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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2010-07-01 Daily Xml
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REGIONAL PLANNING

The Hon. B.V. FINNIGAN (14:44): Will the Leader of the Government advise of state government initiatives to ensure coordinated and sustainable planning in regional South Australia?

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister Assisting the Premier in Public Sector Management) (14:44): I thank the honourable member for his question—and it is good to get a question about things which are of relevance to South Australia and which rise above the sort of sleaze that the previous questioner indulges in.

The government recognises that the sustainable future of our state requires a number of regional plans that consider the likely challenges we face and then shapes an appropriate strategy to respond to those challenges. I have spoken in this place on a number of occasions about the 30-Year Plan for Greater Adelaide. That document provides a road map for the sustainable and responsibly planned future for Adelaide and the Greater Adelaide region. Regional South Australia also requires a similar range of planning strategies to protect the culture and character of these diverse regions, their environmental sustainability and their economic success.

Five rural regions were identified in 2006 for the preparation of region plans, including targets for population and land supply for both housing and employment in each region. This regional planning strategy also includes structured master plans for major regional cities and towns. The five country regions identified for such regional plans are the Eyre and western region; the Far North region; the Limestone Coast region; the Murray and Mallee region; and the Yorke and Mid North region. These regional plans are in various stages of investigation or are being prepared for adoption.

Today a further milestone in this coordinated planning strategy has been reached, with the Far North regional plan formally adopted by this government. Underpinning this plan are 19 principles identified for the Far North, with corresponding objectives and strategies for achieving them through appropriate land use and development.

Members interjecting:

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY: It is sort of funny, isn't it?

The Hon. T.J. Stephens: I'm not listening to your Dorothy Dixer; I'm reading the Hansard.

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY: Of course, you would rather talk about trips, wouldn't you? You'd rather get into all the irrelevant things, because that is all you're fit for.

Members interjecting:

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY: You are gutter politics, that's right.

The Hon. T.J. Stephens interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! The Hon. Mr Stephens should not follow the example set by the Hon. Mr Lucas.

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY: Underpinning this plan are 19 principles identified for the Far North, with corresponding objectives and strategies for achieving them through appropriate land use and development.

The Far North region plan comprises land within the Port Augusta City Council, the District Council of Coober Pedy, the Flinders Ranges Council and the Municipal Council of Roxby Downs, the majority of the unincorporated out-of-council areas of the state and also the APY lands. The range of townships across the region include Port Augusta, Roxby Downs, Coober Pedy, Quorn, Leigh Creek and Andamooka, as well as smaller towns such as Ernabella, Woomera and Hawker. The Far North region plan provides a new planning strategy that responds to the increased pace of growth of the mining and tourism industries that are already providing a catalyst for future development across the Far North.

Spending on mineral and geothermal exploration has risen consistently in South Australia and most has occurred in the Far North. The $7 billion Olympic Dam expansion proposes to make that mine one of the largest in the world, and as such mining was a key consideration in the development of this plan. The Far North region plan addresses the significant changes underway in the Far North and also changes in town populations. The Far North region plan broadly identifies where housing population and industry growth is best located across the region in a way that ensures the greatest future benefit for local residents as well as our state. The plan also identifies the requirements and needs for local businesses to succeed and to help create new jobs in their communities.

The plan identifies the important roles and functions different areas in the region can play, including the various towns and communities, and it identifies issues concerning the relationship between industrial and residential areas, the need for sustainable and innovative approaches to securing water and energy supplies, and for the management of valuable environmental assets such as the Flinders Ranges.

The Far North region plan was assisted through the contributions and collaborations of the four local councils covered by the plan as well as the Outback Areas Community Development Trust, the Northern Regional Development Board, the northern and arid lands natural resources management boards and other state agencies. I commend the Far North region plan and hope this road map can assist the future development and success of this important region.

This state government believes the future success of our regions is important not only to their local communities but benefits all South Australians. While we hear a lot about the challenges that consistently face the regions—droughts, pests and depressed world markets—there are lots of good news stories from regional areas of South Australia. These regional plans undertaken will help identify the challenges and opportunities our regions face and help them to work towards overcoming them in a way that ensures a well planned and prosperous future.

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