Workshop findings report 1

© Australian Capital Territory, Canberra ~ 2009

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ACT Planning and Land Authority, GPO Box 1908, Canberra City ACT 2601

Sustainable Future Workshop Findings Report, ACT Planning and Land

Authority, ACT Government, Canberra, Australia 2009.

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Minister’s Foreword
A Message from the Minister for Planning
Dealing with climate change and committing to action is imperative for government, business, industry and
the community.

The ACT Government is committed to dealing with climate change and the Sustainable future program is a
clear demonstration of that commitment.

This three-year program focuses on reviewing planning policy and identifying strategies and measures that
will complement the government’s sustainability policy People, Places and Prosperity.

The program recognises that the built environment, which includes transport, contributes to more than 60 per
cent of greenhouse gas emissions in the ACT.

Sustainable future has brought together leading thinkers from across the country at a series of workshops on
diverse subjects, drawing out ideas on how to both reduce climate change and mitigate its effects through
smarter/better planning.

The program is now mid-way and this workshop findings report is an integral output highlighting views for
change and proposals for our future.

Sustainable future will ultimately help shape our city, creating a new plan for a more sustainable Canberra.
The outcomes of this program will help make our city more resilient to climate change.

I encourage you to read this report, provide feedback and have your say on a Sustainable future for your
neighbourhood and for our city.

Andrew Barr MLA

Minister for Planning
Executive summary
The Sustainable future program is a major initiative of the ACT Government, which the ACT Planning and
Land Authority (ACTPLA) is project managing. Its purpose is to make a substantial contribution to making
Canberra a more sustainable city through land use planning strategies and polices that will:

•  ake the urban structure and form (our city and all the spaces that are part of the city) more resilient
m
to change
• minimize redundancy and maximise adaptability
• promote actions that will abate climate change
• reinforce Canberra’s amenity and the community’s open and democratic values.
Six stakeholder workshops, canvassing themes that significantly affect Canberra’s urban structure and form
and sustainability, were held with the purpose of gaining some insight into the relative priority of issues,
the appetite for change and potential actions. This document reflects the collective vision and intellect of
attendees at the workshops.

One of the biggest messages from the workshops was that a ‘business as usual’ approach is not sustainable
in the planning, administrative and economic systems of Canberra. The need for integration of these systems
was highlighted as was the need to support a performance-based approach that can monitor and respond to
change. We need to be able to measure the impact of what we do so that we can be clear about the effects
of change over the long term.

While a great many of the actions proposed go well beyond ACTPLA’s statutory functions and powers, they
are still significant in informing the two key planning outcomes envisaged from the program.

The first outcome is a review of the policy content in the land use codes in the Territory Plan, with the
residential and subdivision codes being the highest priority This review is already underway, however findings
from the Sustainable future workshops will be fed into the review and any policy changes will be the subject
to further public consultation.

The second outcome is an evaluation of the Canberra Spatial Plan, leading to the refinement of strategic
planning actions to achieve the ACT Government’s policy agenda on affordability, liveability and sustainability,
including the aspiration of zero net carbon emissions by 2060. Ultimately this evaluation will inform the review
of the ACT Planning Strategy, which is required under the Planning and Development Act 20071.

In regard to the second outcome— the policy direction of the Spatial Plan for a more compact city form —
was reaffirmed. The evaluation will seek to broaden the discussion started in the workshops about identifying
strategies to achieve a more compact city form and how Canberra can:

• support the de-carbonisation of our economy

• realise the greater prosperity (economic and social) resulting from more sustainable development
• be resilient and adaptive to climate, cultural and demographic change
• foster inventive responses to climate change
• remove the spatial and access barriers that impede more sustainable behaviour
• be more environmentally sensitive and responsible to its own and surrounding areas
• encourage the development of community networks
• enhance Canberra as a beautiful and livable city.
Section one of this paper describes the purpose of the paper, while section two provides the background to
the creation of the Sustainable future program. Section three discusses the broad findings of the workshops
and focuses on barriers to action and common themes. Section four provides a rationale for how the
workshop results have been analysed, but the actual material can be found in Appendix 2. Lastly, section
five discusses the implications for planning and sets out the next steps in refining the Spatial Plan for a more
‘sustainable future’.
Contents
1.0 Purpose of this document 3

2.0 Background to the Sustainable future program 4

3.0 Workshop analysis 6

3.1 Barriers 6

3.2 Common issues 9

3.3 Thematic analysis of workshops 17

4.0 Implications for planning 19

4.1 Statutory context and constraints 19

4.2 Urban structure and the existing Spatial Plan 21

4.3 Recalibrating the vision 21

4.4 Baselines and performance targets 23

4.5 Developing scenarios 23

5.0 Where to from here? 24

Appendix 1 - List of speakers and workshops 26

Appendix 2 - Workshop Tables 28

Appendix 3 - Historic Maps of Canberra 55

Appendix 4 - Sustainable transport Action Plan 2010-2016 67

Workshop findings report 2

1.0 Purpose of this document
The main purpose of this document is to report on the proceedings of and broaden the discussion from six
stakeholder workshops hosted by ACTPLA on a sustainable future for Canberra.

The workshops were designed to gather information that would help ACTPLA undertake a review of planning
policies that guide the development of Canberra. This document summarises the recommendations made by
participants at the workshops. Participants were invited to attend based on their knowledge or pre-existing
involvement with the issues debated.

This report synthesises the input. It became clear that while ACTPLA’s objective was the policy review,
participants were much more interested in a holistic view of sustainability. This is an important issue because
government departments work within a statutory scope. The community, however, is generally not aware of
or even necessarily interested in such institutional divisions. The workshops illustrated this perfectly, with a
wide range of suggestions for action to improve the sustainability of Canberra being made with little concern
about how the change would happen.

Issues about improving Canberra’s sustainability are interrelated. So despite some proposals not being ones
that ACTPLA can action it was considered important that these suggestions be acknowledged so they are
included in Appendix 2.

Lastly, this report considers the implications for planning in regard to moving toward a more sustainable
future and how, through the use of scenarios we can create a new vision for the Spatial Plan.
2.0 Background to the Sustainable future program
The drive to create the Sustainable future program partly came from the adoption of the ACT Government’s
Weathering the Change strategy and a solar design workshop convened in 2007. This strategy recognised
the need for major changes in Canberra’s urban fabric so that significant reductions in consumption of non-
renewable energy could be achieved. This issue had also been flagged in the Canberra Spatial Plan.

The Sustainable future program was developed to help guide government decision making on the
most appropriate way to progress and manage change to the urban ecology of Canberra. In addition
to contributing to future emissions savings, the program has an overarching goal to implement planning
policy for more sustainable living that recognises social and cultural factors such as diversity, integrity, and
spirituality and draws on the inherent qualities of Canberra.

2.1 Workshops
As a first step, a series of workshops consisting of expert speakers and stakeholders was run. Each
workshop had between four and six speakers, selected for their expert knowledge of the subject area and
their ability to stimulate discussion. The workshops gave ACTPLA an understanding of current stakeholder
interests.

During the program development process four major drivers of change, or goals were identified. These were to:

•  uild resilience and responsiveness to change (perceived to be climate change, climate variability,
b
peak oil, the ageing population and changes to the economic base)
•  inimize redundancy and maximise adaptability, which responds to the need to ensure
m
intergenerational equity and to ensure that the built form can adapt to changing needs over time
• take actions that abate the causes of climate change
• foster a consciousness of sense and responsibility to community, place and self;retaining and
developing the values that make Canberra special and to protect the egalitarian and democratic
values of the community.

All speakers were given briefs that included these drivers and were asked to design their presentations with
this in mind. Four other common issues that related to the drivers were also highlighted for the speakers.
These were accessibility, affordability, community health/wellbeing and economics. Finally, each brief
included information about the particular topic. The workshops were on:

• Transport and communication – toward an accessible Canberra

• Culture and knowledge – Canberra’s community living sustainably
• Energy – towards a carbon neutral Canberra
• Water and infrastructure – securing the city
• Bush Capital – our city in the landscape
•  conomics and administration for sustainability – valuing and administering a sustainable future for
E
Canberra.

During analysis of workshop recommendations it became clear that many propositions were multifaceted and
crossed boundaries between workshops. For example, transport-related recommendations had connections
to energy, open space, community safety, housing affordability and culture. This again reflects the importance
of understanding the interrelated nature of issues in dealing with sustainability. This also led to the grouping of
the actions and proposition around themes (see section 4.0) that crossed the workshop topics.

Workshop findings report 4

While preparing this paper, the Chief Minister announced the aspirational target of zero net carbon dioxide
emissions for Canberra. The 2009 Budget also contained programs that echoed recommendations made
by participants.2 Therefore, some of the propositions discussed at the workshops have been or are being
implemented.

Achieving the target of zero net carbon dioxide emissions by 2060 will require a review of a broad range
of government policies, strategies and plans. This document makes reference to parts of existing policies,
strategies and plans. It opens a discussion about how planning policy might be revised in light of this new
goal and other broader sustainability goals.

Readers should be aware that participants talked about sustainability in Canberra in the broadest sense
and much of what is contained in this paper falls a long way outside ACTPLA’s statutory functions. These
functions are detailed in the Planning and Development Act (section 5.1) . Most relate to development of and
maintaining the Territory Plan and the Spatial Plan and responsibility for the decisions made under those
plans. There are also other functions such as the regulation of the building industry. It is important that
readers be aware that publication of the workshop proceedings does not constitute agreement by ACTPLA
or any other department which has sustainability as a key policy issue.
3.0 Workshop analysis

3.1 Barriers
This section elaborates on the barriers identified at the workshops. The solutions to these barriers are not
all within the scope of ACTPLA, and some are well beyond the scope of any government. However, they are
in this paper because they are society wide and cut to the core of the debate about what sustainability is
and what it should be in Canberra. Therefore, ACTPLA must be aware of them because they will affect its
attempts to improve sustainability outcomes across the city.

3.1.1 Outmoded thinking

One of the clear barriers discussed in all workshops was outmoded (i.e. out-of-date) and inappropriate
thinking. The description of outmoded thinking varied according to the workshop and to the workshop
speaker. For example, Jessica Weir deconstructed the assumptions that support the notion of the
environment as a resource for human benefit. Steve Keen illustrated how traditional economic concepts
actually drive the unsustainable boom/bust economic paradigm. Jarret Walker addressed how the design
of public transport systems can be negatively affected by common but untested assumptions, using the
example of changing buses and trip times.3

Dualistic thinking (the idea that there are only two ways of thinking i.e. an either or approach) was identified
as a major barrier. An either/or approach divides opinion, reduces options, and creates a false dichotomy (i.e.
the false notion that there are only two options). Included in this was an emphasis on the environment seen
principally as a resource that needs to be accounted for, as if it really were a profit and loss situation and not
a life support system. Another way this shows up is the division between landscape/city and nature/culture.
An either/or approach is also antagonistic to a systems way of thinking (i.e. looking at a whole system rather
than parts of the system), that workshop participants strongly supported. A systems way of thinking means
that the relationships between all parts of a system need to be understood when tackling an issue.

Knowledge and understanding about sustainability was highlighted in a range of areas. This included:

•  lack of knowledge about the environment of Canberra, for example Sara Beavis’s paper illustrated
a
deficiencies in knowledge about groundwater, its interconnecting elements, and particularly about
how to appropriately value and account for environmental services
• feelings of apathy, despair, cynicism or powerlessness
•  onfusion around differing projections of climate change impact contributed by the range of
c
stakeholders, covering all points of the political spectrum
• reconsideration of economic models that have driven government policy and spending priorities to date.

3.1.2 Inertia
A second major barrier was inertia, encountered physically, institutionally and socially.

Inflexibility in traditional approaches to planning from our institutions was recognised. Participants identified
that the speed of expected environmental change under most climate change scenarios is likely to outstrip
the capacity of governments globally to adapt. Sustainable planning would need better interdepartmental
coordination and a whole-of-government commitment to sustainability. Participants supported ACTPLA’s
attempts to make planning more flexible and adaptable in line with sustainability principles. However, due to
the general nature of the workshops, they could only point out general areas for further work.

Workshop findings report 6

Physically, we have inherited an urban structure and form that locks most citizens into a resource hungry
lifestyle. At some level we are all familiar with what inflexibility means in urban structure, for example the
nature of urban structure and form combined with increasing social pressures tend to force people towards
car transport. Travel to work data shows that most trips in Canberra are by car. Socially, the weight of habit
in social relationships and practices can be hard to overcome e.g. habits of seeing green grass as beautiful
or public transport as distasteful. Incremental personal change can, over time, become a powerful force for
change, but it requires a daily choice to overcome inertia.

Through the intelligent use of incentives, disincentives, policy and by showcasing sustainable communities for
a better lifestyle, government can encourage this process of personal change.

3.1.3 Oversimplification
We live in complex interrelated social, environmental and economic systems, and any interventions in one
lead to ramifications elsewhere. Hence, an emphasis on simplicity or simple ‘one size fits all’ approaches,
that sound politically and socially appropriate, was identified as a barrier because it discourages people from
thinking holistically. Applied to water as an example, this assumes that reduction in water consumption is all
that is required, whereas desirability for less water use must be considered together with the ramifications for
infrastructure life. Applied to public transport, a one size approach assumes that single parents have the same
mobility needs as people working full time. More broadly, participants pointed to a failure to recognise diversity.
The inability to recognise diversity and connections in all spheres is important. Diversity and complexity is
basic to sustainability and should be a foundation of policy and programs. Policy and program responses will
need to be developed for different scales and stages of urban development. One size will not fit all.

3.1.4 Inappropriate resourcing

Workshop participants recognised that it takes substantial funding to carry out the kinds of programs, projects
and policy changes that many thought were needed. In a global recession (and for that matter, even without
one) there tends to be a mindset of cutting the government sector and the services it provides. Instead, as
Mollie Harriss Olson pointed out in the final workshop, the global financial crisis is liberating considerable funds
for economic stimulus packages that could be intelligently applied to a range of sustainability needs.

However, Australia finds itself outstripped by South Korea which is spending more than eighty per cent of its
stimulus packages on environmental adaptation measures. This approach would provide employment and
address vital sustainability needs. Funding for retrofitting existing areas is also extremely expensive. This was
particularly highlighted in the water, energy and transport workshops, for example in the water workshop James
Rosenwax discussed a recent Sydney waterway rehabilitation project that cost one million dollars per kilometre.

3.1.5 Time frames

Various aspects of time were highlighted as barriers. These included:

• procrastination over important decisions

• whether or not ‘the tipping point’ had already been reached, noting that various kinds of tipping
points have been proposed in the literature4
• community engagement is time and resource intensive
• citizens have time pressures that inhibit/limit getting socially involved
• pressure to complete projects under unrealistic time frames
• not being prepared to spend time developing and piloting projects to induce behaviour change to
find out if they will be effective.

This was contrasted with a sense of urgency about the amount of time left for humanity to reverse its
discernible impact on the planet.5
3.1.6 Personal values
While sustainability is a dominant theme across all spheres of government, it is recognised that many
individuals do not consider it to be as important as other aspects of their lives. The community in general
will have widely differing points of view about the relative importance of sustainability and the debate around
such points of view is important in a liberal democracy. This can be complicated by the fact that sustainability
itself can’t be measured, even though matters that contribute to it such as energy consumption, commuting
distance, source and cost of food can be measured.

Steve Keen demonstrated in his presentation that the current level of debt is approximately two and a half
times the level of debt during the Great Depression, which means that for many people their personal values
will crystallise around matters like being able to adequately feed their children and keep their jobs. Globally,
however, Australians remain amongst the most well fed and housed. Or, to put that in the reverse, about one
billion people live in extreme poverty.6 Other illustrations of differing personal values that were raised included
the increasing trend to larger houses and an indoor-oriented culture, preference for traditional style gardens,
and the comfort of the private car.

However, Molly Harriss Olson reminded economics workshop participants that recent research on social
change has found that only 15 per cent of a population seeking to change constitutes a tipping point. This 15
per cent is highly innovative and paves the way for the next 35 per cent who are supportive in principle but
prefer to wait for technology to be proven. While no research has been undertaken in Canberra to verify how
this model applies in our situation, Will Steffen in his presentation noted that Canberra has a better chance
than most because of high levels of education among the population.

Workshop findings report 8

3.2 Common issues
This section briefly discusses the most important issues that came out of the workshops. These issues were often
raised across multiple workshops indicating the complexity of sustainability issues and their interlocking nature.

3.2.1 Resilience to climate change

Every workshop discussed some aspect of the expected cumulative impacts of climate change. If there
is one message from this process, it would be that participants supported a wide-ranging and integrated
approach to building resilience in Canberra.

Participants discussed resilience relating to infrastructure planning, social impacts, preservation of

biodiversity, consumption patterns, cultural understanding, and urban structure, to name a few. The ongoing
development of an integrated sustainability policy tied to targets, that is adaptive is the major way planning
can contribute to improving Canberra’s resilience in the long term.

3.2.2 Intangible values

It was clear that most participants and speakers placed great value on intangible qualities, such as feeling
connected in the community or attempting to live ‘lightly’. These were the values that made their lives
meaningful and important. Some speakers and participants alluded to the need to rediscover or create a
more spiritual sense of being and a way of relating to the land we live on that can be supported by spending
time in nature.

The challenge is to provide a planning policy that identifies, retains and extends these values, through the
way it engages with citizens and through the resulting city fabric. Hence creating and maintaining public
spaces, especially in inner urban areas becomes highly important as they need to meet various human needs
(ecological, recreational, physiological, emotional, socio-cultural and spiritual).

The New Zealand Urban Design Protocol (2005) offers seven principles that Canberra could consider in its
own approach to successful place making. The so called 7Cs are a) understand context b) enrich existing
character c) provide people with choice in places, d) make connections, e) encourage creativity, f) practice
custodianship, and g) employ collaboration.

3.2.3 Progress in public transport

The need for a fast, efficient and attractive public transport system was highlighted in every workshop. This
was expressed particularly at the transport and energy workshops, but participants at other workshops such
as culture and knowledge alluded to it as well in recommendations for increasing density.

It was noted at the economics workshop that a high quality, cheap, and frequent public transport system
doubled as a strategy to address affordability in housing by bringing more housing in reach of more people
and reducing the cost of travel. There was strong agreement that an immediate and ongoing increase in
public spending on public transport infrastructure was essential if Canberra was to reduce its reliance on
fossil fuels.

Recognising the importance of public transport’s contribution to reducing the use of fossil fuels, the
government has progressed planning of the strategic public transport network as part of developing a
Sustainable Transport Action Plan 2010–2016. Consultation on the network plan is underway, with three
critical questions of particular interest to the planners. Jarret Walker presented these questions as part of
his presentation Urban Design Strategies for Efficient Public Transport at the Transport and Communication
workshop in November 2008. He reiterated these during a transport roundtable, public transport workshops
and an open house session in July and August 2009. The questions reveal our values as a community: where
should high frequency services be located, what should the basic service to our neighbourhoods be and
what investment or contribution to the overall quality of service is appropriate?
The workshop findings serve to strengthen and confirm work (coordinated through The Department of
the Territory and Municipal Services) that is underway and suggests further initiatives are needed. The link
between land use planning and transport is circular. Both these aspects of planning need to be continually
supported to ensure a more compact and efficient urban structure and form. Reflecting the inextricable links
between transport and land use planning, the Sustainable Transport Action Plan 2010–2016 will include
strategies relating to public transport, parking, cycling and walking.

More detail about the Sustainable Transport Action Plan and associated strategies can be found at
www.sustainabletransport.act.gov.au or see a summary of the Sustainable Transport Action Plan program at
Appendix 4. Increasing the use of all sustainable transport modes—public transport, walking and cycling—will
be essential to supporting the goal of carbon neutrality for Canberra.

3.2.4 A more compact urban structure and form

On the whole, participants supported a more compact urban form in Canberra. To achieve this the need for
increased density in the existing urban area and less development in greenfield areas was identified. The
support for densification came with some important qualifications. Participants at the culture and knowledge
workshop were keen to emphasise that how density was ‘designed in’ made a significant contribution to
social outcomes. Poorly designed high density areas can have poor environmental and social performance.
Well designed redevelopment on the other hand has the potential to support existing services and amenities
in areas experiencing population decline. Increasing the intensity and mix of activities in targeted areas such
as town centres and transport corridors was identified as vital to creating a more flexible density policy and a
priority for creating a more sustainable urban structure.

Participants at the bush capital workshop had major concerns that opportunistic rather than strategic
densification would exacerbate the heat island effect and have unacceptable outcomes for biodiversity,
recognising that Canberrans universally value the bush capital qualities of landscape, openness and the city’s
country town atmosphere. Questions posed included: is there a way of keeping the urban forest and having
a more compact form? And, is the fact this question is asked an indication of the kinds of dualistic thinking
identified as a barrier?

Workshop findings report 10

Participants at the economics and bush capital workshops acknowledged that increasing population density
in established areas was an important sustainability goal. They recommended ACTPLA invest in research,
policy development and code requirements that will support methods to manage sometimes conflicting goals
such as design for passive solar access, planting for landscape character and shade, efficient use of land
and natural ventilation.

A shift in focus towards strengthening the primary relationship between people and the places in which they
live and work is essential to achieving a compact city.

The final concern was that an increase in density without a corresponding improvement in services and
public infrastructure would not provide the conditions necessary for sustainable communities. Improvements
such as higher quality and more frequent public transport and maintenance of local services would be a
necessary condition for higher density development.

3.2.5 Housing and neighbourhood design

There were wide-ranging aspects to this theme (see also Section 3.2.13.) This included design for
solar power, accessibility, social inclusion, sustainable use of materials, reduced site coverage with a
corresponding increase in private open space, water management, sustainable gardens and parks, and
promoting public transport. There are already some provision in the Territory Plan and Planning and
Development Act addressing these issues. For example, generally installing solar panels for electricity
generation or water heating on domestic buildings is exempt from requiring a development application. Solar
access to main living areas and private open space together with the size and location of private open space
is regulated and the subdivision code sets principles that aim to make walking, cycling and the use of public
transport attractive. Many aspects of building design and performance are regulated in the Building Code of
Australia and are regulated at a federal rather than a state level.

Workshop participants were keen to explore other ways that could raise the standard of house and
neighbourhood design.

There is a trend to build ever larger houses on smaller blocks (‘McMansion homes). Tony Hall’s presentation
included data on this trend. Many participants recognised that we need more flexible and adaptable ways of
building housing and infrastructure. Until recently, housing in Canberra has been predicated on the nuclear
family model. At the same time, not every single person will gravitate to a flat, nor will every family gravitate
to a suburban home. Providing choice in design, location and lot size is more easily achieved in a new area.
The challenge is how to achieve greater choice using existing housing stock. Adaption of existing buildings
and the identification of surplus government land must be considered in order to increase the availability of
appropriate housing and house sites for a wide range of demographic groups. This will also contribute to the
increase in density and better use of existing infrastructure.

Dwelling design could also consider future adaptive use, for example, a dwelling could be initially designed
to cater for a family, but be readily adaptable as a group house or supported aged care (granny flat) with
minimum changes.

High standards of thermal comfort and access to efficient public transport are also essential for future
designs, especially for those on lower incomes.

Because of its status as a Territory, ACTPLA has a mix of building and planning regulatory functions. This
is not the case in other state planning departments. In addition to a review of the Territory Plan to achieve
improved sustainability outcomes, ACTPLA is also extensively involved in a wide range of energy efficiency
work, e.g. the additional technical regulation will be required to complement the feed-in tariff or the
introduction and administration of licensing and auditing of energy assessors.

3.2.6 Governance, engagement and public participation

All workshops concluded that community engagement and public participation must be addressed more
proactively. The sense coming from the workshops was a need for a reorientation towards a genuine,
meaningful engagement approach that tended to be defined as starting without already drafted plans or a
predetermined outcome.

At the same time the workshops were being held, the Chief Minister’s Department was undertaking research
on the perception of previous consultation and engagement efforts. This has resulted in a renewed website
which outlines all current government activities and a wide range of other information related to improving
public participation.7

For ACTPLA, there is a statutory requirement for formal consultation on planning and policy changes.
Additionally the Planning and Development Act sets a framework for consultation especially on environmental
impact statements.

Some presenters provided information about different types of governance structures that might be explored. In
particular this was discussed at the Bush Capital workshop. For example Catherin Bull suggested that volunteer
labour in Canberra’s parks could be considered a contribution towards the payment of rates. ACTPLA has a
limited role in the management of open space, but care should be taken that governance structures do not
create barriers to allow for innovative forms of community-based management and use of open space.

3.2.7 Sustainable behaviour and reducing consumption

Most presenters discussed consumption directly or indirectly and a number of recommendations were made
based on the need to reduce consumption. Consumption drives a wide range of environmentally damaging
processes. It was noted that Canberra has nationally high levels of consumption due to a higher average
household income and a high degree of car dependency in a low density, spread out city.8 This causes stress
on natural ecosystems everywhere via the clearing and extraction of products for manufacturing and via
waste processing.

On the positive side, Canberrans are willing to make changes to their lives. Many Canberrans surveyed have
already taken steps to reduce energy use, such as by purchasing energy efficient appliances and reducing
water consumption. The main reason given for these changes is having a personal responsibility to do the
right thing. This indicates a preparedness to increase levels of sustainable behaviour in the community.9

Workshop findings report 12

High consumption is related to the cost of living, existing built infrastructure and housing, and is also to a
way of thinking that equates having with being and ‘status’. Wackernagel and Yount wrote in Footprints for
Sustainability, the next steps:

Urban design has a significant impact on peoples consuming behaviour. It influences not only how they
shop, but also how they move around, and what kind of houses they live in and what kind of urban
infrastructure services they require.10

Researchers have concluded that the link between urban design and resident behaviour is critically important
and requires further research to understand the link. For example, research by Weidman, Barrett and
Cherrett (2003) compared the ecological footprint of the Beddington Zero Energy Development in London
with conventional UK housing. The results indicated a 14 per cent reduction in the footprint of BedZED
homes compared to standard homes. When assumptions about key resident behaviour were factored in, this
doubled to 28 per cent reduction in ecological footprint demonstrating the importance of behaviour change
together with physical infrastructure responses.11

Additionally any economic activity, whether or not it contributes positively or negatively to environmental and
social conditions is counted as a positive indicator for Gross State Product if it contributes to a monetary
gain. Other methods of calculating ‘progress’ and valuing our natural, social and community assets are
needed as an alternative to neoclassical economic approaches. In light of the global financial crisis, many
current economic approaches are being re-evaluated, and this may provide us with an opportunity to
establish more social and environmental forms of measuring progress. In particular Steve Keen’s presentation
discussed the assumptions that have underpinned twentieth century economics.

There are at least two alternative measures of progress that could be considered, the Index of Sustainable
Economic Welfare and the Genuine Progress Indicator. Research has indicated that both these measures
have been falling since around 1980 for Australia, Austria, Chile, Germany, Netherlands and Sweden, and
since approximately 1968 in the US.12

While not assuming these to be perfect, alternative progress indices recognise that economy is a subset of
society, and that both are dependent on the quality of the natural environment in which they are embedded.
These alternative methods of assessing progress also address the unequal distribution of resources amongst
social groups in society.13
3.2.8 Indigenous participation
The role of indigenous participation and acknowledgement of Aboriginal heritage was discussed by speakers
at the Culture and Knowledge, Bush Capital and Economics and Administration workshops. All identified that
indigenous heritage and communities were neglected in the planning system. There is little common ground
between indigenous ethics of land custodianship and European notions of property ownership. However, an
ethic of custodianship was emphasised by some speakers, notably Ilona Millar, David Tacey and Catherin Bull.

It is noted that the Planning Institute of Australia recently launched a draft Reconciliation Action Plan. This
document states:

The recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s law and custom and their strong and
enduring connections to Country requires planners - and the institutions for which they work - to modify
contemporary planning processes to take account of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s rights,
interests, needs and aspirations.14

It is suggested that this document form the basis of an ongoing discussion throughout the rest of the
Sustainable future project on how to address the aspirations of indigenous people for the future of Canberra.

3.2.9 Integrated catchment approach

Participants at both the water workshop and the bush capital workshop clearly supported a fully integrated
catchment management approach within Canberra. This is defined as:

A systems approach to the management of natural resources within a drainage basin, that includes
consideration of all environmental, economic, and social issues within an overall management plan.15

Participants acknowledged that changes had been made towards a systemic approach to hydrology, for
example, restoration of wetlands in the inner north suburbs. This is a philosophical approach to environmental
management based on an assumption of holism and systems thinking. It suggests that the relationships
between components of any system are as significant and influential as the components themselves. It is
defined by the Oxford Dictionary of Geography as:

A general science of organization and wholeness. Bertalanffy, the founder of the science, dated its
inception from 1940, but it did not influence geographical thinking until the late 1960s. It introduced
the application of the system to geography and claimed that any phenomenon cannot properly be
understood until it is seen as a system of many associated parts.16

3.2.10 Unintended consequences

Many current environmental problems are the side effects of well intentioned and, at the time, socially
acceptable policies. Historically, the trend toward suburban development arose from mid-nineteenth century
concerns about public health in overcrowded cities. Separated dwellings and centralised water supply and
sewerage systems were widely supported as essential measures.

Extending the notion of systems thinking, a number of presenters across the workshops presented examples
of what might be called the legacy of the unintended consequence. For example, Sara Beavis discussed
the interdependent relationship of water consumption and the operating life of infrastructure in light of calls
for reduction in consumption. Tony Hall discussed the implications of increasing house size for energy
consumption, health and social relationships. In particular, he noted that the incremental choices of many
citizens for larger houses leads to lack of shade and desire for air conditioning, thus increasing out of pocket
cost and higher greenhouse gas emissions. There are substantial implications for reduction in biodiversity.
The backyard is a home for a wide range of species, while the increase in impervious areas increases the
amount of potentially polluted runoff reaching local streams. Larger houses also reduce space for outdoor
activities, discouraging physical activity and potentially setting many children up for disease in later life.

Workshop findings report 14

3.2.11 People’s health and wellbeing
It is well known that urban structure and form and the environment has significant impacts on mental health
and physical activity. This was touched on in a number of workshops but was particularly emphasised in
discussions on public transport (alternatives to private car use) and in discussions on the multiple roles of
open space in the capital. It was clear though, from the Bush Capital workshop, that participants recognised
promotion of physical activity through quality urban design was a priority and a key link to sustainable living.
An example of this is the growing importance of community inclusion and improved physical and mental
health through community gardens. The fact that increasing the number of community gardens was
the highest voted recommendation out of the bush capital workshop lends weight to arguments based
upon a health and wellbeing perspective. Canberra’s low density urban structure and form promotes car
dependence and makes providing walkable neighbourhoods and efficient transport more difficult.

3.2.12 Social equity and access

Equity was discussed primarily in the culture and knowledge and the economics and administration
workshops, and they focused largely on affordability of housing. There are other ways that problems of social
equity and access intertwine with other aspects of land use planning that were mentioned in workshop
discussions and not discussed in depth (e.g. public transport, pricing of electricity and water, design of public
space, in particular safety for women and the elderly.) Academic literature has consistently identified that
marginalised members of communities bear an unfair share of environmental pollution and disadvantage.
There is an opportunity to improve the transparency of planning by having a more explicit focus on the needs
of different demographic groups. This was addressed at length by Peter Phibbs in his presentation, and at
the risk of over generalisation, planning should aim for the benefits and disadvantages from climate change to
be distributed evenly.

3.2.13 Urbanism, design and innovation

The role of visual amenity was raised primarily in the bush capital workshop. However, this concentrated
primarily on the importance of parks and bushland and reflects a wider community appreciation of
Canberra’s landscape character.

The role of public art, design and architecture in creating beautiful and thoughtful places to live was not
directly raised, except for the one recommendation arising from the bush capital workshop to integrate public
art into open space development. Public art, furniture and urban installations have a role in adding character
and utility to urban spaces, contribute to sense of place and add vitality to neighbourhoods and our centres.
The importance of improved quality and use of open space was a condition of accepting higher urban
densities in established areas.

Although building design and architecture were not directly addressed, many participants referred to them
indirectly in terms of comments on design. Design and sustainability were understood as having the same
agenda or aims. Architecture and building design have the capacity to address visual and functional amenity.
Together with engineering disciplines they can also address some of the sustainability issues raised during
the workshops such as increasing house size, inflexibility of building layouts, poor life cycle performance,
resource inefficiency and the adaptability of our building stock.

It is worth noting that homes and buildings have two functions. The first is to provide shelter and some
degree of individual expression, and the second is to contribute collectively to urban structure and form,
place, density and growth.

The way buildings and spaces are organised determines the unity and density of a particular urban area and
the quality of outside space. The way they relate to features of the natural environment, e.g. sun, wind and
topography, will help to determine how well occupants relate to the outside environment. Outside spaces— the
public realm— link together and also direct the circulation of people, vehicles and services. These spaces and
their edges form the urban environment we all experience and are the venues of community life and activity. They
provide community with a sense of place and need to be high quality, appropriately scaled, and suitable to need.
Neighbourliness was identified by Kate Rigby as a positive counterbalance to the possessive individualism
that is a socio-ecological impediment to achieving greater appreciation of how we commune, commute,
consume and dispose. We must strive to make urban living more attractive at every level and design has a
significant role to play.

With areas of greater urbanity expected and some greenfield areas currently being implemented, planners,
designers and builders are struggling with ways to accommodate detached home designs onto increasingly
smaller blocks. The nature of residential space and building function will need to be rethought to better
respond to the future where flexibility and diversity will be sought after. Increasing mobility, homes for life,
multi-use space and mixed-use buildings, long life-loose fit, reuse and adaptability will be among areas that
influence housing innovation and building sustainability in the future. Designers must lead the innovations
needed to achieve the dramatic changes and quality improvements necessary in our built environment.

3.2.14 Variety of environmental threats

This was of particular concern in the bush capital workshop. A number of work groups raised specific
threats to biodiversity that are broadly accepted as being important, for example managing weeds and fire
preparedness. Most of these threats fall outside of ACTPLA’s statutory scope, except when considering
greenfield development, and through the EIS process.

3.2.15 Population
ACTPLA’s Chief Planning Executive, Neil Savery, gave a number of introductions at the workshops. In these
he regularly mentioned that the ACT Government’s set planning horizon for population was for half a million
people. Qualms were expressed by speakers and participants, about this number, especially in regard to
water supply. The ACT Population Projections (CMD, 2009) project a 2056 population in the ACT of 520 800
compared to a 2006 population of 334 200. This is a downwards revision of data presented in the current

Workshop findings report 16

Spatial Plan, which suggested a population of 460 000 by 2032. This potentially translates to up to 105 000
additional dwellings. Given that this is government policy, ACTPLA did not seek to open debate on it.

3.3 Thematic analysis of workshops

The propositions for action generated at each workshop have been analysed and grouped according to
theme. Due to the large number of propositions made, these have been tabulated and can be found in
Appendix 2. The tables include which workshop or workshops the propositions came from, the implications
for planning and the significance for sustainability. It should be noted that inclusion in the table does not
constitute agreement with any or all of the proposed actions.

Many actions crossed themes, but for ease of handling data they were generally allocated to one theme only.
For example, propositions relating to individuals seeking to retrofit some aspect of their home were placed in
housing and these could also logically have found a place in personal behaviour. The themes identified were:

• strategic policy
• housing and neighbourhoods
• programs and exemplars
• knowledge and education
• personal behaviour
• resources and pricing
• governance and engagement
• data and monitoring.
Any recommendation that asked for a fundamental reorientation in thinking about sustainability was
categorised as strategic policy. As was pointed out at all workshops and by numerous writers in the
sustainability field old ways of thinking will only recreate the same situations we now want to change.

All calls for more research or data, community education or outreach, or promotion of programs, attitudes
or behaviours were classified into knowledge and education. These provide the foundation data for the
development of policy, strategies and Territory Plan variations. There were multiple calls across all areas for
better knowledge, understanding and education about sustainability. This is perhaps under represented in
the tables because of the need to consolidate ideas.

Data is a critical part of the suggested ‘systems approach’ and materially affects the ability to build an
adaptive planning system. In short, participants argued for a comprehensive environmental and social history
of Canberra, against which a resilient future could be formed. The famous historian Eric Hobsbawm once
wrote that:

To be a member of any human community is to situate oneself with regard to one’s past, if only by
rejecting it. The past is therefore a permanent dimension of the human consciousness, an inevitable
component of the institutions, values and other patterns of human society.17

The frequency of recommendations about data needed to establish baselines and measure change suggest
a commitment to a better understanding of past actions and their consequences. Workshop participants did
not want to reject the past outright, rather they wanted a rigorous appraisal of past behaviour to inform future
policy.

The housing and neighbourhoods category caters for the range of responses aimed at the smaller scale i.e.
landscaping, retrofitting etc and the responses that had design as their major thrust. In contrast, programs
and exemplars is conceived to be medium to large scale responses, generally with wide geographic and
social coverage. In this section, the multiple recommendations about prioritising non-car transport were
notable. Also notable during the analysis was the recognition of the need to have sustainability responses
(from government as a whole) at a variety of scales and developed for a diversity of demographic sectors.

The last four themes received fewer recommendations for action than the others. Given the broadness of
the topics under discussion and the limited time available, some themes would naturally get less attention.
Resources and pricing included any response relating to funding, staffing, rebates, pricing etc. Governance
and engagement included any response relating to departments, politicians, elections, consultation and
engagement. Data and monitoring included any response on monitoring, ratings systems, evaluation, and
compliance matters.

Participants were asked during the workshops to allocate their propositions to short, medium and long-term
time frames. By far the greatest numbers were considered to be short term, indicating a sense of urgency
and desire for change.

It should be noted that participants frequently made recommendations for actions which related to the
business of other government departments. These have been included as they reflect the scope of
discussions, and where they fall largely outside ACTPLA’s statutory authority this has been noted.

Workshop findings report 18

4.0 Implications for planning

4.1 Statutory context and constraints

The workshops that supported the development of this paper were badged as providing input into the
review of the Territory Plan and Spatial Plan, because this is ACTPLA’s greatest area of influence and its core
business. However, participants engaged in wide-ranging debate on sustainability issues across the whole of
the ACT. Again, most people do not think in terms of departments, they think in terms of issues and actions
first. Bridging this gap is the purpose of this section of the report.

The first constraint is pre-existing institutional arrangements. As an independent statutory authority, operating
in a network of other departments servicing a democratically elected government, and working within a
federal system, ACTPLA has a clearly defined role. The principal limit on ACTPLA’s action is the Planning and
Development Act. Section 3.2 of the act outlines the authority’s functions.

Any planning decision in Canberra must also have regard for the National Capital Plan, administered through
the National Capital Authority (NCA). The NCA is established under the Australian Capital Territory (Planning
and Land Management) Act 1988. The NCA website states that:

the National Capital Plan is partly focused towards ‘The development of a city which both respects
environmental values and reflects national concerns with the sustainability of Australia’s urban areas.18

ACTPLA’s work must not conflict with the National Capital Plan. Section 6 of the Planning and Development
Act charges ACTPLA with the development of a planning strategy for the long term. The Canberra Spatial
Plan and the Sustainable Transport Plan fulfil the intent of Section 6.

The main object of the planning strategy is “to promote the orderly and sustainable development of the ACT,
consistent with the social, environmental and economic aspirations of the people of the ACT in accordance
with sound financial principles”.

The Territory Plan and the Spatial Plan are legally separate documents, even though the Act says that the
Spatial Plan may be used to frame the statement of objectives for the Territory Plan.

The whole of Section 5 of the Planning and Development Act is devoted to the Territory Plan. According to
Section 48:

The object of the Territory Plan is to ensure, in a manner not inconsistent with the National Capital Plan,
the planning and development of the ACT provide the people of the ACT with an attractive, safe and
efficient environment in which to live, work and have their recreation.

The next section specifically states that the object of the plan must be achieved through the application and
expression of sustainability principles. As sustainability has been included in the Act there is considerable
scope for ACTPLA to review these documents to give effect to the legislation.

There are also nine government departments and related agencies, boards and commissions that carry out
the business of government. All of these make a contribution to sustainability in its broadest sense, but in
terms of biophysical land use and environmental matters, ACTPLA has the strongest connections with the
Department of Territory and Municipal Services (TAMS), Department of Climate Change, Energy and Water
(DECCEW), the Land Development Agency (LDA), and the Office of the Commissioner of Sustainability and
Environment (OCSE). Each of these departments has a similar legislative and statutory constraint on its
actions. However, a clear message from the workshops was the need for new and collegiate ways of working
across this traditional form of governance.
Workshop participants made recommendations for actions that essentially promoted an adaptive
management approach to planning decision making. While this sounds like a call for wholesale legislative
change, the Planning and Development Act can facilitate a transition to an adaptive management approach.
New legislation is not required. In fact, the existing Spatial Plan includes a commitment to this very principle.

At this point it is important to clarify the notion of an adaptive approach to planning for sustainability.
Put simplistically, an adaptive approach incorporates a commitment to defined, measurable targets of
performance across a range of areas, and to review policy and procedures should the targets be missed
or exceeded against a known baseline. It is a cross between Adaptive Integrated Catchment Management
(usually applied to the geographic unit of the river basin), State of the Environment reporting (with its emphasis
on indicators and trend tracking) and traditional land use planning.

The existing Spatial Plan outlines on page 28 a commitment to an adaptive approach. This monitoring
program as set up was pursued, but was eventually found to be costly, time consuming and not necessarily
providing the information that was actually needed. The proposed evaluation of the Spatial Plan will assess
the causes behind the failure of the monitoring framework and develop a simpler, easier and more effective
system.

Since the Spatial Plan was developed, there has been increasing research and development in this area,
which ACTPLA has been participating in. ACTPLA commissioned a review of national and international
examples of integrated sustainability assessment frameworks. As part of its partnership with CSIRO on the
redevelopment of East Lake, a benchmarking study on sustainability appraisal methods for urban planning
was undertaken. This study assessed the current state of ACT planning against a variety of domestic
and international examples, and made a series of recommendations that echoed the messages from the
workshops. This research, as well as other work, provides the initial platform for the Spatial Plan evaluation.

Workshop findings report 20

4.2 Urban structure and the existing Spatial Plan
Canberra’s planning history commenced with the design competition that saw Walter Burley Griffin and
Marion Mahony’s design selected. Since then there have been a number of revisions to the original concept
as political and social circumstances evolved over the twentieth century. Maps of these different phases have
been included in Appendix 3.

The current Spatial Plan was adopted in 2004. The plan recognises the need for limiting suburban
expansion, the protection of the natural environment, promotes the development of higher density housing
and employment in and around centres and along transport corridors in order to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions and fuel use.

The Spatial Plan is typical of the ‘compact city’ planning strategies adopted in major Australian cities. The
Sydney the City of Cities Plan proposes that 75 per cent of all new housing should occur in centres and
corridors within walking distance to shops, jobs and services. Melbourne 2030 policy requires almost 70
per cent of new households to be accommodated within existing urban boundaries. Adelaide, south east
Queensland and Perth all produced plans with a similar philosophy and targets.

The workshop series confirmed that the compact city concept was fundamentally sound. In proposing an
evaluation of the Spatial Plan, it is not suggested that this basic tenet be changed. Rather the evaluation
recognises that the challenges facing Canberra have increased. These challenges include adapting to
climate change; the protection of biodiversity; ensuring the disadvantaged can enjoy the opportunities and
amenity provided by the city; the coming of peak oil; the need to replace and upgrade physical and social
infrastructure in established areas; the provision of infrastructure in developing areas and the ageing of the
population. The evaluation will address in a more sophisticated manner the methods needed to achieve
compactness, not the idea of compactness.

While Canberra does indeed have problems to face, it is no different to any other city. However, its planning
history gives it some advantages. The urban structure of Canberra, based on the development of major town
centres, supported by group and local centres served by a frequent and convenient public transport system,
is similar to that advocated by researchers such as Gray, Gleeson and Dodson as an appropriate model
to address current issues facing development of Australian cities.19 Canberra’s urban structure exhibits the
characteristics of a resilient city, a city hopefully able to withstand the uncertainties of climate change and
declining oil supplies. The structure needs to be supported and reinforced.

4.3 Recalibrating the vision

The existing Spatial Plan contains a lengthy vision statement for how Canberra should be in 2032. In the five
years since the Spatial Plan was adopted, the policy context of Canberra has changed significantly. While
there is nothing wrong with the existing vision statement, it does need to be brought up to date to reflect
these changes.

Some of the workshop discussions illustrate the changes in attitude that have occurred. Many participants
said Canberra should strive to be a model for a sustainable city, certainly domestically and ideally,
internationally. Will Steffen proposed a stretch goal which suggested that Canberra could position itself as a
centre point in a South East Australian Innovation Corridor. This corridor would aim:

…to build a network of local and regional “learning laboratories” for creative and innovative thinking, doing
and learning along the Sydney-Canberra-Melbourne corridor. Use the corridor as a test-bed for new
ideas, technologies, approaches and networking towards integrated solutions to Australia’s most pressing
environmental, social and economic problems. The vision is to invent a new style of living for the 21st
century – de-carbonise the economy; transform urban form and lifestyle; revitalise the rural sector; and
regenerate biodiversity-rich, well-functioning landscapes, coasts and seascapes.
Clearly such a goal is well beyond the scope of a single Territory agency. However, ACTPLA recognises that
its statutory activities have far reaching implications and could support such a broad vision. Also Steffen’s
vision related to a much broader geographic area than is in within ACTPLA’s remit. However many of the
elements of Steffen’s vision should be debated as part of the Spatial Plan. For example, how can planning
decisions support aspirations such as:

• de-carbonisation of the economy

• promoting adaptivity (i.e. tied to key indicators)
• being environmentally sensitive to its own and surrounding areas
• reducing social bias and discrimination
• recognising the economic potential of sustainable development
• encouraging and supporting inventive responses to climate change
• creating a beautiful and livable city
• encouraging the development of community networks.

Whatever a new vision statement may contain, it does need to be a key part of the engagement process
around the Spatial Plan evaluation.

Workshop findings report 22

4.4 Baselines and performance targets
The workshops confirm the existing commitment in the Spatial Plan to an adaptive approach. The 2004
Spatial Plan set up targets and a monitoring framework. The volume of indicators (more than 100) was found
in practice to be unworkable, and while goals and objectives were set, many of these were found in practice
to be unmeasurable.

A major thrust from the workshops was to improve performance-based planning and this leads to
methodological questions about the targets that should be set and how those targets should be selected.
This also leads to considerations about establishing the baseline from which change should be measured.

There are a number of complementary processes occurring which will support the evaluation of the Spatial
Plan. The Office of the Commissioner for Sustainability and Environment is currently undertaking a revision
of its State of the Environment reporting processes. ACTPLA staff have been engaged in this process. There
have been six State of the Environment reports prepared for Canberra, which provides a substantial source of
data for some aspects of sustainability, which will help to establish baselines for measurement.

Based on recent national and international examples of performance-based planning systems, the proposed
Spatial Plan evaluation would develop a sound method for establishing a baseline and selecting targets which
promote sustainable development and which are planning specific.

4.5 Developing scenarios

‘The purpose of The Canberra Spatial Plan is to provide clear strategic directions for the development of
Canberra over the next 30 years and beyond, but with the flexibility required to respond to change. It is
the Territory’s key strategic planning document for directing and managing urban growth and change.’20

The existing plan lists as principles: containing growth, residential intensification, locating new residential
areas, protecting the natural environment, centralising employment, good travel connections, and sustainable
growth. These bear strong similarities to the themes identified in the Sustainable future workshops.

However, these principles were based on a scenario of development that, under the threat of increased
temperatures, is probably no longer entirely appropriate. In addition to traditional planning modelling around
population and residential density, we now need to factor in probable impacts from increased average
temperatures and other predicted environmental effects.

The latest summary of climate change research by the ANU Climate Change Institute commissioned by
the Federal Government has revised projected temperatures upwards. The ACT’s Weathering the Change
Strategy released in 2004 suggested a maximum possible rise of 4.8 degrees on average. This is now
considered to be the medium possible rise.21

Scenario development is therefore likely to be centred on gaining a much more detailed understanding of
the impacts of climate change on specific parts of the urban structure and form of Canberra. The Spatial
Plan evaluation provides an opportunity to engage the community in debate about the appropriate mix of
adaptation and mitigation strategies relevant to urban form that can be deployed. This work will also have
wide application and relevance to the work of other agencies. A cooperative approach to information sharing
will be essential.
5.0 Where to from here?
ACTPLA is keen to receive feedback from everyone in the community about the contents of this paper.

This feedback will help to shape the Spatial Plan evaluation process. Over the coming months, ACTPLA will
work to develop the scenarios which are briefly discussed above. This will be collated into a follow-up options
report. It will present the people of Canberra with a range of possibilities facing the city, and enable a broad-
ranging discussion about which scenario is the most socially, economically and environmentally viable.

Submissions on this paper are due by the end of February 2010 and should be made in writing to:
Sustainable future workshop findings report submissions at GPO Box 1908, Canberra, 2601.

Submissions can also be made by:

Emailing SustainableFuture@.act.gov.au

or via ACTPLA’s website at www.actpla.gov.act.au

Workshop findings report 24

Endnotes
1 It should be noted that the National Capital Plan is the overarching, statutory land use plan for the Territory and it is administered by the
National Capital Authority on behalf of the Commonwealth Government of Australia. Any evaluation and review of the Canberra Spatial
Plan that calls for a change in the metropolitan structure will require an amendment to the NCP.

2 Minister for the Environment, Climate Change and Water, Simon Corbell MLA, Press release, 12 May, 2009.

3 This paper delivered by Walker is available on ACTPLA’s website and explains some misconceptions in public transport route planning.

4 Possible tipping points include changes to the Gulf Stream, the loss of the Amazon rainforest or the breakup of the Greenland ice sheet.
While not discussed at the workshops, in the process of developing this paper, the lack of knowledge about variable time lags between
a change and a consequence was also pointed out as a problem. See Andrew S Goudie Tipping points and Global Change. Ed. David
Cuff and Andrew Goudie. Oxford University Press, 2009. Oxford Reference Online. Australian National University, 17 August 2009.

5 “Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change”. A Dictionary of Environment and Conservation. Chris Park. Oxford University Press,
2007. Oxford Reference Online.. Australian National University. 15 September, 2009. The synthesis report of the IPCC for the fourth
assessment is IPCC, 2007: Climate Change 2007: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fourth
Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Core Writing Team, Pachauri, R.K and Reisinger, A. (eds.)].
IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland, 104 pp and can be accessed on line at http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/publications_ipcc_
fourth_assessment_report_synthesis_report.htm accessed 15 September 2009.

6 http://www.ausaid.gov.au/keyaid/mdg.cfm, accessed on 16 June 2009.

7 The website can be accessed at http://www.communityengagement.act.gov.au

8 http://www.environmentcommissioner.act.gov.au/soe/2007actreport/resourceuse07, accessed 27 June 2009.

9 W
 inston Sustainable Research Strategies, Final Report on the 2007 Sustainability Community Attitudes Study, commissioned by
Sustainability Policy and Programs, Department of Territory and Municipal Services.

10 M Wackernagel and D Yount, Footprints for Sustainability; The next steps, Environment, Development and Sustainability, 2, 2000, p34.

11 W
 eidman,T, Barrett, J, and Cherrett, N, Sustainability Rating for Homes – The Ecological Footprint Component, Stockholm Environment
Institute,York,2003.

12 http://community.foe.co.uk/community/tools/isew/international.html, accessed 19 May 2009.

13 T
 he UN, for example, has agreed on integrated accounting standards for resource flows and resource productivity associated with
national economic activities detailed in the Handbook of National Accounting: Integrated Environmental and Economic Accounting
2003. This is a satellite system of national accounts. It brings together economic and environmental information in a common
framework to measure the contribution of the environment to the economy and the impact of the economy on the environment. It
provides policy makers with indicators and descriptive statistics to monitor these interactions as well as a database for strategic
planning and policy analysis to identify more sustainable paths of development.

14 accessed 17 June 2009.

15 “ Integrated catchment management” A Dictionary of Environment and Conservation. Chris Park. Oxford University Press, 2007. Oxford
Reference Online. Australian National University. 27 July 2009

16 “General systems theory” A Dictionary of Geography. Susan Mayhew. Oxford University Press, 2004. Oxford Reference Online.
Australian National University. 19 May 2009.

17 Eric Hobsbawm, On History, second edition, Abacus Books, 2002, London, p. 13

18 http://www.nationalcapital.gov.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=372&Itemid=260, accessed 15 July 2009.

19 Gray R, Gleeson B, and Burke M (2008) Urban Consolidation and Household Greenhouse Emissions: Towards a Full Consumption
Impacts Approach Urban Research Program Research Paper 20 November 2008; Dodson J (2008) Mitigation Adaptation and Equity,
Submission to Garnaut Climate Change Review; Dodson, J and Sipe, N (2005) Oil Vulnerability in the Australian City, Urban Research
Program, Research Paper 6

20 Canberra Spatial Plan, p.1

21 Will Steffen, Climate Change 2009 – Faster Change and More Serious Risks, Australian Government, Canberra, 2009.
Appendix 1 - List of speakers and workshops
Workshop 1: Transport and Communication Vanessa Morris 

Towards an accessible Canberra - Executive Officer, SEE-Change.

Paul Kos
- City of Wellington, New Zealand.
- Improving sustainable cities - targeting growth to where
the benefits are greatest.
Jarret Walker Ph.D, MPIA
- Senior consultant McCormick Rankin Cagney.
-  e on the way! Urban design strategies for efficient
B Workshop 3: Energy
public transport.
Professor Graham Currie
- Chair of Public Transport, Civil Engineering, Monash
University.
- Sustainable transport and Canberra.
Professor John Black
-  chool of Civil and Environmental Engineering,
S
University of New South Wales.
- Imagining Canberra’s sustainable future: movement and
access.
Dr Gary Glazebrook
- School of the Built Environment, University of
Technology Sydney.
- Sustainable transport options for the ACT.
Workshop 2: Culture and Knowledge
Canberra’s community living sustainablility
Associate Professor Natalie Jackson
- Social Demography and Director, Demographic
Analytical Services Unit, School of Sociology and
Social Work, Faculty of Arts, University of Tasmania.
- Population change and social futures.
Associate Professor David Tacey
- Humanities and Social Sciences, La Trobe University.
- Spirituality of place and custodianship.
- Life choices and the environment.
Associate Professor Kate Rigby
-  erman Studies and Director of Comparative Literature
G
and Cultural Studies, Monash University.
-  ulture and environment: historical perspectives and
C
Canberra’s future.
Towards a carbon neutral Canberra
Dr Stephen Bygrave
- E
 missions Trading Division of the Federal Government’s
Department of Climate Change.
- Carbon Pollution reduction scheme.
Dr Christopher Dey
-  esearch physicist from the Integrated Sustainability
R
Analysis Group at the University of Sydney’s
School of Physics.
- Canberra’s emissions profile.
Prof Will Steffen
- E
 xecutive Director of the ANU Climate Change Institute
at the Australian National University.
- C
 ommunity attitudes and visions for Canberra in
meeting climate change challenges.
Prof Brendan Gleeson
- U
 rban Policy and Management and Director of the
Urban Research Program at Griffith University.
- Urban structure and energy use.
Mr Kerry Barwise
- D
 irector of the Sydney office of the Centre for
International Economics.
- B
 uilding energy efficiency and greenhouse gas emission
abatement: Potential and implications.

Crispin Hull
-  ecturer, Journalism, Division of Communication and
L
Education, University of Canberra and Journalist –
Canberra Times.
- Community influence on governance.

Workshop findings report 26

Workshop 4 : Water and Infrastructure Professor Tony Hall

Securing the city - A

 djunct Professor, Urban Research Program, Griffith
University.
Professor Quentin Grafton - T
 he death of the Australian backyard - A lesson for
- C
 rawford School of Economics and Government at the Canberra.
Australian National University. Dr Jane Tarran
- M
 anaging residential water demand and supply: an - Program Director, Department of Environmental
alternative approach. Sciences, University of Technology Sydney.
Dr Gary Bickford - Improving Canberra’s sustainability: why urban tree
- P
 roject Director, Water Security Major Projects, ACTEW canopy and other vegetation matters.
Corporation.
- Water - securing the city. Workshop 6: Economics and Administration
James Rosenwax for Sustainability
- Principal, EDAW. Valuing and administering
- Water colours the remaking of cities. Associate Professor Steve Keen
Dr Sara Beavis - School of Economics and Finance, UWS.
- The Fenner School of Environment and Society, ANU. - The GFC and neoclassical economics.
- Water, change and sustainability. Dr Peter Phibbs
Dr Jessica Weir - U
 rban Research Centre, College of Health and Science,
- V
 isiting research fellow at the Australian Institute of UWS.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. - Sustaining affordable housing.
- O
 ur understandings of water and how they translate in Ilona Millar
our decision making.
- B
 aker and McKenzie - Environmental Advisory,
Environmental Litigation, Climate Change.
Workshop 5: Bush Capital
- T
 he environmental law framework for sustainable
Our city in the landscape
development – principles of sustainable development in
Dr David Headon International, national and local laws.

- A
 dvisor to Canberra 100, Chief Minister’s Department, Molly Harriss Olson
ACT Government. - Director of Eco Futures Pty Ltd.
- R
 ecalling those who went before: Canberra’s earliest - Bringing the global financial crisis down to Earth.
environmental warriors. Peter Walsh
Dr Catherin Bull - D
 irector Walsh Consulting – Town Planning, Public
- P
 rofessor of Landscape Architecture, University of Policy, Management Planning.
Melbourne. - W
 hat happens next in the ACT? Discussion points on
- F
 rom “our city in the landscape” to “our city as statutory, administration implementation issues.
landscape” -  creating value for Canberra’s open space
system.
All papers are available on the ACTPLA website
Dr Phil Cheney
www.actpla.act.gov.au
- Honorary Fellow of CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems.
- Bush capital - our city in a flammable landscape.
Appendix 2 Workshop tables
Short term 2–3 years — strategic policy
Workshop Proposition
All Review section 2 (strategic
directions) of the Territory Plan
to:
• reflect broad community
aspirations for Canberra to be
a model for sustainable urban
development in Australia
• retain the Bush Capital as
the key image for Canberra
through goals that protect
endangered habitats
• strengthen the commitment
to integrated water catchment
management, including
recognising the different values
and purposes of water.
All Threshold measures for change
need to be debated and set
collectively, including a definition
of carbon neutrality, population
growth and development
densities appropriate for
Canberra. These measures
should be common across
ACT Government policy to
give greater continuity and
coordination.
The Territory Plan should take
into account these threshold
measures in order to evaluate
the relative merits/success of the
application of various policies.
Implications/actions Significance
The Spatial Plan (and the Canberra’s overall urban
Sustainable Transport Plan) structure and form is recognised
sets out the Planning Strategy internationally because of its
for Canberra. It is proposed as integration with the landscape.
part of the Sustainable future This proposition emphasises
program to evaluate the Spatial how this integration with
Plan. landscape has influenced how
the community relates to place
The Canberra Community clearly and to nature.
values the relationship with place
and with nature and wants to Spatial/built form planning
ensure that nature is managed policies will need to address the
and integrated into our urban significance of place and nature.
system.
The community’s aspirations
in regard to place and nature
will be significant to evaluating
and testing scenarios, however,
to effectively do this it will be
important to translate these
aspirations into measurable
targets.
ACT Government policies Building in targets and triggers
are informed by thresholds to planning strategies will
and measures set out in provide not only more effective
the Canberra Plan and the monitoring of outcomes but
government’s sustainability more importantly facilitate
policy Weathering the Change. adaptive planning and
development responses.
Through an evaluation of
the Spatial Plan there is an
opportunity to refine the targets
and strategies that can be
delivered through planning.
Clearer, more relevant targets
could subsequently be
incorporated into the ACT
Planning Strategy providing
key performance measures for
the monitoring of Territory Plan
policy outcomes.
Workshop findings report 28
Short term 2–3 years — strategic policy continued
Workshop Proposition
All Renew the commitment to
reducing urban sprawl. This
should be combined with setting
measurable density targets
against which planning policies
are assessed. When a target
is missed there should be a
trigger to review the policy and
approach.
All ACTPLA should aim to be the
planning agency that others in
Australia look to regarding the
lead in spatial and built form
policy.
Economics More clarity in the roles and
and responsibilities of the various
Administration ACT Government agencies in
regard to developing policy
measures around improving
sustainability is required.
Implications/actions
As above. The evaluation of
the Spatial Plan will provide the
opportunity to identify relevant
targets.
Identifying the balance
between greenfield and infill
development will also influence
ACT Budget planning i.e. utility
infrastructure development and/
or augmentation, provision and
distribution of social services,
revenue projections etc.
ACTPLA is working on a number
of benchmark projects and is
fostering partnerships with lead
research agencies, including the
CSIRO.
Embedding sustainability
performance measures into the
ACT Planning Strategy would
assist the agency in moving to
leading practice.
There is publicly available
information as to what each
agency is responsible for and
there are regular coordination
meetings.
There is perhaps a need to
give a greater profile to how
sustainability policies are
coordinated, monitored and
measured.
Significance
Reducing Canberra’s physical
footprint will ameliorate the
impact on the local, regional and
global environment.
Currently the ACT emits
approximately 4.45 million
tonnes of greenhouse gases
per year (ACT Climate Change
Strategy 2007–2025).
Building Canberra’s recognition
as a sustainable city supports
the ACT Government objective to
improve prosperity.
The issues around improving
sustainability are interrelated.
There will always be cross over
in responsibilities, however,
this proposition reflects the
importance of ensuring there is
effective collaboration between
agencies.
Short term 2–3 years — housing and neighbourhoods
Workshop Proposition
Energy, Water Objectives for all the residential
and Culture zones should be reviewed with,
common elements consolidated
and initially both minimum and
maximum targets identified
for density and subsequently
for waste, energy and water
management.
Implications/actions Significance
ACTPLA is currently reviewing Policy changes to be
the structure and policy content incorporated into the residential
of the residential and subdivision and subdivision codes will
codes. ameliorate the impact at
residential development.
The pattern and distribution of
housing forms and density will
be considered in regard to how
this supports public transport
objectives and the location of
services.

The setting of overall targets may

be more appropriately addressed
through the evaluation of the
Spatial Plan.

Culture and All residential zones should
Economics include in the objectives the goal
of increasing housing diversity.
Specific rules/criteria should
ensure that this is implemented
as development progresses.
In reviewing and simplifying the Diversity in the spatial and built
structure of the residential codes form is necessary in order to
the goal to provide diversity in respond to Canberra’s changing
housing choice can be brought demographic.
forward and emphasised.
Performance measures for the
provision of a variety of housing
forms and unit types need to be
considered in the subdivision
and residential codes. This will
require consultation with industry
as to how this can be effectively
delivered.

Culture and All housing should be adaptable
Economics with developers having to
demonstrate where this has to
be an exception.
The concept of adaptability
is currently limited to allowing
people with disabilities to
make changes to their homes
efficiently. The proposition
broadens the concept of
adaptability to address long life-
loose fit in all housing. Increasing
the flexibility of homes, buildings
and spaces though structural,
spatial and organisational means
allows internal and external
changes to be undertaken easily
over time, reducing redundancy. 
Increasing the adaptability of
the overall building stock would
allow for more people to stay in
their homes and alter them as
their lifestyle and circumstances
change. This could have a
flow on affect in building a
more diverse community in
neighbourhoods.

Workshop findings report 30

Short term 2–3 years - housing and neighbourhoods continued
Workshop Proposition
Culture and Investigate barriers to the use
Economics and development of alternative
housing models e.g. community
lands trusts and cooperative
housing.
Culture and Improve housing affordability
Economics by continuing to address
improvements in assessment
processes and the land supply
which should include identifying
disused buildings and surplus
land in existing urban areas.
All Explore the potential to
extend the mixed-use zone
geographically and review the
permitted uses in residential
zones to expand allowable uses.
Transport, Review multi-unit dwelling code
Energy and to allow, where feasible, space in
Culture each dwelling for cycle storage,
in addition to the existing storage
provisions as large shared
bike cages are not necessarily
appropriate for security reasons.
Energy and Revise the plot ratio provisions
Bush Capital in the multi-unit code to ensure
that there is sufficient space
for trees to aid in microclimate
management and add to the
amenity and character of the
Bush Capital.
Implications/actions
Greater research and
stakeholder engagement is
required to identify the planning,
administrative and market
barriers.
ACTPLA has simplified
the planning system and
development assessment
processes. It is currently
reviewing the residential and
subdivision codes which will lead
to improvements in assessment.
Similarly infill sites continue to
be identified in the land supply
program to balance the overall
supply and demand as well
as the expansion of greenfield
areas.
This proposition is more
appropriately considered through
the evaluation of the Spatial
Plan as it would dramatically
change not only the urban
form but business and industry
investment models.
The multi-unit housing code
refers to the bicycle parking
general code which allows
for either class 1 or class 2
enclosures for apartments. The
implications for unit deign and
costs need to be explored with
industry.
This has broader implications
for all styles of development,
although higher density areas
may experience greater
temperatures if left unaddressed.
There is also a need to
simultaneously consider shading
in relation to solar access needs.
Significance
Improving diversity, not only
in the housing form but in the
economic model by which it
is delivered, will contribute to
housing affordability and market
resilience.
Housing affordability across
Canberra and not only in
greenfield sites can be improved.
Expanding allowable uses can
provide more opportunities to
live close to work and reduce the
impact of extensive and lengthy
car travel.
Promoting cycling will help to
achieve or surpass the targets
set out in the Sustainable
Transport plan and will have
benefits regarding the overall
health and well-being of the
community.
Reducing or ameliorating the
effect of radiant heat produced
by urban areas will reduce
the need for artificial, energy
consuming cooling.
Short term 2–3 years — housing and neighbourhoods continued
Workshop Proposition
Culture and Subdivision development should
Bush Capital approach the creation and/or
retention of public spaces as an
opportunity to develop the sense
of community.
Water and Review existing policies on use
Bush Capital of public lands to make the
creation of local community
gardens in established areas
easier.
Water and Consider the development
Bush Capital of guidelines for community
gardens on location, safety etc.
for greenfield and brownfield
sites.
Existing community garden
managers to be active
participants in developing these
guidelines.
Culture and Retain undeveloped bushland for
Bush Capital a) ecological connectivity and b)
provision for unstructured play
for children.
Implications/actions
Open spaces provide
demonstrated social, economic
and ecological benefits. Planning
instruments can take account of
this by implementing measures
to ensure accessibility to open
space.
Management and design of
community gardens would need
to be established. Location and
site characteristics may also
mean that public land is not
appropriate.
Guidelines for location and
design can be developed,
however, there also needs to be
further consideration given to the
management and financial cost
structures in developing these
community gardens.
Existing gardens will provide a
good source of information on
a wide range of location and
operational issues.
Research and modelling is
necessary to provide credible
quantification or areas for
retention. This can be addressed
as a factor during scenario
modelling for the spatial plan re-
evaluation.
Workshop findings report
Significance
Positive relationships and good
general health in the public has a
long term beneficial outcome of
reducing expenditure on health
and welfare.
Community gardens can reduce
reliance of imported foods, and
should be considered as one
element of sustainability policy in
general.
The success of community
gardens would be enhanced
if they are sited in appropriate
locations and designed
appropriately.
Part a) of the proposition
is related to maintaining
biodiversity values for the future
while part b) can be viewed as
a preventative mental health
measure.
32
Short term 2–3 years — housing and neighbourhoods continued
Workshop Proposition
Culture, Link higher density areas with
Energy and green space to address micro-
Bush Capital climate issues (i.e. urban heat
bank) and support better public
health.
Consider developing a ratio
between density and green
space for incorporation into the
territory plan codes.
Bush Capital When assessing applications for
redevelopment in older areas of
Canberra, consider the need to
balance retention of traditional
domestic landscapes with the
need to reduce water use. It is
important to retain the layering
of historical and social values
evident in the older areas of
Canberra.
Water Pool owners should be required
to connect the downpipes that
are unable to be connected to
tanks, into their pools.
Implications/actions Significance
The current subdivision code Reducing the effect of the
does have a provision for the urban heat bank and the
siting of more compact, higher corresponding reliance on
density blocks near open space mechanical means to cool
and community services. buildings could substantially
reduce greenhouse gas
Further investigation is warranted emissions from Canberra’s
to identify how green space can building stock.
ameliorate the micro-climate for
higher density areas. The micro-
climatic effect of the green space
is unlikely to be guided only by
a simple ratio. Location as well
as the building intensity will be
significant factors.
Incorporating additional green
space for micro-climate will
need to be considered against
other potentially conflicting
and competing sustainability/
affordability measures.
ACTPLA produced design This recognises the delicate
guidelines for redevelopment interplay between respecting the
in established areas to improve Canberra historical narrative and
site development and landscape the rate of change that is likely in
outcomes. the next few decades.
ACTPLA consults with the
Heritage Council on heritage
buildings. Any proposed
densification will give due
consideration to issues of
character, style and amenity in
the wider area.
ACTPLA can support owners This proposition reflects a desire
who wish to improve the water for multipurpose use of water.
use efficiency through provision Reducing water consumption is
of information about appropriate a priority.
residential design. Building
health approvals are the main
influence.
Short term 2–3 years - programs, exemplars
Workshop Proposition
Culture and Throughout existing and
Bush Capital proposed urban areas, audit
the existing provision of fitness
tracks and supportive facilities,
including integrated play
equipment (early through to
adventure).
Implications/actions
TaMS is responsible for existing
areas.
ACTPLA has responsibility
for new areas through the
subdivision code which requires
an open space network and
associated facilities.
Significance
Providing diverse open space
recreational options appropriate
for different ages and abilities
contributes to long-term public
health aspirations.

Culture and All new development should
Bush Capital consider during the planning
phase the appropriate mix of
recreational opportunities which
can include bike paths, walk
trails, community gardens, pet
exercise areas, playgrounds
catering for different age groups,
open air fitness equipment, and
a range of open space types
from natural bush to formal
gardens.
ACTPLA is currently reviewing The proposition reflects the
the subdivision code which discussion at the workshop
can address the intent of this about recognising and planning
proposition. It is important to for diversity in the community.
recognise that not all types
of desirable facilities can be
accommodated in each new
area.

Water and Cooperate in the development
Bush Capital of new walking strategies which
may include improved pet
walking facilities, pedestrian
seating and shelter along walking
routes, improved footpaths in
local streets and visual appeal
(public artwork, city vistas etc).
TaMS is currently producing a
new cycling and walking strategy
to inform the renewal and
updating of relevant ACT cycling
and walking policies. TaMS is
also currently consulting publicly
on its Sustainable Transport
Action Plan (STAP) that will
increase the use of alternative
transport modes.
ACTPLA’s planning assessment
which incorporates accessibility
principles is the precursor step
to the development of strategies
which attempt to influence
behaviour change.

Energy, Water Set aside centrally located
and Bush lands in new subdivisions to
Capital provide sites that could be used
in the future for green power
generation or water recirculation.
ACTPLA recognises that Reductions in consumption are
there are many options for essential to slow the trajectory
the redesign of essential of CO2 levels and minimise
infrastructure. The Spatial Plan consumption of potable water.
evaluation offers an opportunity
to test these in relation to
different emissions targets and
to other aspects of urban design.

Workshop findings report 34

Short term 2–3 years - programs, exemplars continued
Workshop Proposition Implications/actions Significance
All Contribute to the development of ACTPLA is already engaged The energy policy will have a
the ACT Government proposed in this through participation in significant impact on a wide
energy policy, with particular the relevant interdepartmental range of government strategies.
reference to the contribution of committees and provision of
built form. supporting data.

Culture, Assess greenfield, brownfield Stormwater management This proposition highlights the
Water, Bush and infill development for ways in is governed by a range of importance of water and to
Capital and which stormwater management standards which aim to protect recognise the value of the water
Economics can be integrated to perform public and environmental health. cycle and system to establishing
various functions. Where performing multiple a sense of place.
functions doesn’t endanger
standards, the subdivision
code can be the avenue for this
proposition.

Transport, Consider how to plan for and
Energy and implement more intensive
Economics development around selected
high frequency bus routes.
TaMS is reviewing the The intent is to prioritise non-car
Sustainable Transport Plan transport by providing housing
and is currently consulting on in walking distance of high
the high frequency bus routes frequency routes.
to improve bus services. See
Appendix 3 for an indicative
map.

It will be important to
consider opportunities for infill
development along these routes.

Transport, Manage the amount of car TaMS is currently doing this. Improve the walkability and
Energy and parking in civic and town pedestrian amenity of our Town
Economics centres, and review parking Parking must be managed centres.
charges. as part of an integrated view
of mobility as a whole. Traffic
planning, public transport
options and pricing all
contributes to reducing the
reliance of private vehicles for
transport.

Water and Retention and management It is noted that review Maintaining high levels of
Bush Capital of endangered habitats in new of legislation relating to biodiversity supports the
developments should be a conservation of species is ongoing viability of ecosystems,
priority. underway through TaMS. and provides the greatest
‘insurance’ for the future.
ACTPLA, through structure and
concept planning endeavours to
retain and protect all endangered
habitats.
Short term 2–3 years - programs, exemplars continued
Workshop Proposition
Energy, Water Support ACT schools to retrofit
and Bush as much as possible, e.g. can
Capital oval irrigation be achieved
from captured rainwater? Food
gardens? Solar power?
Energy and Continue to use Dame Pattie
Bush Capital Menzies House as a pilot for
sustainability retrofitting and
innovative design responses.
Short term 2–3 years - knowledge and education
Workshop Proposition
Energy and Adapt other cities work
Water in retrofitting to improve
sustainability, while ensuring
that what we adapt will fit with
Canberra’s demographics and
environment.
Energy and Support research on the better
Water quantification of the relationship
between energy use and water,
i.e. it takes energy to pump water
and contributes to green house
gas emissions.
Water With regard to grey water,
support research which
addresses re-use at various
scales and what impact there
is on the life of the existing
infrastructure as well as more
general downstream impacts.
Implications/actions Significance
A number of schools already ACTPLA also has an education
have sustainable programs. program which is delivered
ACTPLA has supported further through its communications
work by cooperating with program.
Federal Government Stimulus
package spending.
On May 8 2009, Minister for
the environment Simon Corbell
announced the construction of
detention ponds in Dickson and
Lyneham to provide irrigation
water.
ACTPLA has made substantial To lead by example, promote
progress thus far in reducing innovation and encourage other
energy and water consumption. departments to follow suit.
ACT government departments
are required to manage their own
footprint.
Implications/actions Significance
Wide knowledge of international This proposition recognises that
best practice can contribute ACTPLA can take advantage of
towards urban structure international examples and not
modelling proposed under the reinvent the wheel.
Spatial Plan re-evaluation.
Information on energy and water Understanding the link between
use is available but has not been water use and energy is
correlated. significant to making decisions
on where trade-off may best be
Investigations as to how this made.
information can be correlated will
be undertaken.
Some information is currently Innovation in water re-use can be
being collected and considered encouraged without adversely
by industry. It is necessary affecting the water system.
to extend the research and
incorporate this into policy
development and into the asset
management/life-cycle plans of
the relevant infrastructure.
Workshop findings report 36
Short term 2–3 years — knowledge and education continued
Workshop Proposition
Water, Culture When involved in setting design
and Bush parameters for landscape
Capital projects, include the appropriate
xeriscaping (designing
landscapes that use little water)
of public reserves.
Implications/actions
ACTPLA has previously
produced information on more
fire and water wise landscape
design and planting for
residential gardens.
TaMS also includes in its
design briefs for public spaces
objectives pertaining to
management and water efficient
measures.
Greater emphasis could be
given to xeriscape design and
management programs. This
would, however, also require
raising the community’s
awareness of this approach
and understanding the resulting
design solutions.
Significance
Designing public landscapes
that are more suited to the
low rainfall conditions in
Canberra will inevitably lead to
a transformation in Canberra’s
landscape character. While this
will reduce the requirement for
supplementary watering it will
also require a transformation
in the community’s use and
appreciation of the landscape.

Culture and Promote the awareness,
Bush Capital appreciation and sense of
ownership of local flora and
fauna as an integral part of our
natural open space network.
In preparing structure and
concept plans for greenfield
areas, ACTPLA does address
and set aside those areas of
environmental significance.
This could enhance the
community’s understanding and
appreciation of the particular
ecosystems in the Bush Capital.

Further consideration could be

given to siting demonstration
housing close to these natural
areas in order to establish early
on a community that will value
these places.

Culture and Better promotion of the way
Bush Capital ACTPLA uses the geographic
names as a way to increase
knowledge of Canberra’s
heritage.
There is general information on
the ACTPLA website.
Consideration could be given to
providing people moving to new
estates with information on the
naming of the new suburb and
streets.
The development of community
spirit is proven to be enhanced
when people have an association
with a place and an appreciation
of its heritage.

Culture and Historical and ethnographic
Bush Capital research findings should be
incorporated where appropriate
into interpretation and art works
in public space, with a particular
emphasis on indigenous artists.
This proposition could be
incorporated into existing arts
and interpretation programs.
Incorporating material that helps
to create a particular character
also helps to build people’s
engagement with place and the
local community.
Short term 2–3 years — knowledge and education continued
Workshop Proposition Implications/actions Significance
All Continued promotion of The Land Development Agency To improve people’s
innovative and sustainable is using their own demonstration understanding of what can
housing. villages to highlight some more be offered and achieved it is
sustainable housing choices. important to make it easy for
people to find and look at good
Further consideration is examples.
warranted as to how exemplars
can be developed and promoted
across all housing forms,
including units and apartments.

Energy and Better promotion of existing
Water information produced by
ACTPLA on sustainable housing
choices and products.
These publications, notably Improving the consumer’s
‘Building better homes for understanding can lead to a
Canberra’s climate’ (June 2008) more sustainable product being
were popular and consideration demanded.
should be given to reprinting
them and also including
pricing information towards
sustainability.

Short term 2–3 years - personal behaviour

Workshop Proposition
Energy Review the Element 7.3 of
the multi-unit dwelling code
regarding clothes lines. Consider
expanding provisions to reduce
use of electric clothes dryers.
Implications/actions
The residential codes are
being reviewed by ACTPLA. In
reviewing this element some
further consideration will need
to be given to the design and
convenience of clothes lines.
Significance
People must have a convenient
and appropriate alternative to
electric clothes dryers to support
behaviour change.

Energy and Provide communal space in
Bush Capital multi-unit dwellings for gardens
so that residents can grow some
of their own food and ultimately
reduce food miles.
Communal space is to The real benefit is more likely to
be provided in multi-unit be in developing greater self-
development. sufficiency and a more cohesive
community.
It may be appropriate to
encourage a different site design
and development response
which will allow residents to
use this space for vegetable/
food production and which will
address water use, storage of
materials etc.

Consideration as to how
residents can be encouraged
to make use of the space as
well as the management of the
production would need to be
addressed through the Body
Corporate.

Workshop findings report 38

Short term 2–3 years — personal behaviour continued
Workshop Proposition
Energy and Use price of water and energy
Water to affect behaviour change by
ensuring that all new residences
have meters that provide real
time consumption data.
Transport and Trial a car pooling system for
Energy ACTPLA staff and, if successful
extend to other businesses in
Dickson.
Short term 2–3 years - resources and pricing
Workshop Proposition
Water, Bush In cooperation with other
Capital and departments, investigate a range
Economics of incentives which encourage
a wide range of sustainable
behaviour, i.e. reward water use
reduction with a cheaper per
litre price, or voluntary work in
bushland is credited towards
rates.
Energy and Incentives to produce all types
Economics of buildings that perform
more energy efficiently than is
regulated could lead to industry
voluntarily designing buildings
with higher energy ratings than
that stipulated by legislation and
policy. Incentives to entice more
energy efficient designs could
include:
• savings on stamp duty
• reduced bank interest rates
• rates subsidies
• rebates
• tax incentives.
Implications/actions
Explore further separate
metering and smart metering
with ACTEW.
Without the provision of
separate metering for units it is
impossible to send price signals
to individuals about water and
energy use.
Raise suggestion through the
Staff Representative Group
to consider implementing for
ACTPLA.
Potential to extend through the
Dickson Traders Group.
Implications/actions
Difficult to apply in the short
term as requires a better
understanding of how this would
affect budget – revenues and
expenditures.
ACTPLA is currently developing
a framework for how incentives
can be most effectively applied
to encourage the upgrade of
commercial office buildings.
Monitoring and evaluating the
effectiveness of the incentives is
included.
If successful then consideration
should be given to continuing
and/or adapting the program.
There would be a need to
identify what the benchmark
is for reward through such
incentives. These should be
set fairly high and ratchet up as
performance improves.
Significance
It is important for residents to
be able to monitor and track
their personal efforts at reducing
consumption.
The significance of this is in the
demonstration of empowering
people to be able to make
behaviour changes.
Significance
There is a price or reward
differentiation made between
less and more sustainable
behaviours. Further, more
sustainable behaviour is
rewarded across a spectrum of
activities and programs.
To affect a greater rate of
change it is important to
acknowledge and reward
exemplary sustainable design
and development. Continuous
improvement can be encouraged
as each time a benchmark is
attained the performance target
for incentives is raised.
Short term 2–3 years — resources and pricing continued
Workshop Proposition
Energy and Tie first home owners grant
Economics schemes and other home buying
incentives to the most energy
efficient homes.
Transport Promote the use of cycle and
pedestrian routes by highlighting
potential savings (monetary and
environment).
Short term 2–3 years — governance and engagement
Workshop Proposition
All A shared sustainable planning
vision is developed with the
public. This vision should set
out detailed long-term, mid-term
and short-term goals, strategies,
programs and projects.
All Increase public participation
(PP) in planning by developing
a general code for PP in
sustainable planning. This code
should represent a process
manual on how to identify,
mobilise and engage with various
stakeholder groups and the
community on different planning
stages (structure and concept
plan, EDP, building application)
and how to define sustainability
principles and innovations.
Implications/actions Significance
The ACT can only affect its own Home buyers would be investing
home purchase programs. in a better whole of life product
and a more cost effective
Need to work with the housing residence to maintain.
industry to address where costs
are in producing more energy
efficient housing.
As part of the Sustainable Encouraging behaviour change
Transport Action Plan (STAP), by increasing the awareness of
TaMS is investing in several what the health, environmental
programs to encourage cycling and fiscal costs are to the
and walking including the community.
improvement of infrastructure.
Implications/actions Significance
The Spatial Plan was the first There is an opportunity to renew
strategic plan to be developed the relevance of the Spatial Plan.
since self-government. This set
a strategic direction for policy
and development strategies.
An evaluation of the targets and
strategies is now timely.
The series of workshops on
sustainability and this discussion
paper are the commencement of
greater stakeholder and public
engagement in evaluating the
Spatial Plan.
The Chief Minister’s Department Greater participation in the
has recognised the need for planning process will help build
better public participatory community ownership of the
practices and are working with strategies.
agencies to improve practises,
not only in planning but across
government.
Planning is about trade-offs and
compromises. This needs to
be stressed in the engagement
processes as not everyone’s
expectations can be realised.
Workshop findings report 40
Short term 2–3 years — governance and engagement continued
Workshop Proposition
All Develop a culture of exchange
with other cities and councils
in Australia and overseas
via invitations to workshops
and learning trips. Consider
teleconferencing and phone
conferencing to reduce carbon
footprints and increase ease
and frequency of information
exchange.
Implications/actions Significance
Learning partnerships are Reflecting on and formalising the
valued. ACTPLA is currently learning from other jurisdictions
working with CSIRO to develop will allow the ACT to more readily
a showcase sustainable adopt changes.
development at East Lake.
This partnership has led to
workshops and learning trips.
There is a need to document and
disseminate the insight.

All Creation of interdisciplinary ACTPLA already employs a Greater depth and breadth in the
teams. broad range of planning and working teams ensures a more
design skills. integrated approach.
ACTPLA to employ
environmental and social
planners to add value to the skills
in the team.

All Develop dialogue with the
development industry on how to
deliver sustainability innovations.
There are a number of forums for
dialogue between government
and industry. These could be
used to expand into key issues
on sustainability.
Will assist in identifying and
breaking down barriers to
changing development practises.

All Engage with SEEchange and
other similar groups to foster
partnership with environmentally
focused community groups.
It is important to engage with
these groups and others who
will also bring an interest on
affordable, accessible housing
and services.
Community input and support
is focused on the issues of
sustainability.

All Set up sustainability dialogues
with the community to:
• identify people’s attitudes and
needs
• educate people by
engagement
The ACT Government engages Engagement by doing is
with the community at various the most valuable in raising
times in preparing policy. awareness.
Setting up dialogues which the
community ultimately sponsors
is a key action for the Chief
Minister’s Department.

• communicate planning
intentions

• foster community festivals and

events on sustainability.
Short term 2–3 years — governance and engagement continued
Workshop Proposition
Culture and Develop community partnerships
Bush Capital for the use and promotion of
public land for community
activity, which may include
development and maintenance
of a range of community
facilities.
Short term 2–3 years — data and monitoring
Workshop Proposition
All Acquire longitudinal data on
a wide range of measures,
especially energy consumption,
transport, land take, socio-
demographics, social
infrastructure.
Bush Capital Ecological connectivity to be
mapped using the most up to
date methods and set up so it
can be accessed by all agencies
and the community.
Transport Support the need for travel data
to be regularly updated.
Medium term 5–10 years — strategic policy
Workshop Proposition
Energy and Consider how preferential
Water treatment can be given to those
development applications which
go beyond minimum standards
i.e. a ‘green door’ approach to
assessment.
Implications/actions Significance
There may be a liability issue in Involves the community directly
handing over public reserves in the responsibility of managing
to community groups for the public spaces.
management. Consideration
could be given to developing
management agreements.
At the outset it would be
resource intensive to set up and
assist these partnerships.
Implications/Action Significance
Review data sets to identify Identifying the baseline is vital to
where there are gaps. be able to monitor performance.
This has staff and financial Better understanding of the
resource implications. ecosystem and biodiversity
Introducing this needs to be across the ACT.
assessed against other priorities.
Again this has resource Facilitate better integration of
implications in regard to the land use and transport planning.
regular collection of data.
It is, however, important to
inform policy development and
consideration should be given to
how this data can be effectively
collected.
Implications/actions Significance
Development assessment Planning policy, rather than
process is already streamlined assessment, should encourage
and there are statutory more sustainable development.
requirements and time frames to
be met. In determining those that
should have a preferred status it
would be necessary to identify
the thresholds.
Workshop findings report 42
Medium term 5–10 years — strategic policy continued
Workshop Proposition
Economics Cooperate with National Capital
Authority (NCA) to ensure
compatibility in sustainability
objectives for the different key
strategic plans.
Culture and Use the results of recently
Transport commissioned research by
ACTPLA on social aspects
of sustainability to improve
residential design/transport
planning.
Economics Review the objects of
commercial and industrial
codes and group common
elements together in terms of
sustainability.
Energy Identify sites in existing
areas that are suitable for
redevelopment and prioritise
them before greenfield. Consider
adapting method outlined by Mr
Paul Kos (Wellington, NZ) at the
transport workshop to achieve
this. Also through interagency
work on land release.
Transport and Review objectives of the
Energy transport zone to make non-car
based transport options the
principal focus. New objectives
to guide creation of new rules
and criteria.
Economics Review the industrial codes to
facilitate the attraction of eco-
industrial clusters.
Implications/actions Significance
Both federal and local Fostering continued cooperation
government planning and coordination between
organisations regularly federal and local government
coordinate in relation to strategic agencies ensures a united
planning. approach to sustainability.
Further increasing this
relationship will reinforce
compatible sustainability
objectives and identify any
potentially outdated strategic
plans i.e. Metropolitan Structure
Plan.
ACTPLA is currently using the Sense of community and
research to help inform review participation in community is
of the structure of the residential improved.
and subdivision codes.
ACTPLA will review the Facilitate eco and smart industry.
commercial and industrial codes
after reviewing residential codes.
Important to identify both To give impetus to public
greenfield and infill development transport and support goals for
sites to achieve Spatial Plan a compact urban structure and
objectives. As part of the form.
Sustainable future program
it is proposed to evaluate the
Spatial Plan and opportunities to
achieve a more compact city.
A long transition time to achieve Reduce green house gas
a shift in transport modes will be emissions from cars and achieve
necessary. the goal of zero carbon by 2050.
Consider the potential impact of
the Sustainable Transport Action
Plan (STAP).
Consideration should be given to Facilitates the creation of a
planning for industrial clustering ‘green economy’; noting the
to achieve more sustainable work undertaken by the Green
development and waste Centre of ANU exchange.
streaming in estates.
Medium term 5–10 years — strategic policy continued
Workshop Proposition
Energy, Review and reinforce existing
Transport, cycle and pedestrian strategies
Culture and to build on strengths and to
Knowledge provide additional support
mechanisms including safe and
convenient storage and amenity
facilities including for the aged
with scooters.
All Reconsider the objectives in the
Transport Zone, as currently they
appear to prioritise car-based
transport. New objectives need
to take into consideration needs
of different demographic groups.
Transport and Reinterpretation of the Y-plan,
Energy transportation spines as
corridors for intensification,
smart growth and transit-
orientated development.
Medium term 5–10 years — housing and neighbourhoods
Workshop Proposition
Energy, Include as many sustainability
Culture, Water criteria into code as possible,
and Bush and make them rules, not
Capital criteria.
Energy Contribute to current
government initiatives to
progress legislation to mandate
solar hot water systems to all
dwellings.
Energy Assessment/design advice to
consider that all new buildings
of any class should have roof
sufficient area to face north to
facilitate photovoltaics.
Implications/actions
TaMS is reviewing actions and
strategies in the Sustainable
Transport Action Plan (STAP)
including those promoting
walking and cycling.
Unlikely, though consider the
potential impact of STAP.
Potential conflicts with Spatial
Plan policy.
Consider the potential impact of
STAP.
Implications/actions
ACTPLA is currently reviewing
the structure and policy content
of the residential and subdivision
codes. This also aims to improve
sustainability requirements.
Consideration of adopting the
Commonwealth’s National Hot
Water Strategy is required. A full
analysis of costs and benefits is
also required.
Providing design advice is a
preferable alternative to adopting
this as a rule, which may
suppress design innovation.
Note that roofs do not
necessarily need to face north
to enable optimum orientation of
photovoltaics.
Workshop findings report
Significance
Maintain well connected walking
and cycling routes to encourage
physical activity and well being
when travelling to a variety of
local destinations.
Provide guidance for code
development. Facilitate cycle and
pedestrian networks.
Achieve better integration of land
development with transport.
Significance
It should be recognised that
the effect additional Territory
Plan controls will have on the
reduction of CO2 levels and
water consumption may be
minor, however it is an important
part of the total community
approach to the problem.
While electric hot water heaters
are efficient, they are a major
contributor to greenhouse gas
emissions. Solar hot water
systems are one alternative to
reduce these emissions.
Encouraging opportunity for
photovoltaics and solar hot water
heaters will reduce green house
gases from energy consumption.
44
Medium term 5–10 years — housing and neighbourhoods continued
Workshop Proposition
Water and Subdivision design should
Bush Capital conceptualise water in the
landscape as opportunities to
establish wetland communities,
in addition to performing water
management functions. Existing
ponds and water bodies to be
planted where appropriate with
native species.
Water and Standards for higher
Bush Capital density residential to include
consideration of bush capital
image, water permeability,
planting space and communal
areas.
Bush Capital Investigate the optimal ratio of
private open space versus public
open space, especially in relation
to areas identified for higher
density residential development.
Transport, Review home-based business
Energy, rules to encourage flexibility.
Culture and
Knowledge
Medium term 5–10 years — programs and exemplars
Workshop Proposition
Water Support the development of
green infrastructure by:
• preparing the cost/benefit
analysis that takes into
account the whole of life and
environment costs
• research and communication
• incorporating it not just in
new development but also in
redevelopment.
Implications/actions
Consider modification to both
the Water Sensitive Urban
Design General Code and the
Subdivision Code. Planting
around existing wetlands is a
responsibility of TaMS, however
there is opportunity to work with
TaMS and community groups to
encourage appropriate planting.
Policy provisions are being
reviewed in the residential
codes of the Territory Plan.
The implications for design and
costs need to be explored with
industry.
It is important to provide for
long-term public open space
demands in areas identified
for higher density residential.
Post-occupancy evaluation
could determine requirements;
however this has a cost
implication.
May impact on the amenity of
adjacent dwellings, particularly
from noise and parking. Requires
assessment of the type and
number of businesses to retain a
reasonable level of amenity.
Implications/actions
Triple bottom line accounting is
required in all budget proposals.
This could be extended and
introduced into asset and
program management strategies
across government.
Investment is required in
‘mapping’ to be able to
coordinate and integrate asset
renewal with development and
redevelopment.
Significance
Enhancing the use of stormwater
provides an opportunity for
improved water quality and a
water source for public plantings.
Creation of urban wetlands
re-establishes eco systems and
provides community focus.
Higher density areas must retain
the character of Canberra. Part
of this character is the extent
and type of landscaping. Well-
designed communal areas
contribute to the establishment
of communities.
Establishing an optimum ratio
may lead to more economical
developments and better
designed public open space
areas.
Relaxing restrictions could
encourage more people to work
from home, reducing car use.
This will increase activity and
surveillance in dormitory suburbs
during work hours.
Significance
The progressive rollout of
renewed, more effective and
sustainable infrastructure will
help to reduce the overall cost
burden on the community.
Medium term 5–10 years—programs and exemplars continued
Workshop Proposition
Economics Review the industrial codes to
facilitate the attraction of eco-
industrial clusters.
Energy, Identify an exemplar for the
Transport, frequent bus network and zone
Culture and for higher densities and a mix of
Knowledge uses along this corridor.
Energy, Review and reinforce existing
Transport, policies for shared zones in
Culture and the town centres and along
Knowledge major transport routes that
recognise and place importance
on the cyclist, scooters and
pedestrians.
Energy Showcase existing commercial
buildings in the ACT that achieve
desirable energy efficiency i.e.
Trevor Pearcey House (Traeger
Court Bruce, ACT).
Implications/actions
ACTPLA will be progressively
reviewing the policy content of all
the Territory Plan codes.
Attracting eco and smart
industries is a government
priority. Attracting these eco-
industries may require more
incentive than clustering and
include developing the demand.
It is important to integrate
transport and land planning
strategies. Investigation of
a demonstration route and
high density area could
be investigated further in
conjunction with a strategic infill
development site.
TaMS is currently reviewing
policies and the rollout of
infrastructure to support walking
and cycling.
The progressive incorporation
of shared use zones should be
considered in this work.
Showcasing and promoting the
more sustainable commercial
buildings could be linked into
the work ACTPLA is currently
developing on incentives for
upgrading commercial buildings.
Workshop findings report
Significance
Canberra has a limited industrial
base and attracting eco and
smart industries will diversify the
economic base.
Demonstrates the effectiveness
of public transport as an
alternative to the car as well as
reducing the need for residents
to commute long distances
to access services and
employment.
Town centres and commuter
routes are pedestrian friendly,
and due weight is given to
promoting walking.
Acknowledging and promoting
exemplary sustainable
design and development is
important to improving people’s
understanding and demand for a
better product.
46
Medium term 5–10 years — knowledge and education
Workshop Proposition
Energy Train selected ACTPLA staff in
energy efficiency requirements
(for both commercial and
residential) and provide free
of charge pre-lodgement
service for applicants to
assist with improving energy
efficiency of design or ensuring
compliance with energy
efficiency requirements in
codes. If financially unfeasible,
an alternative model is Brisbane
City Council “Risk Smart” which
trains consultants who then can
then advertise this as part of
their service.
Implications/actions Significance
ACTPLA currently has a free To provide feedback early in the
verbal pre-application service design process.
that provides initial advice on
preliminary designs (usually
by an architect or landscape
architect). These forums provide
an opportunity for ACTPLA staff
to ‘value add’ however it is at the
discretion of the proponent as to
whether they accept the advice.

All Work with other agencies who
currently deliver home audit
services across sectors to
develop an integrated service
which combines design, water,
energy, and landscaping for
sustainability.
Home audit services are
currently provided by both
the Commonwealth and ACT
Governments. ACTPLA to co-
ordinate with other agencies
to ensure the advice and
knowledge of programs is
consistent.
Coordination of effort and
knowledge across agencies will
simplify and assist home buyers
in attaining a more sustainable
residence.

Water, Energy Continue ACTPLA’s existing ACTPLA currently promotes its
and Bush schools education program, and education program to primary
Capital consider its expansion. school students through its
successful ‘How to Build a
Suburb’ program. The education
kit is designed to expand and
with coordination with the
schools the resource material
can be adapted to best suit
future curriculum.
Children are the consumers
of tomorrow and building
their awareness now will
create expectations for more
sustainable design and
development in the future.
Medium term 5–10 years — resourcing and pricing
Workshop Proposition
Bush Capital, Investigate ways in which
Economics ecosystem service values of
and vegetation (i.e. contribution to air
Administration quality et al) can be incorporated
into ACTPLA assessment
processes.
Water and Investigate local community
Energy energy solutions and
commission cost benefit
analysis studies to assess the
effectiveness of centralising
versus decentralising water
and power at local and regional
scale.
Transport, Encourage development of
Energy, public/private partnerships to
Economics establish funding systems to
and support effective transit-oriented
Administration development.
Water Reduce potable water use
through financial incentives e.g.
investigate the feasibility of a tax
on sewerage amount produced,
or provide rebates to install grey
water systems. A coordinated
research project about the
pros and cons of a variety of
incentives across alternatives
could be undertaken.
Energy and Government to consider
Transport reversing the proportion of
expenditure outlined in ACT
Government Integrated Transport
Framework: Ready for the Future
August 2008. Approximately
$210m is earmarked for roads
and parking, and approximately
$58m on public transport,
walking and cycling.
Implications/actions Significance
Inappropriate to include in Account for the true value of
development assessment. vegetation in development
Requires substantial collection decisions.
of data and development of a
complex assessment tool. More
appropriate to determine the
value in structure and concept
planning.
Will require high quality Creates the opportunity for
community engagement as part people to invest in alternative
of the studies. Individuals do not energy systems and promotes a
always have the opportunity to distributed energy system.
install alternative energy sources
in or on their dwellings. Planning
policy and legislation should
allow for residents to install and
invest in community systems.
Requires a shift in focus for Increase the rate at which
the ACT Government and its transit-oriented development is
Land Development Agency achieved.
to consider development and
infill sites. Revenue returns
to the community need to be
considered.
Need to consider the cost of Provides information to
undertaking the research and consumers to evaluate which
ensuring feasible methods of approach suits their budget,
implementation and certification property and lifestyle.
of systems.
Requires research not just in
collecting data but how these
incentives can be applied and
monitored.
Expenditure is linked to Reflect the concern about
maintaining infrastructure. A improving public transport.
major change could lead to
dislocation in service. The
Sustainable Transport Action
Plan (STAP) is addressing all
forms of transport. Changing the
proportion can be developed
over time to support and
encourage alternative transport
modes.
Workshop findings report 48
Medium term 5–10 years — governance and engagement
Workshop Proposition
All Define methods applied
throughout planning to produce
relevant information in order
to evaluate the consequences
of planning decisions against
performance goals; and integrate
them into the various codes in
the Territory Plan
Bush Capital Engage, empower and resource
local community groups to have
management responsibilities for
urban natural areas
Economics Promote public-private
and partnerships for sustainability:
Administration
• ongoing innovation dialogue
with industry and science
• new delivery and financial
models
• support-for-change decision-
making framework with
reduced timeframes.
Economics Cross jurisdictional regulation for
and ACT/NSW for energy.
Administration
All Implement findings of short-
term recommendations i.e.
investigate a range of incentives
which encourage a wide range
of sustainable behaviour, for
example water use reduction
gains a cheaper per litre price,
or voluntary work in bushland is
credited towards rates.
Implications/actions
Through the evaluation of
the Spatial Plan there is an
opportunity to refine the
performance targets and
incorporate into the ACT
Planning Strategy.
Performance measures linked to
the targets could progressively
be incorporated into the Territory
Plan. The current review of the
subdivision and residential codes
is considering how these might
apply.
Need to investigate how these
groups can be established and
managed.
Opportunities for innovative
delivery through engagement
with industry should be sought.
Differences in regulations across
political/geographic boundaries
need to be addressed.
Requires regular collection
and monitoring of usage
data, recording of volunteer
participation and requires an
economic value to be placed on
volunteer work.
Significance
Building in targets and
triggers will provide not only
more effective monitoring of
outcomes but more importantly
facilitate adaptive planning and
development responses.
Involving the community
builds an understanding of
the environment as well as the
obligation of citizenship.
Encourages industry to become
willing participants in providing
high quality sustainability
outcomes.
Raises awareness and
understanding of the
implementation of sustainability
issues.
Focus shifts to regional issues
and breaks down barriers across
jurisdictions.
Provides the community
with economic incentives to
participate in efficiency practices
and environmental initiatives.
Medium term 5–10 years — governance and engagement continued
Workshop Proposition
Water, Bush Investigate methods of taking
Capital, account of non-monetary values
Economics of environment e.g. water, bush.
and
Administration
Water, Bush As part of a commitment
Capital, to rigorous monitoring and
Economics evaluation, participate and/or
and support programs such as:
Administration
• monitoring the status of
natural systems
• bushland management
• rehabilitation/regeneration
schemes
• community education and
information.
• planning for all trials and sites
for festivals.
Energy, Water Desk top review of existing
and Transport literature on adaptation strategies
and retrofitting for climate
change in Canberra. Information
to be fed into subdivision code
and other relevant codes, and
into a review of the Spatial Plan.
Bush Capital Consider the development of an
overlay to protect ecologically
significant linking vegetation.
Long term 10 years + —strategic policy
Workshop Proposition
Culture and Provide a public realm that
Bush Capital recognises and values social
inclusion and engagement for all
ages and cultural backgrounds
of the community.
All Canberra as a model city for
sustainability.
Implications/actions
Requires triple bottom line
budget proposals.
Requires monetary values to
be placed on environmental
features.
Through the monitoring of these
programs there is an opportunity
to define performance targets
and incorporate them into the
ACT Planning Strategy.
Work is being undertaken
reviewing best practice from
other jurisdictions as part of the
Sustainable future program and
the East Lake Urban Renewal
project.
Structure plans and precinct
codes consider high value areas
and connectivity between these
areas.
Implications/actions
Ensure public spaces are
designed to cater for diverse
community needs.
The Sustainable future program
and the East Lake Urban
Renewal project will showcase
sustainability.
Workshop findings report
Significance
Gives economic consideration
of the true value of natural
resources and the environment,
including health and community
benefits and creating a sense of
place.
Effective management of highly
valued environment.
Understanding best practice will
flow through to code variations.
Maintain connectivity of the open
space network and native fauna
pathways.
Significance
Recognise and celebrate
diversity in the community.
To provide national leadership
and to demonstrate the
advantages of the recognition
and consideration of sustainable
planning concepts.
50
Long term 10 years + — housing neighbourhoods and design
Workshop Proposition
All Neighbourhood design
standards to include: mixed
land uses, walking and cycling
infrastructure, served by public
transport, suitable mix of
recreation opportunities within
walking and cycling distance
(five to ten minutes), some local
employment, a local shopping
centre which includes reasonably
priced fresh food supplies (not
just takeaway).
Culture Densification of town centres in
combination with high quality
multi-use green spaces.
Economics, Government to consider whether
Culture and to extend the current 15 per cent
Knowledge target for affordable housing
in new suburbs to major infill
projects.
Culture and Provide well designed
Bush Capital public open spaces within
neighbourhoods to increase the
opportunities for participation
in active recreation and to build
social contacts.
Culture and Create neighbourhood
Bush Capital environments that promote
regular physical activity through
safe, well connected and
accessible places. Places that
are aesthetically pleasing and
that encourage walking and
cycling.
Implications/actions
Through the evaluation of
the Spatial Plan there is an
opportunity to refine the
performance targets and
incorporate into the ACT
Planning Strategy.
Through the evaluation of the
Spatial Plan and the Strategic
Public Transport Network
plan there is an opportunity to
increase density.
Requires a shift in focus for
the ACT Government and its
Land Development Agency
to consider development and
infill sites. Revenue returns
to the community need to be
considered.
The quality of public open
space will become increasingly
important as higher density
residential areas are developed.
Further enhance opportunities
for open space networks as
integral to the urban structure
with attractive spaces that are
well distributed throughout the
neighbourhood.
Significance
To create sustainable
communities.
Reduce urban sprawl while
maintaining high levels of
amenity.
This proposition would eventually
provide a greater choice for
affordable housing and make
use of existing infrastructure.
Opportunities for active
recreation and social contact
improve community health and
well being.
Increased physical activity
contributes to the short and
long-term health and well being
of the community.
Long term 10 years—program exemplars
Workshop Proposition
Transport and Formalise and publicise car
Energy pooling and shared vehicles
schemes, where vehicles are
used occasionally for shopping
or distance travel, to reduce the
need for car ownership.
Transport and Increase bicycle use and
Energy convenience by implementing
a bike share scheme, similar to
many European cities. Consider
free bicycles to encourage
cycling as an alternative to car
use.
Water Support the restoration of
concrete storm water drains to
semi-natural creeks.
Transport An efficient mass transport
system, powered by a renewable
energy source and be separated
from general road traffic.
Implications/actions
Car pooling has generally been
most effective in work places.
The ACT Government could
lead by example by initiating
car pooling schemes in all
departments and then on to
other work places. Dynamic
ridesharing using mobile
technology may free up the
limitations of current pre-
organised pooling methods.
Canberra’s cycling infrastructure,
layout and climate will enable
a bicycle share scheme to be
established relatively easily.
Intertown cycling may be
popular. A cost-benefit analysis
of both propositions is required.
Work to introduce wetland
storage into existing urban
areas has been demonstrated
and new projects are being
planned. Significant support and
community group involvement
has been a feature of the work.
Continue to plan, implement and
innovate in the area of urban
water management.
Ensure current improvements to
frequent public transport routes
and corridors can accommodate
technology and system
improvements in the future.
Workshop findings report
Significance
Greater use of car pooling will
reduce peak hour traffic volumes
and the number of parking
spaces required. Shared vehicle
schemes will reduce the need
for a second car. Car use is a
major contributor to greenhouse
gas emissions. Mobile
communications and information
technologies will be harnessed
to improve the flexibility of
schemes.
Providing more opportunities
for cycling will reduce the need
for car use and parking while
promoting increased health
benefits.
Improvement and rehabilitation
of the environment, creation of
habitat and quality urban open
space benefitting the community.
Radically reduce emissions
from transport sector, embraces
new technology as it becomes
available.
52
Long term 10 years + — personal behaviour
Workshop Proposition
Water Look for ways to encourage the
use of less saline detergents
because it will a) reduce salt
loads into the catchment and b)
avoid salinisation of soil locally
from water re-use.
Implications/actions
This requires effective education
of consumers to highlight the
issue. Possibly an action for the
office of Sustainability and the
Environment.
Significance
Improvement of water quality in
the Murrumbidgee River.
Avoids expense of alternative
measures to remove salt loads

Long term 10 years + — resourcing and pricing

Workshop Proposition Implications/actions
Water Connect water price to dam Undertake analysis to
storage levels understand social, environment
and economic implications i.e.
if dam levels are low consumers
pay more, if dam levels are
full, the cost of water could be
cheaper.
Significance
Places a monetary value on a
scarce resource with the aim
of reducing water consumption
which is a priority.

Water Increase potable water price Aims to promote the use of
rainwater tanks and other
recycling responses. Social,
environment and economic
implications need to be
understood. Note: countries with
the lowest water use have the
highest price for water.
Responds to the need for water
security and places a monetary
value on a scarce resource
with the aim of reducing water
consumption.

Energy and Review taxi pricing, as currently
Transport concerns about the availability
of public transport after 7pm
and the high cost of a taxi
encourages car use.
Integrated transport planning is Promotes expanded transport
required to address transport choices.
mode supply. TaMS is currently
consulting on its Sustainable
Transport Action Plan (STAP)
which is considering greater
investment in public transport.
Alternative demand responsive
modes may also be considered.
Long Term 10 years + — governance and engagement
Workshop Proposition
All ACT Integrated Planning
Framework for a new planning
legacy based on sustainability.
Developing integrated strategic
planning directions that are
consistently translated into
statutory planning:
• systems-based
• evidence-based
• participatory.
Economics Improve inter-agency
and cooperation and management
Administration by working on projects in
interdisciplinary teams.
Implications/actions
Continue to improve
inner-organisational and
interdepartmental coordination
and collaboration.
Government agencies
currently liaise extensively on
project based work. Further
enhancement of these
relationships will reinforce
productive project outcomes.
Workshop findings report
Significance
Coordinated leadership in
sustainable urban planning to
successfully manage complex
challenges such as climate
change, housing affordability and
the economy.
Promotes and reinforces holistic
approaches and systems
thinking.
54
Appendix 3 Historic Maps of Canberra

Commonwealth of Australia Federal Capital Competition: City and

Environs (1912 Competition Plan – NAA 710 38)
Canberra: Plan of City and Environs (1918 Plan – NLA Map G8984 C3 G45 1918)

Workshop findings report 56

Canberra Federal Capital of Australia: Preliminary Plan (1913 Preliminary Plan – NLA Map
G8984 C3 Gri 1913)
Commonwealth Gazetted Plan (1925 – NCA)

Workshop findings report 58

General Plan Concept (1970 – NCDC Tomorrow’s Canberra)
Strategy Plan for Metropolitan Growth (1969 – NCDC Tomorrow’s Canberra)

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Metropolitan Policy Plan (1984 – NCDC)
Metropolitan Policy Plan, Inset (1984 – NCDC)

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Metropolitan Structure (2002 - Territory Plan)
General Policy Plan, Metropolitan Canberra (NCA)

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Territory Plan
The Canberra Spatial Plan

Workshop findings report 66

Appendix 4 Sustainable transport Action Plan 2010-2016
The current ACT transport planning framework consists primarily of the Sustainable Transport Plan (STP),
released in 2004 and the Integrated Transport Framework (ITF), released in 2008.

The STP established targets to increase the use of walking, cycling and public transport from 13 per cent
of work trips in 2001 to 20 per cent by 2011 and to 30 per cent by 2026. This requires 16 per cent of work
trips by public transport, 7 per cent by cycling and a 7 per cent by walking in the next 17 years. The fact the
government recently reaffirmed these goals and data indicates we are well on the way to achieving these
targets. The ITF established principles to achieve an efficient, accessible, sustainable and reliable transport
system.

The government is continuing to build on these policies to achieve the long term targets, and is developing
a Sustainable Transport Action Plan 2010–16 (STAP). The STAP will be an action plan within the integrated
transport policy framework to support government transport decision-making, infrastructure investments and
policy and regulatory initiatives from 2010 to 2016 and beyond.

The STAP will have five components listed below.

• An overarching Sustainable Transport Action Plan 2010–2016, which will set out how the government
will implement the 2004 Sustainable Transport Plan and respond to transport demand, to 2016.

• The Public Transport Strategy, which will be informed by the Strategic Public Transport Network
Plan developed by McCormick Rankin Cagney. This will incorporate public comments from
consultation conducted in July and August 2009. The Public Transport Strategy will also include the
preliminary findings of the taxi review currently underway.

• The Parking Strategy, which will draw on the draft Parking Strategy released for public comment in
2007. The strategy will be supplemented and updated to include input from studies currently
underway relating to an integrated transport-supportive parking pricing policy, parking supply options
and a parking offset fund.

• The Cycling and Walking Strategy, which will be based on two studies running concurrently from
August 2009: a study of cycling and walking infrastructure and accessibility in the town centres and
major employment nodes, and a study which reviews the policy, regulatory and behavioural initiatives
that can help achieve modal shifts towards more cycling and walking in Canberra.

• The Transport Infrastructure Plan, which will be based on input from the other strategies, and will
include an updated road infrastructure forward work program, and elements from the ACT’s Road
Safety Strategy. The Transport Infrastructure Plan will set out the capital investments to both support
greater mode shifts towards sustainable transport options, and respond to capacity constraints in the
transport system in the short to medium term.

ACTPLA and TAMS are working with all ACT Government agencies to ensure the Sustainable Transport
Action Plan is integrated with the Sustainable futures program and other related work across government.
The STAP and supporting strategies will be released in mid-2010.

More information
For further information on the Sustainable Transport Action Plan, please visit the website
www.sustainabletransport.act.gov.au or phone Canberra Connect on 13 22 81.
Workshop findings report 68