(Adopted October 2015)
Principles
The Queensland Greens believe that:
1. The overarching principle of Ecological Sustainable Development (ESD) must be at the core of planning and development decision making at all levels of government.
2. Individuals, communities and stakeholders must be able to actively contribute to the planning process in a manner that is genuine, effective, inclusive, and respectful of community values and allows the affordable appeal of decisions they do not agree with.
3. Planning and development processes must recognise and reflect that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are the traditional custodians of the land.
4. Liveable communities dramatically improve outcomes for a diverse range of issues such as innovation, social capital, health, well-being, educational and employment opportunities.
5. Sustainable planning encourages mixed use zoning, incorporating residential, employment, as well as active and public transport.
6. Well designed liveable communities would preserve the natural environment and minimise urban sprawl, economic and social disadvantage, the reliance on private vehicles and the need for expensive infrastructure.
7. Planning and development must integrate energy efficiency, reduced fossil fuel use and transport policies to play a key role in addressing the causes and impacts of climate change.
8. Planning decisions must consider the impacts on and benefits for future generations.
Aims
The Queensland Greens will work towards:
Urban Planning and Development
1. The development of local and State government planning schemes which reduce greenfield sites and support urban renewal (infill).
2. Supporting the creation of urban villages and town centres through Transit Oriented Developments (TODs) and Transit Adjacent Developments (TADs)
3. Fund the upgrade of existing public transport and where required develop new public transit networks,
4. Facilitate urban renewal through rezoning of land usage which promotes mixed zoning and use of medium to high density development
5. Retain or increase the quality and quantity of public and green spaces within and around urban villages.
6. Improving safe and active transport options, including;
a) The prioritisation of transport options (in order); walking, cycling, Public transport, private vehicle usage.
b) Dedicated cycling pathways, which accommodate for commuter cycling, recreational cycling, and sports cycling.
c) Dedicated pedestrian pathways.
d) Improving public access to showers and change rooms at key transport hubs.
7. Ensuring greater emphasis of Green Infrastructure in urban planning and development. Applications include;
a) Water management including stormwater and flood controls
b) Shading and heat reduction
c) Wildlife corridors
d) Urban wetlands, parklands and recreational spaces.
Regional Planning and Development
1. Develop a ‘megaregion’ strategy for development capped satellite cities to be connected by high speed public transport corridors.
2. Support the sustainability of regional towns and cities through developing business, cultural, educational, and recreational centres, which promote economic activity and support communal life.
3. Planning and delivering high speed transport connections to regional cities.
4. Protect rural and regional communities through the provision of green breaks, wildlife corridors and inter-urban breaks (IUB).
5. Protect IUB from increasing threats of development that reduce the distance between urban centres.
6. The use of IUB to promote compact development and efficient settlement patterns, efficient use of infrastructure, reduces travel time by encouraging local development and employment opportunities through improved local economies.
7. Beyond ‘boom and bust’ sustainable long-term planning for ‘resource towns’ in regional and rural Queensland.
8. An emphasis on housing affordability and provision of essential services for ‘resource towns’.
9. Regional planning should carefully consider the carrying capacity of the region in the face of constrained resources such as water, waste management and arable land.
10. New development should be co-located, where feasible, near existing transport and other essential infrastructure.
Planning and Development Standards
Government Planning Standards
1. Ensuring that all Planning legislation, planning schemes and planning documentation is underpinned by the principle of ‘Place Making’*.
2. Protecting the rights and integrity of Local Government planning schemes and development assessments.
3. Reduce the requirement for discretionary decision making.
4. Ensure fair and transparent discretionary decisions in the development assessments process.
5. Mandating that government planning schemes, which foreshadow future development sites and population growth, also project the required associated infrastructure and its estimated cost.
6. Mandating that developers assist with the costs associated with remediating any negative impacts for large developments.
7. The expansion of legislative provisions, which promote the protection, restoration and incorporation of cultural heritage sites including greater protection of Indigenous heritage.
8. In order to achieve food security, Good Quality Agricultural Land should be preserved from encroachment from mining, dams and housing.
9. Improving the reliability and quality of maps and data-sets available for government and the community, ensuring that maps are kept accurate, and that this data is available across jurisdictions. This includes the following;
a) Government legislative boundaries;
b) Flood mapping to support new design standards for developments in flood affected zones;
c) Mapping of environmentally significant assets, for example National Parks, native flora and fauna, waterways and catchment areas.
10. Providing legal protection for declared nature refuges and all other classes of conservation parks in perpetuity i.e National Parks.
11. Disperse new government housing amongst private residential property, within close proximity to public transport routes, and upgrade public transport services and active transport infrastructure in areas with large amounts of government housing.
12. Protect rural and regional communities through the provision of green breaks, wildlife corridors and inter-urban breaks (IUB).
13. Protect IUB from increasing threats of development that reduce the distance between urban centres.
14. Planning for impacts of climate change including, rising sea levels, increased storm surge events, more frequent and intense flooding, prolonged periods of drought and associated increased bush fire risks.
15. Maintaining urban green space and waterfronts for public usage.
16. Protect riparian areas with prescribed buffer zones to maintain biodiversity, improve soil management, and retain amenity.
Building Standards
1. Ensuring that new and re-developments incorporate cost effective water and energy efficiency outcomes. Where feasible incorporate onsite power generation, water storage, stormwater and wastewater management.
2. Ensuring that new and re-developments incorporate climate responsive design with a focus on passive environmental design.
3. Ensuring that new and re-developments incorporate best-practice mitigation strategies and technologies to reduce potential natural disasters impacts relevant to the development site, ie. flood and bushfire mitigation.
Community Rights
1. The provision of annual funding for the operation of Queensland community-based, public interest environmental and planning law offices to provide independent planning and legal advice to the community and assistance with appeals.
2. The provision of rights for individuals and community groups to make legal challenges to government planning decisions.
3. Opportunities for the community and key stakeholders to actively contribute to the planning process in a manner that is effective, inclusive, respectful of community values, and which articulates the reasonable aspirations of the community.
4. Ensure people have the option of staying in their communities and homes without having to move as they progress through life or become disabled.
Professional Development
1. The provision of funding to professional organisations which provide research and input on planning and development standards associated with construction, energy and water, transport, climate change, disaster mitigation, social planning, affordable and public housing.
2. Annual state funded ‘Place Making’ conference and awards program for best-practice professional development to encourage and promote sustainable development.
* Place Making:
The principle of ‘Place Making’ is a grass roots approach to planning which creates public spaces that promote health, happiness, and wellbeing. ‘Place Making’ significantly contributes to ecological sustainability, social cohesion, affordability and economic opportunity.