Lower Shoalhaven River - Coastal Management Program

The Lower Shoalhaven River Coastal Management Program (CMP) is now on public exhibition until 2 December 2024 as part of Stage 4 of the CMP development. The draft CMP document can be accessed through the document library on this Get Involved webpage.

Council will be running the following information sessions on the draft CMP, where you can meet the project team who have developed the draft CMP and find out how this will be implemented. Please note that these sessions are not mandatory, and feedback can be provided on the draft CMP throughout the entirety of the public exhibition period by completing the Online Survey or by emailing the Coastal Management Unit – coastal.management@shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au or calling Council on 1300 293 111.

The Stage 4 Drop-In Information Sessions for the Lower Shoalhaven Coastal Management Program (CMP) are being held in person on 20 November 2024 (Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre) and 21 November 2024 (Shoalhaven Heads Community Centre).

Although registration is optional, it is encouraged that you register here to help us plan for the event. Registrations close on Tuesday 19 November 2024.

Information Sessions:

Date: Wednesday, 20 November 2024

Where: Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre, 42 Bridge Road, Nowra

Time: 4:00-6:00pm

Date: Thursday, 21 November 2024

Where: Shoalhaven Heads Community Centre, 111 Shoalhaven Heads Road, Shoalhaven Heads

Time: 4:00-6:00pm

Everyone is welcome!

The Lower Shoalhaven River Coastal Management Program (CMP) is now on public exhibition for community consultation until 2 December 2024 as part of Stage 4 of the CMP development. The Lower Shoalhaven River CMP covers a study area that comprises the coastal zone within the lower catchments of the Shoalhaven and Crookhaven Rivers. It also includes the intermittently open and closed entrance area at Shoalhaven Heads. Coomonderry Swamp, Saltwater Swamp and Brundee Swamp are also included in this study area.

Stage 4 involves public exhibition of the draft CMP document, incorporating details from the technical studies and stakeholder feedback received from previous consultations completed throughout Stages 1 to 3 of the CMP process. The draft CMP encompasses a detailed program that lists the management actions for implementation over the next 10 years - including a schedule of when actions will be planned for implementation, their associated costs, how they will be funded, and who will be responsible for their implementation.

The draft CMP document can be accessed through the document library on this Get Involved webpage.

Please provide your feedback by completing the Online Survey on this web page by 11:59 pm, 2 December 2024.

Alternatively, should you have any questions on the draft CMP, or would like to provide feedback via email, please contact the Coastal Management Unit - coastal.management@shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au, or call Council on 1300 293 111. Council will also be running two in-person information sessions where you can meet the project team who have developed the draft CMP and find out how this will be implemented. Further details regarding these sessions will be provided on Get Involved shortly.

Did you provide feedback during Stages 1-3 of the CMP? See how feedback has been considered by the project team through the development of the draft CMP in the Consultation Summary Document .

Council is pleased to share the Lower Shoalhaven River CMP Stage 3 Report.

The purpose of Stage 3 of the CMP development process was to identify and evaluate potential management actions to respond to the risks, vulnerabilities and opportunities determined through Stage 2 of the CMP. As part of Stage 3, a long list of potential management actions was developed and then assessed, ranked, and prioritised by the Project Team using a robust, decision-making framework in line with the NSW Coastal Management Framework. Stage 3 concluded with the identification of a short list of management actions to proceed to Stage 4. The Stage 3 Summary Report also outlines the community and stakeholder engagement completed as part of Stage 3.

The Lower Shoalhaven River CMP Stage 3 Report is published in the 'Document Library' on this web page. Appendices to the Stage 3 report will be uploaded in the coming weeks.

If you have questions about this report, or the CMP development process, please contact the Coastal Management Team at coastal.management@shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au or call Council on 1300 293 111.

Did you provide feedback during Stage 2 and 3 of the Lower Shoalhaven River Coastal Management Program (CMP)? See how your comments have been considered by the project team within our Closing the Loop document.

Community consultation was completed during Stage 2 and 3 of the CMP to gain feedback from the community to be used in identifying and developing of the potential management actions for the CMP.

The Closing the Loop document describes how this feedback is being considered.

• It evaluates potential management actions in Stage 3 of the CMP.
• The actions identified will inform the measures adopted in Stage 4 of the CMP.

Stage 3 and 4 of the CMP will be publicly exhibited for further community input before the Lower Shoalhaven River CMP is finalised in early 2025.

Council is pleased to share the final Stage 2 Reports for the Lower Shoalhaven River Coastal Management Programs (CMP).

The purpose of Stage 2 of the CMP development process is to determine risks, vulnerabilities and opportunities for the CMP study area. Stage 2 is a technical stage that requires gathering the background information, developing a conceptual model, defining the coastal hazards within the area, and modelling and mapping the region to create a risk assessment based on the hazard mapping models. Stage 2 requires the studies identified in the Shoalhaven CMP Scoping Study to be undertaken

The following Stage 2 reports are published in the ‘Document Library’ on this webpage:

• Synthesis of Current Knowledge
• Tidal and coastal inundation, Morphological Changes to Berrys Canal, Groundwater and Acid Sulfate Soils Assessment
• Bank Condition and Riparian Assessment
• Urban Runoff treatment
• Review and Evaluation of Water Quality Monitoring and Sampling
• Boating Study
• Detailed Risk Assessment

If you have questions about these reports or the CMP development process, you can contact Council via e-mail to the Coastal Management Unit – coastal.management@shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au or by calling Council on 1300 293 111.

The Lower Shoalhaven River CMP is now progressing through Stage 3. In this stage, our project team is developing a list of potential management actions for consideration in the CMP.

Council would like to thank the community for providing valuable input during community workshops held in July 2023 and via the online mapping platform. This feedback is now being used to help refine, assess and rank the various management actions. This has ensured the project team is informed of the perspectives, values and priorities of the broader community.

The online mapping platform will be closing on Friday 17 November 2023 at 5pm. If you haven’t already, please provide your feedback by this time.

If you have any other comments beyond this date, please contact the project team via coastal.management@shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au.

Council thanks community members for their attendance and participation in recent workshops held for the Lower Shoalhaven River Coastal Management Program (CMP) on 25 and 26 July 2023.

The Shoalhaven community raised important issues and concerns for the local area as well as putting forward several ideas for possible solutions and management actions; creating a very positive, constructive and inclusive workshop.

This feedback is now being used to help the project team develop potential management actions as we progress through Stage 3 of this CMP.

If you were unable to attend a session, you can still have your say through our Interactive Map or by contacting the Coastal Team by emailing coastal.management@shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au.

Council would like to thank the CMP subscribers and the community for providing inputs and contributing to the preparation of our CMPs throughout 2022.

The Project Team is still busy reviewing and finalising the Stage 2 studies for the Lower Shoalhaven River CMP, and Council is optimistic to have them all completed by early 2023. Council held a successful workshop with state agencies in late November 2022 to discuss the risks identified during Stage 2 of the CMP, and our consultants will soon start drafting potential management actions to be consulted with the community during Stage 3 of the CMP.

As indicated in the previous project update, these Community Drop-in Sessions and workshops will be held in the first half of 2023. The Sessions and workshops will be held face-to-face, and information will also be provided online for those that can't attend in person.

Please be reminded that you can still share your values and concerns for the Lower Shoalhaven River Estuary area using the interactive mapping tool.

The CMP Project Team is wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. Council looks forward to continue working with the community on the Lower Shoalhaven River CMP in 2023.