and Biznet
Develop strong partnerships between local, state and federal government agencies to support implementation and adequate resourcing of Sustainable Blue Mountains 2025
Key challenges for civic leadership identified by the Blue Mountains community include:
Increasing integration between various levels and arms of government to achieve improved outcomes for the community
Understanding the changing role of local government now and in the future
Resourcing the increased responsibility being devolved to local government and involving local government in decision‐making which directly affects it
Responding to pressures for increased accountability and transparency for all levels of government in dealings with community and other agencies
Improving the flow of information between local and state government
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 134 of 139 SBM 2025 Community Objectives and Strategies
In putting together the Community Strategic Plan (SBM 2025), the community identified a number of objectives, and a number of strategies to achieve these objectives under the key direction, Civic Leadership – Providing Good Government. These objectives and their associated strategies are shown in the following table.
OBJECTIVES STRATEGIES
Local, State and Federal Government . Improve the transparency, effectiveness and agencies operating in the Blue accountability of all government agencies operating in Mountains provide civic leadership the City of Blue Mountains
. Ensure government agency decision making supports fair allocation of resources, services and facilities
. Improve organisational sustainability (economic, social, environmental, governance)
SBM 2025 objectives and strategies are . Improve coordination between government and non‐ achieved government agencies to support implementation of SBM 2025 . Engage community in achieving SBM 2025
. Implement collaborative partnerships that support efficient use of resources
. Support achievement of NSW Plan and other plans and strategies that align with SBM 2025
Sustainable assets and infrastructure . Support development of required infrastructure to are provided in the City achieve SBM 2025
. Investigate and support innovative infrastructure and new technology solutions that support sustainable living and a sustainable City
Effective planning and reporting is . All agencies collaborate in effective planning and provided to achieve a more sustainable reporting for a more sustainable City
City and Council . Meet NSW State government legislation for local government integrated planning and reporting
. Optimise appropriate and sustainable use of land within the urban footprint
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 135 of 139 Action Highlights – Providing Good Government
This section highlights key actions and programs undertaken by the Council in relation to community objectives for the Key Direction ‘Civic Leadership – Providing Good Government.’
Local, State and Federal Government agencies operating in the Blue Mountains provide civic leadership
Improving the transparency, effectiveness and accountability of the Council
A number of governance policies were developed and adopted by the Council supporting accountable and transparent service delivery including the Enterprise Risk Management Protocol, Probity Audit Policy 2008 and the Blue Mountains City Council Privacy Management Plan 2009. The external Audit and Risk committee was established under the Division of Local Government Guidelines and the Government Information Public Access Act 2009 (GIPA) was also implemented. Since then various public registers have been updated and made available in accordance with the GIPA act at Council. Additional to GIPA requirements, a political donation register and public interest register have been implemented.
Sustainable Blue Mountains 2025 objectives and strategies are achieved Supporting NSW state wide plans
SBM 2025 specifies that the city supports achievement of the NSW State Plan and other plans and strategies that align with SBM 2025. Council has made submissions to a number of draft plans, policies and discussion papers linked with the NSW State Plan. For example, Council made submissions to the State Government documents “The Review of the NSW Planning System”, “The NSW Green Paper” and “Cities for the 21st Century.” These submissions suggested changes where it is considered that these documents did not properly recognise the unique social and environmental values of the Blue Mountains.
Sustainable assets and infrastructure are provided in the City
Asset Management Strategy
The Council is custodian of assets with a replacement value of over $1 billion. Council’s Asset Management Strategy has been developed over the last 4 years and adopted by the Council in April 2012. The Asset Management Strategy identifies assets that are critical to the operation of the Council and outlines in detail the risk management strategies for the respective asset classes. It defines affordable levels of service in terms of condition, functionality and capacity of assets currently and in ten years time, given likely available revenue. It includes the specific actions required to improve the Council’s asset management capability and includes projected resource requirements and timeframes.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 136 of 139
Asset planning at the Council
Effective planning and reporting is provided to achieve a more sustainable City Effective planning through the Local Environmental Plan
Blue Mountains LEP 2005 provides the planning framework for appropriate and sustainable land use within the urban footprint. It has done this through its role in managing land use and development in the towns and villages. Specifically, LEP 2005 specifies zonings that prescribe the uses that can and cannot occur on land. It also provides for a suite of environmental protection layers and place based planning controls to ensure that any development that occurs is sustainable, by having proper regard to any environmental constraints. The LEP 2005 requires that new development is sympathetic to the existing built form of the towns and villages.
Implementing the Integrated Planning and Reporting Framework
Council met the NSW State government legislation for local government integrated planning and reporting. In consultation with State Government Agencies and the community, Council has developed integrated plans comprising SBM 2025, a ten year Resourcing Strategy (including long term financial and asset management plans and a four year Workforce Strategy), three year Delivery Program and annual Operational Plans.
Focusing on affordable levels of service
A critical evaluation of the Council’s core business was undertaken from both a strategic and financial perspective as well as documenting efforts over the past years to implement efficiencies and productivity savings and opportunities to raise revenue from alternative sources. Implementing the
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 137 of 139 reform has provided a strong framework for clarifying the dimensions of the Council’s financial challenges, for developing coordinated strategies in response to those challenges and for engaging community on affordable levels of service. In planning for the provision of Council services, the questions that continue to be addressed include:
Is Council delivering the range and level of services needed (not just wanted) by the community and required by the Local Government Act?
Can the Council afford to continue providing the existing level of services and facilities?
How can we ensure equitable distribution of limited resources across the City in terms of access and affordability?
Have we got the right mix and type of built assets to support delivery of services and facilities determined as being needed?
Is it necessary for Council to own all existing built assets / facilities?
Are there more innovative, sustainable and cost effective ways to deliver needed services e.g. through partnerships with other service providers, through new technologies?
Coordinating the work of various agencies through the development of SBM 2025 The Community Strategic Plan is a key document required by the new Integrated Planning and Reporting reforms for NSW, which were introduced by the Division of Local Government in 2009‐ 2010.
As well as community consultation workshops with a number of stakeholders, the development of the Blue Mountains Community Strategic Plan, SBM 2025 included a specific workshop with a range of state agencies including Department of Education & Training, Department of Premier and Cabinet, Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care, Housing NSW, Integral Energy, Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, National Parks & Wildlife Service, NSW Fire Brigade, NSW Police Force, NSW Rural Fire Service, Railcorp, Sport & Recreation Division, Communities NSW, Sydney Water Sydney Engaging with community West Area Health Service, TAFE NSW ‐ Western Sydney Institute and Wentworth Community Housing.
The input of these agencies into the plan ensured that future service provision plans and resourcing commitments of various State Agencies were coordinated. The Community Strategic Plan provides direction for all stakeholders, including state and federal agencies and non‐government services to work together in response to community priorities.
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 138 of 139 REFERENCES
Blue Mountains City Council Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Sampling Program Reports (available on www.bmcc.nsw.gov.au)
Blue Mountains City Council Leura Falls Creek Catchment Condition & Management Report, 2012 (available on www.bmcc.nsw.gov.au)
Blue Mountains City Council Recreational Water Quality 2010 Report (available on www.bmcc.nsw.gov.au)
Climate Risk Pty Ltd. 2009. Blue Mountains City Council Climate Change Risk Assessment
Dr Ian A Wright. Review of Blue Mountains City Council’s Macroinvertebrate Data and Monitoring Program 2009‐2010, Final Report, June 2012
Hyder Consulting 2009, Blue Mountains City Council Assessment of Landfill Gas Emissions, GHG emissions reporting and permit liabilities.
Mountains Community Resource Network, 2012. Blue Mountains Community Fact Sheet
Smith P and Smith J, 1995. Flora and Fauna Study for Blue Mountains Environment Management Plan Part 1‐5, Blue Mountains City Council
Wright, I. 2012, Review of Blue Mountains City Council’s Macroinvertebrate Data and Monitoring Program 2009‐2010: Final Report, June 2012, Blue Mountains City Council
State of City Report 2008-2012 Page 139 of 139