Greater Taree City Council, on the NSW mid north coast, has adopted a Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP) incorporating a dual approach to managing current and future impacts of coastal erosion.
The Council approved a planned retreat strategy for the entire Greater Taree coastline, with the exception of Old Bar, where active management of erosion to public and private land and infrastructure is to be managed by a revetment wall. Construction of the revetment wall along a two kilometre stretch of Old Bar Beach, is subject to the structure being funded by the State or Commonwealth governments.
For areas outside Old Bar, where planned retreat is the adopted option, new and existing houses would be required to be removed or relocated when the impacts of coastal erosion place the structures at unacceptable risk. The Council notes that none of the settlements outside Old Bar are currently experiencing coastal erosion, and that adoption of the plan does not preclude Council from making changes to the CZMP in the future should new information become available.
The adopted CZMP will now be sent to the NSW Minister for the Environment, Rob Stokes, for certification.