Coastal Hazards Development Control Plan 118- An attempt to slow down development in the Coastal Zone.

Council has drafted a plan to inform people of the dangers of living in the coastal zone or areas directly at risk from climate change induced coastal inundation.

The hazardous locations have been identified through a study that has assessed the risks and factored in sea level rise as adopted by the NSW Government.

Council conducted the first of its community information sessions at Ulladulla, which probably has the most expensive real estate at risk in the areas covered by the plan. The area covers the beach front of Mollymook and some of the surrounding headlands.

Property in this area has been exchanging hands for over $1Million since about 1998 with the most recent exchange occurring in the last 18 months. Many of the properties have been bought in the last ten years.

These transactions have occurred during a period when sea level rise and climate change has been known about and ignorance can not be an excuse when making investment decisions.

Some of the residents are bewildered at Councils approach to coastal hazards some are just downright angry that their property values have been effected.

For urban coastal dwellers in Australia you can see why- our lives feel fairly benign we feel mostly removed from climate effects, yet processes are well underway that will have a dramatic impact on our lives- not just the lives of our children and grand children. Federal and International governments should be addressing these issues aggressively now- and have left local governments to deal with climate changes.

The residents who attended the meeting conducted themselves exceptionally well under difficult circumstances. Some tried to query the entire issue of climate change science, but most accepted the evenings debate was not about climate science, but Shoalhaven City's response to directions from NSW state planning not to intensify living on the coastal strip.

It is difficult policy to make, knowing that the decision you make will impact dramatically on people's lives. These kinds of policy decisions prepare our population now for the shocks that are to come and will need rapid government response.

Climate Change will cost us in so many ways not just ecologically and the damage to the earth's systems that we rely upon.

So back to Mollymook.

 Where will Shoalhaven end up taking this policy?
Will Council stick with the draft and extinguish building rights seaward of the 2025 sea level rise line?
If not at which point will building rights be extinguished as this is the logical end to the dilemma.
Will Council defer decisions until stronger policy direction comes from the State and leave people in limbo land or provide some sort of certainty?

The residents want to know who will pay?

We will all pay to replace and repair public infrastructure that is in the front line of ocean surges. Low lying roads, public property, water, sewage and unknowns. Council is preparing a register of  public assets that are at risk.