Open Coast and Jervis Bay Coastal Management Program

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This page provides information for the Open Coast and Jervis Bay Coastal Management Programs (CMPs). Please visit the Shoalhaven Coastal Management Program Get Involved page for information regarding Council’s broader CMP program.

With 165kms of breathtaking coastline in the Shoalhaven LGA, Council understands the immense environmental, social, cultural, and economic value that this coastline provides for our community.

Shoalhaven City Council is currently developing Coastal Management Programs (CMPs) across the Shoalhaven to plan for the future of our coastline and estuaries, in accordance with the Coastal Management Act (2016). It considers historic events, current conditions, and future trends including

This page provides information for the Open Coast and Jervis Bay Coastal Management Programs (CMPs). Please visit the Shoalhaven Coastal Management Program Get Involved page for information regarding Council’s broader CMP program.

With 165kms of breathtaking coastline in the Shoalhaven LGA, Council understands the immense environmental, social, cultural, and economic value that this coastline provides for our community.

Shoalhaven City Council is currently developing Coastal Management Programs (CMPs) across the Shoalhaven to plan for the future of our coastline and estuaries, in accordance with the Coastal Management Act (2016). It considers historic events, current conditions, and future trends including population growth, environmental conditions, and climate change. CMP’s identify coastal management issues and the actions required to address these issues in a strategic and integrated way. It will also detail how and when those actions are to be implemented, their costs, and funding mechanisms.

There are five stages to developing a CMP, which are outlined in the Coastal Management Manual.

Open Coast and Jervis Bay Background

Council’s adopted Citywide CMP Scoping Study (August 2020) (Stage 1) recommended that the Open Coast and Jervis Bay required CMPs. Council has applied for and successfully received a grant from the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) to develop these CMPs.

Council has progressed through Stage 2 of the CMP process, where the Open Coast and Jervis Bay underwent detailed assessment studies to identify, analyse, and evaluate the risks for the coastline. Stage 3 of the CMP process has also been completed. Stage 3 involved the confirmation of strategic direction, identification and evaluation of potential management actions, further community and stakeholder engagement and the development of a draft business plan. The CMP is now progressing to Stage 4. This involves preparing a detailed program that lists the management actions to be implemented over the next 10 years and when those actions will be implemented, their costs, how they will be funded, and by whom.

Community Engagement

Council will be working closely with its Coastal Management Advisory Committees, State Agency representatives, our local Aboriginal Communities and Custodians, youth, and the overall Shoalhaven community as the project progresses.

Community members will have several opportunities to provide input into the development of the CMP and to provide feedback on the draft document.

Stay Informed

To receive updates and follow the progress of this project, we encourage you to subscribe via the 'Stay Informed' function on this web page.

  • Public Exhibition of the Draft Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP Now Closed

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    Thank you to everyone who provided feedback and attended the information sessions on the draft Open Coast and Jervis Bay Coastal Management Program (CMP). The project team will now consider all feedback provided during the public exhibition period to finalise the CMP. Once finalised, the results will be presented to Council for consideration, and then to the NSW Minister for Local Government for certification. Following certification, the CMP will enter Stage 5 where Council will implement, monitor, evaluate and report on management actions identified in the final CMP.

    To stay up to date on the CMP, subscribe for project updates on this Get Involved Page. If you have questions, please contact the Coastal Management Unit at coastal.management@shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au or call Council on 1300 293 111.

  • Find out more about the draft Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP

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    The Open Coast and Jervis Bay Coastal Management Program (CMP) is now on public exhibition for community consultation until 2 February 2024 as part of Stage 4 of the CMP development. The draft CMP encompasses a detailed program that lists the management actions to be implemented 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.

    Visual Media is a key engagement method for Council and as such, the project team have developed a short video providing background to this Stage 4 document with can be found here and in the video library of this webpage.

    The Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP covers a study area that includes beaches located along the 165 km of coastline managed by Council - from Shoalhaven Heads in the north, to North Durras in the south. Estuary areas within the Shoalhaven are not included in the study area for this CMP and will be addressed in separate CMPs.

    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 5 pm, Friday 2 February 2024.

  • Have your say - Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP Stage 4

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    The Open Coast and Jervis Bay Coastal Management Program (CMP) is now on public exhibition for community consultation until 2 February 2024 as part of Stage 4 of the CMP development. The Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP covers a study area that includes beaches located along the 165 km of coastline managed by Council - from Shoalhaven Heads in the north, to North Durras in the south. Estuary areas within the Shoalhaven are not included in the study area for this CMP and will be addressed in separate CMPs.

    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 to be implemented 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. For ease of viewing, specific management actions related to the various regions of the Shoalhaven Local Government Area (LGA) coastline can be viewed using the links below:

    Please provide your feedback by completing the Online Survey on this web page by 5 pm, Friday 2 February 2024.

  • Information Sessions

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    The Open Coast and Jervis Bay Coastal Management Program (CMP) will be on public exhibition from late November/early December 2023 as part of Stage 4 of the CMP development.

    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. The draft CMP encompasses a detailed program that lists the management actions to be implemented over the next 10 years - including a schedule of when those 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 Stage 4 Report will be available to view shortly, once the public exhibition commences. Subscribe for project updates on this Get Involved page to be notified as soon the public exhibition is live!

    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.

    • Where: Ulladulla Civic Centre
    • When: Tuesday 12 December 2023
    • Time: 4 - 6 pm


    • Where: Huskisson Community Centre
    • When: Wednesday 13 December 2023
    • Time: 4 - 6 pm


    • Where: Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre
    • When: Thursday 14 December 2023
    • Time: 4 - 6 pm


    Although registration is optional, you can Register Online to help us plan for the event.

    Everyone is welcome!


  • Stage 3 Report Now Available!

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    Council is pleased to share the Final Shoalhaven Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP Stage 3 Summary 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 were 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 Final Shoalhaven Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP Stage 3 Summary Report is published in the 'Document Library' on this web page.

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

  • Stage 2 Report Now Available!

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    Council is pleased to share the final Stage 2 Report for the Open Coast and Jervis Bay 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 Shoalhaven Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP Stage 2 Summary Report is published in the 'Document Library' on this web page.

    If you have questions about this report or the CMP development process, you can contact Council via e-mailing the Coastal Management Team – coastal.management@shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au or by calling Council on 1300 293 111.

  • Stage 3 Completed

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    Stage 3 of Shoalhaven’s Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP is now complete.

    The main aim of Stage 3 was to:

    • Develop a long list of potential management actions to address the various risks, vulnerabilities and opportunities identified in Stage 2 of the CMP. This involved reviewing the historical approach to coastal management, engaging with community groups and key stakeholders to capture ideas and viewpoints, and to utilise the knowledge of technical experts.
    • The next step was to evaluate the long list of potential management actions to determine which options should be included in the CMP as management actions. This involved developing a succinct list of management actions that are feasible, acceptable and economically viable based on Council’s available budget and resources.

    With these management actions identified – the CMP is close to progressing to Stage 4. This involves preparing a detailed program that lists the management actions to be implemented over the next 10 years and when those actions will be implemented, their costs, how they will be funded, and by whom.

    The first draft of the Stage 4 CMP document will be placed on public exhibition around October/November 2023.

    As part of this public exhibition process:

    • The Draft CMP document will be publicly available online for 28 days.
    • Council will host a series of community drop-in sessions where you can discuss the draft CMP with the Project Team.

    If you provided feedback during Stage 3, you can see how your comments were considered in developing the management actions in Stage 3 - Closing the Loop, which is also published in the 'Document Library' on this web page.

  • Foreshore Community Education Workshops

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    Shoalhaven City Council invites residents of Mollymook, Callala and Culburra beaches to a community workshop to learn more about their local foreshore.

    The workshop activities include:

    • Indigenous peoples’ values of Coastal Country
    • Importance of dunes
    • Identifying and planting foreshore vegetation
    • Managing cliffs and rocky shores
    • Ways to manage and protect your foreshore including Dunecare
    • Citizen science activities including CoastSnap

    Book into one of the following workshops:

    Where: Meet at Mollymook Surf Life Saving Club - 83 Ocean Street
    When: Tuesday 14 March 2023
    Time: 4pm-5.30pm

    Where: Meet at the Callala Beach Community Centre - 89 Quay Road
    When: Wednesday 15 March 2023
    Time: 4pm-5.30pm

    Where: Meet at at the Nowra-Culburra Surf Life Saving Club - 4 Farrant Avenue, Culburra Beach
    When: Thursday 16 March 2023
    Time: 4pm-5.30pm

    Please email your RSVP to Neil Dufty at ndufty@molinostewart.com.au.

    Technical and Financial assistance for this project is being provided by the NSW Government under its Coastal Management Program.

  • Stage 3 - Community Consultation - Project Update

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    Community consultation for Stage 3 of Shoalhaven’s Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP is now complete. Extensive community input on potential management actions for consideration in the CMP was received during the consultation period via our online survey and mapping platforms (now closed). In total, Council received responses from 540 participants who provided over 1,300 responses on the 137 options via the Community Feedback mapping portal. Council also received over 200 comments and suggestions from the community via the suggestion portal.

    Council would like to thank the community for providing valuable input. This feedback is now being used to help refine, assess and rank the various management actions. This has ensured Council is informed of the perspectives, values and priorities of the broader community.

    Council will continue to inform the community of the progress of the Open Coast and Jervis Bay CMP and will advise on the next opportunity to provide feedback during the process.

  • Stage 3 Survey Extended to 16 October 2022

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    Thank you for the great feed back we have received so far.

    The Stage 3 survey closing date has now been extended to Sunday 16 October 2022.

    Shoalhaven’s Open Coast CMP is now progressing through Stage 3. In this stage, our project team has developed a list of potential management actions for consideration in the CMP. We would like anyone who is interested in, values, or lives near the Shoalhaven coast to have a say in how the coast is managed, by:

    Being Informed

    Providing Input

    If you haven't already, please provide your feedback by 5pm, Sunday 16 October 2022.

Page last updated: 26 Mar 2024, 02:20 PM