This information will enable design professionals to assess the proposed development against the objectives of WSD for stormwater.
Assessments also highlight the relevant regulatory issues to inform pre-application discussions with authorities. Council officers and consent regulators can play an important role in identifying potential consent impediments and clarifying any ambiguities early in the design process. The components that make up a comprehensive site assessment include:
- An inventory of the bio-physical attributes of a site
- Identification of socio-cultural issues and relative values of a site
- Preliminary resource mapping to reveal land use typologies.
Site assessments should be carried out by suitably qualified and experienced professionals. Through their experience, these professionals can interpret site conditions to identify the best outcomes for land use planning, suggest the most appropriate means to avoid or mitigate potential construction effects, and identify opportunities to implement WSD.