That the NSW Government look into strengthening Development Control Plans so that provisions within Development Control Plans bear greater weight when considered in the Land and Environment Court and so that they can be enforced.

That the NSW Government seek to amend provisions of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 relating to historical developments to:
- increase the threshold required for developers to have undertaken action in commencing physical works in order to prevent their development consent from lapsing after 5 years
- consider a mechanism with appropriate thresholds for consent authorities to assess whether a historical development consent should be reassessed, and
- consider giving power to consent authorities to revoke or modify historical development consents, where it can be demonstrated that the development will have significant social, environmental or cultural impact not previously identified or that has been changed from the time of approval.

That the NSW Government review deemed refusal appeals under section 8.17 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and consider the impacts that deemed refusal appeals have on local councils, particularly in relation to the costs incurred in defending these appeals and the strain that this has on council resources.

That the NSW Government in partnership with local Aboriginal land councils and other Aboriginal land holders, in land claims processes to identify and activate land suitable for development and progress any necessary rezonings to enable that development and where parties agree, consider land swaps where lands are not suitable for development due to biodiversity and climate change constraints.

That the NSW Government consider implementing a system for when the Minister for Planning may request the Independent Planning Commission to conduct a public hearing for any development.

That the NSW Government consider ways to improve the independence of the assessment of planning proposals and development applications, without increasing the time taken to assess such proposals.

That the NSW Government give effect to the right of First Nations people to self-determination and the principle of free, prior, informed and ongoing consent in the New South Wales planning system, including in relation to:
- development applications and planning proposals
- culturally appropriate consultation and
- protection of cultural heritage and connection to Country.

That the NSW Government review the need for legislation amending the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 or a state environmental planning policy to consider climate change within the planning system alongside the need to deliver development outcomes, including housing diversity, supply of industrial land and critical infrastructure.

That the NSW Government enhance land use planning processes to take into account climate change risks, including the development of clear guidelines about where homes and infrastructure should and should not be located.

That the NSW Government consider implementing:
- all of the recommendations of the statutory review of the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016
- planning instruments that provide for the retention and creation of deep soil, native tree cover and habitat in urban areas
- guidelines for a clear and transparent process for when the Minister for Planning will refer a development to the Federal Minister for the Environment under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth).

That the NSW Government:
- implement statutory planning controls to mitigate the urban heat island effect, either through legislation, changes to the Sustainable Buildings SEPP, and/or any other relevant instruments
- advocate for changes to the National Construction Code, through the Australian Building Codes Board, to help ensure that infrastructure is resilient to climate change impacts.

That the NSW Government consider amending the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 to make the powers to consent authorities to modify or revoke development consents in the public interest, and that if a consent authority exercises the power to revoke a development consent, that no compensation is to be paid by the consent authority to the aggrieved person.

That the NSW Reconstruction Authority consider issuing guidelines which clarify the scope of its powers to make planning decisions under the NSW Reconstruction Authority Act 2022 and how the Authority will consider existing planning controls, environmental standards, and Aboriginal cultural heritage protections under the state's existing planning framework.

The committee recommends that the Australian Government pursue the matter of land use and planning laws, including the feasibility of prohibiting future development in high-risk areas, through the Housing and Homelessness Ministerial Council and other relevant ministerial council arrangements.

The Commonwealth should introduce a systematic and consistent approach to measuring and evaluating the impact of disaster programs against the nationally determined outcomes specified in the Outcomes Policy.

Promote the use of Water Sensitive Urban Design in stormwater systems.

Build flood capable infrastructure.

Develop linkages between landslide risk assessors and building engineers/structural works.

Review building controls to ensure they are adaptive to changing coastal inundation risks.

Further development of Landslide Hazard Banding of the State (MRT).

Include consideration of coastal inundation in land use planning for new developments and uses.

Monitor effectiveness of new Land Use Planning reforms to evaluate effectiveness of delivering desired outcomes.

Monitor effectiveness of new Land Use Planning and Building System reforms to evaluate effectiveness of delivering desired outcomes.

Establish arrangements to enable the buy-back of specified landslip prone land.

Make property level information on landslide hazards publicly available

Ensure landuse planning and building systems, including appeal mechanisms, are transparent, equitable and integrated at the municipal, State and national levels.

Raised access routes.

Locate and design new public infrastructure so that it can continue to operate during flood events.

Incentivising safer sites (charge people less rates and discounts for defensive actions by land managers).

All governments should put in place best-practice institutional and governance arrangements for the provision of public infrastructure, including road infrastructure. These should include:
• stronger processes for project selection that incorporate requirements for cost–benefit analyses that are independently scrutinised and publicly released
• consideration of natural disaster risk in project selection and asset management planning
• a clearer link between road-user preferences and maintenance and investment decisions.

That the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service examine alternative contractual arrangements with building owners which would reduce the need for physical attendance at alarm activations.

That the NSW Rural Fire Service hold discussions with the Department of Planning and Infrastructure and Local Government NSW on ways to improve compliance with development consents under section 76A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

The committee recommends that building codes incorporate mitigation measures that take into account foreseeable risks from extreme weather events.

The committee recommends that credible and reliable flood mapping activities and the development of other information that would best inform landowners or prospective landowners of potential risks from extreme weather events are prioritised and used to inform land use planning laws.

The Council of Australian Governments’ Building Ministers’ Forum should provide formal direction to the Australian Building Codes Board to:
• monitor projections of climate change risks to buildings
• revise the standards in the National Construction Code to take into account these projections where this delivers a net benefit to the community.
This body of work should be transparently and formally incorporated in the Australian Building Codes Board’s annual work program.

As a priority, state and territory governments should ensure that land-use planning systems are sufficiently flexible to enable a risk management approach to incorporating climate change risks into planning decisions at the state, territory, regional and local government levels. Consideration should be given to:
• transparent and rigorous community consultation processes that enable an understanding of the community’s acceptable levels of risk for different types of land use
• the timeframe of risks and the expected lifetime of proposed land use
• the costs and benefits of land use.
State and territory governments should provide appropriate guidance to local governments to implement these provisions in local government schemes.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government:
- continue working with the Queensland Government and local councils under the existing Great Barrier Reef Intergovernmental Agreement to improve land use planning in the catchment
- commission analysis of the Great Barrier Reef as a case study for integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) in Australia. The study should draw out possible directions for ICZM in Australia with regard to:
* addressing challenges associated with climate change impacts on biodiversity
* declining water quality from catchment runoff and loss of coastal habitat from coastal development and population pressures
* building cooperative partnerships between Commonwealth, state and local government, and other stakeholders
* establishing governance and institutional frameworks

The Committee recommends that the Building Code of Australia, including cyclone building codes, be revised with the objective of increasing resilience to climate change.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government consider the benefits of adopting a nationally consistent sea level rise planning benchmark and, if so, whether this be done on a statutory basis or otherwise. The outcomes of this consideration should then be included as part of the action plan for the proposed Intergovernmental Agreement on the Coastal Zone.

The Committee notes the Council of Australian Governments initiative (through the Local Government and Planning Ministers Council) to develop state-specific climate change planning policies by mid 2011, to inform local governments and regional planning responses to climate change. The Committee recommends that the Australian Government ensure that the outcomes of this initiative are included as part of the action plan under the proposed new Intergovernmental Agreement on the Coastal Zone.

The Committee recommends that the responsibility for land management issues lie within a single portfolio, specifically the Minister for Territory and Municipal Services.