These are the opening lines of a December 2010 Environmental Defenders Office report The State of Planning in NSW: With reference to social and environmental impacts and public participation:
The planning system in New South Wales is at a crossroads.
In 1979, the planning system was complex, inconsistent, highly politicised, ad hoc, disconnected from local communities and non-strategic - often resulting in poor environmental outcomes.
The response to these problems at the time was to introduce a new, forward looking planning Act. Unprecedented at the time, the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (NSW) was underpinned by principles of genuine public participation, transparency, accountability, consistency of decision-making and comprehensive environmental assessment.
Since 1979, these principles have been buried under layers of incremental amendment resulting in substantial change.
In 2010, while efforts have been made to make the planning system in NSW more consistent (for example, standard Local Environment Plan) and more strategic (for example, Regional Strategies), it is once more become complex and highly politicised, disconnected from local communities, and resulting in poor environmental outcomes.
It is time for an overhaul of our planning laws.
This report poses the question; Can we fix the current Act?
Perhaps what should also be asked is – will the next NSW Government have the political will to address the manifest problems with state planning law and policy or will it continue on like the Iemma-Rees-Keneally governments as a tool of the big developers?
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