I touched on some aspects of earthworks and development consent in an earlier posting.
Following another query relating to earthworks, I thought a little more information might be of interest. The following is the clause relating to earthworks from the draft Palerang Local Environmental Plan 2012. It outlines what earthworks activities require development consent and why.
6.14 Earthworks [local]
| (1) | The objectives of this clause are: | ||||||||||||||||
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| (2) | Development consent is required for earthworks, unless: | ||||||||||||||||
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| (3) | Before granting any such consent, the consent authority must consider the following matters: | ||||||||||||||||
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My most recent enquiry exposed another dimension to the general issue of development consent, and unfortunately it’s not just a simple matter of complying with the PLEP requirements listed above. The relevant DCP (there will soon be a single Paleang DCP—we are still currently operating under some 20 DCPs inherited at the time of the amalgamation 8 years ago) and, depending on location, requirements of the Sydney Catchment Authority must also be considered.
In the present case, seeking to take advantage of a contractor working in the area, the applicant had constructed an access roadway and building pad on the new property prior to receiving notice that their DA had been approved.
There are two problems here. The first is that, as a general rule, if you intend to undertake earthworks that require the use of a machine, there’s a fair chance that you’ll require development approval (although landscaping, gardening and paving are generally exempt) and, as such, no work should be commenced until the relevant DA is issued. The current LEP defines earthworks as “filling or excavating land to the extent that existing drainage patterns or the use to which the land may be put, or both, are changed, and includes the construction of dams and access tracks and the rehabilitation of erosion gullies by backfilling”. That’s a pretty broad definition.
The second problem is that the conditions set for earthworks in a particular situation can vary. If, for example, the property in question is within the Sydney water catchment area, you will find that the Sydney Catchment Authority tends to apply conditions above and beyond those that appear in Council’s own planning instruments (LEP and DCP). The upshot of this is that it’s important to understand local conditions—they will all be specifically identified in any DA—before undertaking any earthworks. Don’t leave this to a contractor—they might be familiar with the conditions applicable in one area, but not another, or they mightn’t be concerned at all… At the end of the day, compliance is the responsibility of the property owner, not the contractor.
In the present case, while the works satisfied basic Council requirements for an unsealed roadway (maximum gradient 15%), they did not satisfy the requirements laid down by the SCA (maximum gradient 10%). These conditions were all laid out in the DA approval letter, a good reason to have waited for it before starting. The result was a requirement to seal the road, or build a new one, either option costing many additional tens of thousands of dollars.
To add insult to injury, unapproved development can attract fines that start at $1,500, and may also invalidate your insurance policy. If you’re not sure whether or not a development activity requires approval, check with Council first—it doesn’t cost anything to ask.
Pete Harrison ~ The QPR Blog cross-reference
30 March 2020 @ 15:09
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