Community feedback opens on draft Regional Landscape Plan

1 March 2021

The draft Eyre Peninsula Regional Landscape Plan sets the vision and priorities for the region to achieve sustainable landscape management.

The plan focuses on the priority areas of water, sustainable agriculture, pest plants and animals, biodiversity and community, which were set out by the Minister for the Environment and Water when the landscape boards were established in July 2020.

Presiding Member of the Eyre Peninsula Landscape Board, Mark Whitfield, says the draft plan and supporting documents outline the region’s key landscape requirements and the programs that will deliver the aims of the priority areas.

“We are confident that our plan sets the direction for sustainable and resilient landscapes for our Eyre Peninsula region,” Mr Whitfield says.

“We live in a remarkable part of Australia with unique features that require careful management to maintain their viability well into the future, whether that be our farming land or the coastal saltmarsh areas that are home to threatened birds.”

Three years ago, the previous Board went through an extensive consultation with the community to develop a plan for the next decade. However, in July 2020, a new way of managing South Australian landscapes was welcomed with the Landscape South Australia Act 2019 replacing the former NaturalResources Management Act 2004.

Given this change, and the appointment of the new Eyre Peninsula Landscape Board, the previous plan is required to be updated to a new Regional Landscape Plan for the Eyre Peninsula.

“Having been through extensive consultation with the Eyre Peninsula community, we have built on that past engagement and re-mapped the priorities, identified by our community, to align with the new legislation,” Mr Whitfield says.

“We ask the Eyre Peninsula community to look at our draft plan details and let us know if the priorities captured remain true to what they value about our landscapes.”

The Eyre Peninsula Landscape Board region covers an area of 80,000 square kilometres. It extends from Whyalla in the east, along the Gawler Ranges in the north, to the edge of the Nullarbor Plain in the west. The region includes over 3,000 kilometres of coastline from the upper Spencer Gulf to the Great Australian Bight, and includes 182 offshore islands.

Consultation is open until 5pm March 29, 2021. Full plan details are on this page. Feedback can be given via our survey, on the YourSAy website or by email.