4.
Project Consultation
Developing this Background Paper involved engagement with various
many of the agencies, groups and industry bodies. The outcomes of these activities form the basis of this document and the subsequent Rural Lands Strategy.
stakeholders including State agencies, industry bodies, co-operatives,
Further insights are intended to be obtained through the process of
not-for-profits, landowners, primary producers and Council’s Working
adoption and exhibition of the Rural Lands Strategy.
Group. This process was undertaken between June and November 2021 and proceeded the public exhibition of the Strategy. In order to capture the variety of stakeholder interests, a number of consultation processes were undertaken including the following: o
o
4.1
Targeted consultation outcomes
A number of key insights have been drawn from the consultation process. While there are a number of industry or locality specific issues raised and discussed in detail at relevant points of this
review and research, including a range of Council documents,
document, there are also a number of issues raised that highlight key
as well as those associated with State government agencies,
trends and consistencies across rural lands more broadly. Key themes
including the NSW Agricultural Commissioner
identified include:
review and research associated with industry, not-for-profit and related entities that are undertaking a wide variety of
o
dealing with many key rural lands issues before they reach
related work o
videoconference, teleconference and face to face meetings with internal Council staff, State agencies, industry bodies,
crisis point in the realm of planning solutions o
o
public survey relating to the use and future of rural lands
the Clarence River o
Changing nature of rural activities, including intensification of farming, increasing lifestyle uses, desire for diversification
which was promoted through Council’s news channels and via industry organisations.
Long history and importance of agricultural and rural pursuits in the LGA, and particularly through its connection to
education institutions and not-for-profits associated with the agricultural sector
The Clarence Valley can be a leader in addressing and
into areas such as farm, food and nature-based tourism o
Increasing diversification of agricultural industries, from
These activities were initially undertaken to assist in developing
traditional enterprises such as sugarcane, beef and dairy,
information and an in-depth understanding of issues and
through to more intensive and emerging industries such as
opportunities associated with rural lands within the Clarence Valley.
berries, macadamias and cottage farming
Following the identification of ‘key issues’ (further discussed in Section 8 of this document), secondary consultation was also undertaken which then tested the understanding of the key issues with
Clarence Valley Council Rural Lands Strategy – Background Paper
o
Increasing recognition of sustainability, including soil health, productivity, water resources, biodiversity and a change climate
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