THE CROWN LANDS REVIEW: A MISSED OPPORTUNITY? Greens MP David - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

THE CROWN LANDS REVIEW: A MISSED OPPORTUNITY?

Greens MP David Shoebridge

Questions?

1. Introduce yourself 2. Let us know who the Traditional Owners are of the land you’re on today 3. Keep it brief

Background

Draft State Strategic Plan for Crown land

Background

• Plan is required to be prepared under

the Crown Land Management Act 2016

• Joint Ministerial responsibility

between Rob Stokes for metro and Melinda Pavey for regional Crown Lands

Detail

• Submissions due by Midnight 20

August 2020

• Online submission

form/downloadable form (we will discuss this later)

• cl.enquiries@crownland.nsw.gov.au

Risks from the current plan

• Does not deal with fundamental issues around custodianship for First

Nations people and biodiversity protections

• Excessive corporate focus likely to lead to privatisation and exploitation of

land

• Misses opportunities for job creation through First Nations knowledge and

custodianship and through care for country

• Mechanisms for the changes are generally undefined or unclear (the

enabling initiatives do not live up to the objectives)

Risks from the current plan (cont)

• Absence of financial allocations for restoration and heritage protection

means they won’t happen

• The “enablers” aren’t actually sufficient to achieve priorities or the desired
• utcomes
• Risks for regions is economics at any cost
• Risks for city is recreation at any cost
• Lack of environmental outcomes (especially measurable ones)

Principles that should guide the strategy

• First Nations people as
• wners/co-managers of Crown Land
• Should prevent disposal of ANY

Crown Land until Treaty

• Environmental values must be a key

priority and not subjugated to economic goals

• Crown Lands should not be privatised
• r sold

This means:

• Investment in Crown Land so that

land does not become degraded

• Crown Land is our land and must

not be privatised or excessively commercialised

• Ensure costs are not unfairly

shifted to local councils or Aboriginal Land Councils

First Nations custodianship

• Plan only talks about Land Claims

and how to respond to these, this is insufficient

• Co-management must be on the

table

• Prioritise title claims and deal with

the backlog of claims (38,000)

• Revegetation and First Nations

communities

• Plan must include water rights for

cultural flows - take rules should be consistent

• Need to ensure are not given

degraded assets or liabilities

• Access to cultural experiences a key

priority

Environmental Values

• Plan must include biodiversity

including specific targets

• Connectivity between green

spaces is essential and crown land is critical for this

• Need more focus on urban

greening and green space for community access - passive and active spaces

• Land clearing is the elephant in the

room and must be addressed

• Western Lands are being

significantly degraded under the lease system which is an effective sale of these lands

Concerns with form response provided

• Limited nature of the form

submission only allows approval or disapproval of current aims

• 4 consultation sessions have

been conducted which raised significant concerns especially about environmental protection and Aboriginal ownership

• “Do you believe there are any
• ther priorities” important to

include 1. Aboriginal custodianship 2. Ecological values Must be the key priorities and other priorities must be consistent with these

Questions?

1. Introduce yourself 2. Let us know who the Traditional Owners are of the land you’re on today 3. Keep it brief