1. Trevor Budge Manager, Strategy - City of Greater Bendigo Associate Professor (Professional Practice) Community Planning and Development Program La Trobe University - Bendigo MAV Rural and Regional Land Use Planning Forum

2. Does Victoria Need an Agricultural Overlay? Three questions – distributed and completed and then the results compiled while I am presenting. A presentation of my perspectives on the dimensions and aspects of the proposal Report on the Results Brief Discussion of Results - Feedback

3. Three Questions Is an Overlay the appropriate VPP tool What will be the Outcome if an Overlay is applied What is the essential issue that needs to be addressed or resolved? Assumption – An Agricultural Overlay will be a map of ‘high quality – productive agricultural areas’ and that applications for development incl. subdivision will need to ‘consider’ the ‘quality’ of the resource and the impact of the proposed development on the future capacity of the resource.

4. Some Perspectives What is Prime Quality Highly Productive Agricultural Land? Is it largely about access to water? What about growing conditions - climate? What about economics, labour supply, transport? Who determines high quality – local and regional variability? Can it be mapped – what are the impacts? Is it a static concept or mapped feature?

5. What are the implications of mapping land? Establishing boundaries What happens to land outside the Ag Overlay? Who will map it and how? Panel Hearings on Amendments to introduce it – lawyers and agricultural consultants picnic? Which Council will be the guinea pig?

6. Alternatives to an Overlay? Two or more overlays about quality/productivity? Using a zone – is it more about use and preventing the use conversion of land? Does it need a stronger SPPF and the state designation of land? Can it be better managed by a strong Local Policy and referral to a study with maps? Does it need mapped areas that require an impact assessment?

7. Survey Results Present Results Discussion