Background
Wingecarribee Shire Council successfully ran its Land for Wildlife program since 2009, fostering significant community participation in private land biodiversity conservation.
Council's initial Private Land Conservation Strategic Plan (2017) covered a five-year period and required revision in 2023. This revision resulted in an updated plan outlining the framework for ongoing council investment and support for private land biodiversity conservation efforts within the Shire. This award-winning program has demonstrably encouraged tree planting, natural area restoration, and biodiversity monitoring on private lands for over a decade.
Collaborative Development and Implementation of the Plan
Council staff, in consultation with the Climate Change and Environment Community Reference Panel (CRP) and the Environment and Sustainability Branch, reviewed and updated the plan.
Upon adoption, the updated plan would guide the council's private land conservation activities. The draft plan was put on public exhibition following its presentation at the Ordinary Council Meeting on 15 November 2023. After incorporating community feedback, Council formally adopted the plan on 17 April 2024. Council extends its gratitude to those who participated in the public exhibition period and looks forward to implementing the plan over the next four years in collaboration with the nature-loving community.