{"id":518,"date":"2012-06-30T14:07:34","date_gmt":"2012-06-30T04:07:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/?p=518"},"modified":"2012-07-25T23:50:28","modified_gmt":"2012-07-25T13:50:28","slug":"more-on-earthworks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/2012\/06\/more-on-earthworks\/","title":{"rendered":"More on Earthworks"},"content":{"rendered":"

I touched on some aspects of earthworks and development consent in an earlier posting<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

\n
6.14 Earthworks [local]<\/h5>\n\n\n\n\t<\/colgroup>\n\n\n
(1)<\/td>\nThe objectives of this clause are:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n\n\n\n\n\t\t\t<\/colgroup>\n\n\n\n\n
(a)<\/td>\nto ensure that any earthworks will not have a detrimental impact on environmental functions and processes, neighbouring uses, or cultural or heritage items and features, and<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(b)<\/td>\nto allow earthworks of a minor nature without separate development consent.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(2)<\/td>\nDevelopment consent is required for earthworks, unless:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n\n\n\n\n\t\t\t<\/colgroup>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
(a)<\/td>\nthe work is exempt development under this plan or State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008<\/a>, or<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(b)<\/td>\nthe work is necessarily carried out to allow development for which development consent or an approval within the meaning of Part 5 of the Act<\/a> has been granted, or<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(c)<\/td>\nthe consent authority is satisfied that the earthworks are of a minor nature, or<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(d)<\/td>\nthe work is necessarily carried out for routine agricultural management activities as defined in the Native Vegetation Act 2003<\/a> and in addition, the creation or removal of silage pits, stock grids, swales, disposal of dead animals, water tanks and the like, and does not involve the importation of fill.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Note: all of the above exemptions are subject to relevant State legislation.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(3)<\/td>\nBefore granting any such consent, the consent authority must consider the following matters:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n\n\n\n\n\t\t\t<\/colgroup>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
(a)<\/td>\nthe likely disruption of, or any detrimental effect on, existing drainage patterns and soil stability in the locality,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(b)<\/td>\nthe effect of the proposed development on the likely future use or redevelopment of the land,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(c)<\/td>\nthe quality of the fill or of the soil to be excavated, or both,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(d)<\/td>\nthe effect of the proposed development on the existing and likely amenity of adjoining properties,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(e)<\/td>\nthe adequacy of proposed measures for sediment and erosion control,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(f)<\/td>\nthe source of any fill material or the destination of any excavated material,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(g)<\/td>\nthe likelihood of disturbing Aboriginal objects or relics,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
(h)<\/td>\nthe proximity to and potential for adverse impacts on any watercourse, drinking water catchment or environmentally sensitive area.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

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<\/a> (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<\/a> must also be considered.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

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\u2019s a fair chance that you\u2019ll 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 \u201cfilling 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\u201d. That\u2019s a pretty broad definition.<\/p>\n

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<\/a> tends to apply conditions above and beyond those that appear in Council\u2019s own planning instruments (LEP and DCP). The upshot of this is that it\u2019s important to understand local conditions—they will all be specifically identified in any DA—before undertaking any earthworks. Don\u2019t leave this to a contractor—they might be familiar with the conditions applicable in one area, but not another, or they mightn\u2019t be concerned at all\u2026 At the end of the day, compliance is the responsibility of the property owner, not the contractor.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

To add insult to injury, unapproved development can attract fines that start at $1,500, and may also invalidate your insurance policy. If you\u2019re not sure whether or not a development activity requires approval, check with Council first—it doesn\u2019t cost anything to ask.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=518"}],"version-history":[{"count":69,"href":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":592,"href":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518\/revisions\/592"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=518"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=518"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/peteharrison.id.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=518"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}