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Footprints for the Future through Local Area Planning

Jennifer Pagon

Department of Primary Industries, PO Box 441, Echuca, Victoria, 3564.
www.dpi.vic.gov.au
E-mail jen.pagon@dpi.vic.gov.au

Abstract

Local Area Planning has been adopted in the Shepparton Irrigation Region to accelerate natural resource management works, leading to increased adoption of the Goulburn Broken Regional Catchment Strategy. The Local Area Plans are developed in partnership with local and state governments, the Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority, water authorities, the local Landcare network and most importantly community members.

Utilising a “bottom-up” approach to develop the plans ensures each Local Area Plan is created and owned by the community and reflects their priorities. This empowers and builds capacity in both the community and the agencies working on local area planning.

Through implementing their Local Area Plans, the communities have been involved in a wide range of activities from hosting tours of their catchments and discussing their plans with a wide range of people. The learnings from the Local Area Planning program, in particular from the implementation of these plans, are presented in this paper.

Three key learnings: (1) Local Area Planning has empowered local communities in the Shepparton Irrigation Region to take charge of natural resource management in their catchment, while working towards a more sustainable region; (2) Local Area Planning has provided opportunity for communities to outline their social, environmental and economic issues and work with agencies to tackle these issues, giving the community a road map for their future, and (3) Local Area Planning has enabled excellent working relationships to develop between agencies and the community.

Introduction

The Goulburn Broken Catchment is located in Victoria, Australia, and is home to 189,500 people with a regional economy of $7.8 billion per annum. It covers 2,431,654 hectares, 10.5 % of Victoria (Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority, 2003).

The Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority is the statutory authority responsible for the co-ordination of the natural resource management programs in the catchment. The Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority works closely with the community and partner organisations to deliver on ground solutions to environmental issues. It has a Regional Catchment Strategy which has been implemented over the last decade.

The Goulburn Broken Catchment Regional Catchment Strategy sets the vision and direction of the management of the natural resources within the catchment. It is supported by sub strategies, for example the Goulburn Broken Native Vegetation Management Strategy, 2005, which outline more detailed information about the threats to the region or the assets which need protection. The Goulburn Broken Catchment Regional Catchment Strategy was developed in consultation with the community, partner agencies and the local government. The strategy is “a whole of catchment approach that promotes investment to generate triple bottom line outcomes and pursue integrated solutions” (Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority, 2003).

The Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority has established three geographically based Implementation Committees across the catchment. These implementation committees are responsible for developing and putting in place on-ground works under the Catchment Management Authority’s broad strategies, in conjunction with the local community. The implementation committees provide a valuable link between the community and the Catchment Management Authority Board and have been assigned responsibility for developing an annual program of natural resource management activities across the catchment.

The committees comprise of eight community representatives appointed by the Catchment Management Authority and one non-voting representative from each of the Department of Sustainability and Environment, Department of Primary Industry and Goulburn-Murray Water (Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority, 2005). The committee responsible for implementing the regional catchment strategy the Shepparton Irrigation Region is the Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee.

The Shepparton Irrigation Region covers over 500,000 hectares of the Goulburn Broken Catchment. Local area planning has been used by the Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee to accelerate natural resource management works as part of their strategy to increase the understanding and adoption of the Goulburn Broken Regional Catchment Strategy in their region. Local area planning involves engaging and empowering local communities and working through their local issues. Reference is made to where these issues may be represented in the regional catchment strategy.

Eight local area plans have been developed in the Shepparton Irrigation Region and all are currently being implemented. The boundaries for each of the local area plans were determined by the community. Some of the areas are hydrological catchments, for example Cornella and Wyuna. Other local area plan areas are based on Landcare group boundaries or the combination of two neighbouring Landcare groups, such as the Bunbartha Kaarimba Zeerust local area plan area.

The local area plan areas involve the Cornella, Wyuna, Invergordon, Nanneella & District, Nathalia & District, Bunbartha Kaarimba Zeerust, Muckatah Katamatite Naringaningalook and Dhurringile & District communities. The location of each of these areas is outlined in Figure 1.

Figure 1. The distribution of the Local Area Plan areas across the Shepparton Irrigation Region, Victoria (Barker, 2005).

This paper explores the process used to develop and implement the local area plans with a focus on the relationships built between communities and agencies and empowerment of the community to tackle issues within their area.

What is a Local Area Plan?

A local area plan is a strategic planning document developed by communities and agencies together to establish a sustainable sound environment by identifying and overcoming land management and social problems through community action. The local area plans focus on all issues in each community, with the main focus being natural resource management.

The term local area planning is not a new one. The local area planning referred to in this paper is specific to the Shepparton Irrigation Region and the methods used to develop and implement the plans are unique to Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee and are outlined later in this paper. What distinguishes this approach to natural resource management is the level of community input into the process, the level of ownership of the plans by the community and the involvement of stakeholders in developing and implementing the plans. Also a very important aspect is the links between the community and the Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee that have been enhanced. These communities now have a strong link to the Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee and the Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority and its Regional Catchment Strategy.

The aims of Local Area Planning are:

1. To enhance the rate of adoption of on ground works relating to sustainable natural resource management in the Goulburn Broken Catchment.

2. To create a forum for integration of action plans, which results in minimisation of duplication of effort by various agencies

3. To empower the community to contribute and to drive these activities.

Local Area Planning:

  • Identifies natural resource issues
  • Involves a range of stakeholders
  • Prioritises issues according to community and government needs
  • Is action orientated
  • Develops recommendations for on-ground actions

Methods

This paper is a collation of observational data through my role in working in the local area plan implementation over the past five years, discussions with other staff involved in the program and community members.

My role in the local area planning in the Shepparton Irrigation Region is as a facilitator. I work with two local area plan groups to help them implement their plans. I work with three other Department of Primary Industries local area plan facilitators. This report is a collation of our experiences working with local area planning over the past five years.

Results

The Development Process

The Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee determined the areas to target within the Shepparton Irrigation Region for the development of the local area plans. The criteria used to determine these high priority areas was based on natural resource management issues and activities that the community groups had already been involved in. The issues the Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee used were groundwater management, biodiversity, waterways, surface drainage and community monitoring.

In addition to these criteria the Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee also used information provided by the geographic information systems team at Department of Primary Industries, Tatura. This information highlighted hot spots, for example areas that had high watertable levels, and helped the Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee determine areas to target for local area planning. Each of the Landcare groups across the Shepparton Irrigation Region were ranked according to the five criteria. The groups that had the highest score were approached to undertake a local area plan for their community.

The project funding for local area plans allowed for eight plans to be developed.

The Local Area Plan project is supported through a partnership approach between many agencies, both government and non - government and include (but not limited to):

  • Goulburn Murray Landcare Network
  • Department of Primary Industries
  • Department of Sustainability and Environment
  • Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority
  • Local government
  • Water authorities

The approach taken by the Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee was to ensure that the local area plans were developed through a “bottom-up” approach, meaning that the plans were developed by the community with assistance of agencies. Having strong community involvement in developing the local area plan, a plan for their community’s future, the communities have ownership of the plan. Developing the plans required the community to have to make decisions about what went into their plans. The plans have a natural resource management focus but also include and address social and economic issues as well, to create a more holistic plan than just focussing on natural resource management.

Empowering the community to make these decisions about their plan for their community has led to the community also taking the lead in implementing their plans. Communities that have a high degree of decision making are more likely to have a higher degree of ownership of the decision, and therefore an improved likelihood of implementation of the solution (Department of Sustainability and Environment, 2004a). True empowerment means “that the community shares in the decision making power” (Department of Sustainability and Environment, 2004b).

The agencies involved in supporting the communities to develop their plans were responsible for providing the community members with information to make these decisions, and about what boundaries / laws / requirements already exist, so that the decisions the community make are well informed ones. Figure 2 demonstrates the “bottom-up” approach compared to a “top-down” approach.

Figure 2. Schematic diagram of the “bottom-up” approach compared to the “top-down” approach (Ebbs, 2000).

There are many examples of plans that have been developed by agencies in the past with minimal community input or “top-down” approach and have therefore not been supported by the community. An example of this was highlighted by a landholder from the Cornella local area plan catchment who said “there have been many plans developed for this area but this local area plan is the only one that is getting action happening on the ground” (Hicks, R, 2005).

The development of the local area plans was facilitated by Department of Primary Industries and each local area plan took approximately two years to prepare. The first plan to be developed was the Cornella Local Area Plan. It was initiated at a public meeting held in March 1999 and the plan was launched in November 2000. The eighth plan to be developed was the Dhurringile Local Area Plan. It was initiated at public meeting in February 2002 and was launched in April 2005. Throughout the development of the plans most groups met fortnightly to work on their plans.

The following nine steps outline the process undertaken to develop each local area plan.

  • Step one: A local community member was recruited to promote local area planning and to help engage and involve the community. This position was filled by someone known and well respected within the local area.
  • Step two: One or more public meetings were held to enlist community support for local area planning and to start to identify the key catchment issues facing the community.
  • Step three: A representative Community Planning Group was established to look at the issues identified by the community and to set a vision for the local area plan. This community planning group also started to set some goals and develop options for action.
  • Step four: This step involved seeking comment and technical knowledge through consultation with relevant agencies. This step ensured that “wheels were not being reinvented” and that information in the local area plan was sound.
  • Step five: Involved establishing the extent of information available for the issues. Some cost sharing arrangements were also developed and discussed with the relevant agencies along with documenting responsibilities, priorities and time lines for implementation of solutions.
  • Step six: An estimate of the cost of implementing the local area plan was developed.
  • Step seven: Through consultation with the broader community and agencies, the content of the plan was discussed and agreed upon.
  • Step eight: The plan document was finalised and a number of the plans were produced. Both the agencies involved and the community were asked to “sign-on” the plan, an endorsement that they have been involved. A celebration of achievements and launch of the plan was then held.
  • Step nine: The plan is started to be implemented. Each group decides how to run the implementation of their plan. A review process is also discussed.

The Implementation Process

Each of the local area plan groups is implementing their plans in a different manner. The Cornella group has established an implementation committee that meets six times per year, while the Invergordon group has decided to meet annually and to work through other established and existing groups to implement their plan.

To assist in implementing their plans, each community is allocated a facilitator from the Department of Primary Industries and a co-ordinator who is a local community person employed through the Goulburn Murray Landcare Network. The co-ordinator works for five hours per week to help the group with implementation of activities. The Department of Primary Industries facilitator acts as a signpost for the group, providing advice on who to consult, assisting in identifying opportunities for funding and applying for funding and also providing feedback to the Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee. Being high priority areas increases the funding and resources available to these communities.

Agencies involved in the development of the local area plans are asked to commit to assist in the implementation of the plans, giving the communities re-assurance that the actions in the plans will be implemented with the support of the agencies. Part of the role of the facilitator is to help maintain the links with these agencies strong through keeping these important stakeholders involved in the groups activities, and keeping them up to date with activities that the groups are doing and plan to do in the future.

A local area plan is a ‘living’ document which means that as the plans are implemented, some activities are completed, new and emerging issues can be added. For instance the Nanneella and District Local Area Plan group has already reviewed their plan, two years into implementation. They decided to add the impact of the drought on their community, both as individuals and as a whole, to their plan.

Each year the local area plan groups set priorities at a facilitated meeting, where group members review what they have done in the past twelve months and outline what they would like to achieve in the next twelve months. The outcomes of this process are goals and targets for the groups to work towards, and these determine what resources, if any, are required to undertake the works. This process also feeds into the Shepparton Irrigation Implementation Committee works programs and allows the groups to alert each of the agencies, such as Department of Primary Industries, Goulburn-Murray Water and the local Shire as to what they are hoping to achieve. Each of the agencies can then work with the groups to determine if their activities will fit into the agencies’ work plans, and achieve the desired outcomes for both parties. This priority setting process also helps programs to adapt to meet the needs of the local area plan groups, while keeping agencies and the local area plan group up to date with what each other is doing in the area. Once the priorities from the groups are collected a Bennett’s Heirarchy is developed for each goal to evaluate and improve on activities into the future.

Activities and issues that each of the groups are addressing vary. Some groups have a very strong environmental and sustainable landscapes focus, such as tackling erosion, water quality and riparian zone protection in the local creek. The Cornella Local Area Plan Implementation Committee have been working with the Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority, the local shire, Vic Roads, local landholders and with the support of Department of Primary Industries and the Goulburn Murray Landcare Network have undertaken a massive project in their catchment. This project has involved the local area plan group applying for and receiving funding through Envirofunds, the City of Greater Bendigo, Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority and Vic Roads to undertake erosion control works in the Cornella Creek, to fence off and revegetate riparian zones along the creek.

The Nathalia and District Local Area Plan group has recently received an award for their hard work in developing the Broken Creek Drive. The drive follows the creek and points out local historical features, environmental features and native flora and fauna habitats. The project was undertaken by the local area plan group in conjunction with other local community groups, local businesses and government funders.

The Nanneella and District Local Area Plan group have combined their regular meetings with five other local committees. An issue raised by the people interested in helping to implement the local area plan was that they are already involved in a number of other committees - a common problem in rural communities. The same people volunteer their time and resources to a number of committees and become burnt out. In order to address this, the various groups have joined forces to become the Nanneella and Timmering Action Group. This group meets once a month to discuss issues within the area. Each represented group can still meet on their own if necessary, and a couple of the groups do this. The Nanneella and Timmering Action Group also provides a treasurer service to these groups.

Throughout the local area plan process the communities and individuals involved have developed skills and knowledge. They have improved their knowledge of their local area, developed skills in public speaking through promoting their plans and talking to a wide range of people about their plan. Project management has also been a big learning curve for some communities.

An example of the communities becoming more empowered can be demonstrated in the Cornella Local Area Plan Implementation Committee. The then secretary of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment was visiting the area and wanted to hear about the local area plan program. She visited the Cornella area and the local area plan group spoke to the secretary about their plan with confidence. After the visit, one of the members of the Cornella group stated that they wouldn’t have been able to speak in public like that before being involved in the local area plan. Since being involved in the local area plan they have gained experience in public speaking, a skill that they can and have used elsewhere.

Evaluation of the local area plan implementation has been conducted at two levels. Each of the activities run by the local area plan groups goes through some form of evaluation, to help with improving on the next activity.

There is also evaluation completed by the Department of Primary Industries facilitators. This evaluation looks at the success of the local area plan program. There will be a five yearly review process for the local area plan program. As part of the first review semi-structured interviews will be undertaken with members of the local area planning groups to understand how participants view the changes in their community that result from local area planning. It is anticipated that these interviews will also explore the role of agencies, in particular Department of Primary Industries and the Goulburn Murray Landcare Network.

Discussion

There are a number of features which made the local area plans presented in this paper different from the standard natural resource management planning process.

The local area plans are not set in concrete and as more issues arise, they can be added into the plan. The previous of the impact of drought demonstrates that additional issues are being identified and acted upon. The social impacts of the drought on the communities became more of a focus in some communities rather than the natural resource management issues they had been working on. The local area plan has to be flexible to accommodate for these changing needs.

Each of the local area plan documents is different as is each community. The differences in the documents reflect that each community has had input into the document to shape it to meet the needs of that community. The development of local area plans has given these communities a plan for their future. It documents all the issues facing the community, what some of the solutions to the issue are, how urgent and achievable the issues are and it also outlines who should do what. The plans are an extremely useful tool for both community and agency to have, to better plan the activities and projects to be undertaken to tackle some of the issues. Each of the local area plan groups are implementing their plans in various forms.

Community ownership and involvement is essential to ensure the long-term life of local area plans. Each local area plan is a living document that can be adjusted and modified to reflect changing community needs and government priorities.

Both the development and implementation of the local area plans have helped to build strong relationships between the community and the agencies. Through the developmental phase, agencies are invited to attend some meetings to discuss in what areas they can assist the communities. This includes what resources the agencies have available and extra information on issues they can provide to help the community to make well informed decisions. These relationships continue into the implementation phase of local area planning. To successfully carry out these natural resource management activities, strong partnerships are needed between landowners and government.

The development and the implementation of the local area plans has seen community build strong relationships with the Shepparton Irrigation Region Implementation Committee and other stakeholders involved, while becoming more empowered to tackle more complex issues.

Conclusion

Local area plans will accelerate the implementation of the Goulburn Broken Regional Catchment Strategy in high priority areas of the region. These local area plans form the next phase of the already highly successful community consultation and empowerment approach built for the development and implementation of the Goulburn Broken Regional Catchment Strategy.

The future of the local area plans in the community will be determined by the community themselves. The first local area plans to be developed and start implementation are now approaching five years of implementation and still going strong. Over this time some of the members of the groups have changed, new people have been involved in different projects and some members are the original people involved since the concept of local area planning was discussed.

Local area planning in the Shepparton Irrigation Region has been an interesting project to be involved with. It is a credit to the communities who have worked extremely hard on developing the plans and are now implementing their plans.

Through the development and implementation of the local area planning has helped communities to establish a road map for the future for natural resource management in their area. The plans include social and economic issues as well to help create a more holistic plan for the community. These plans have helped the communities to set some goals and targets for their communities – some footprints for the future.

References

Barker S (2005) Shepparton Irrigation Region Local Area Plans, Department of Primary Industries, Tatura, Victoria.

Department of Sustainability and Environment (2004a) Effective Community Engagement Workbook, Version 1, Section 1, part 4. Melbourne.

Department of Sustainability and Environment (2004b) Effective Community Engagement Workbook, Version 1, Section 1, part 5. Melbourne.

Ebbs B (2000) Bottom up Approach, Rushworth, Victoria.

Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority (2003) Regional Catchment Strategy, GBCMA, Shepparton, Victoria.

Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority (2005) Who are we and what do we do. GBCMA website: www.gbcma.vic.gov.au, Shepparton, Victoria.

Hicks R (2005)Mt Camel. Personal Communication.

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