The landuse planning framework as it relates to landuse planning and bushfire in NSW is embedded in the EPA Act, the Rural Fires Act 1997 (RF Act), Rural Fires Regulation 2013 (RF Reg) which is articulated through PBP.
The Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment Bill 2025 was released by the NSW Government on 16th September 2025. The Bill introduces reforms to streamline decision-making, cut red tape, and strengthen the role of the Housing Delivery Authority and a new Development Coordination Authority, measures intended to improve efficiency and certainty in the approval of housing and other development.
The Bill revises section 1.3 (Objects of the EPA Act) to realign the EP&A Act with contemporary priorities. Under the proposed amendments, the objects include (among others):
(j) to promote a proportionate and risk-based approach to environmental planning and assessment,
While not in force, the Bill provides clarity from the NSW Government about the intent and actions required from government agencies.
A key object of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment Bill 2025 is to promote a proportionate and risk-based approach to planning and assessment. In the bushfire context, this objective requires applicants, specialists (i.e. bushfire consultants) and regulatory authorities (the Rural Fire Service) to move beyond prescriptive, one-size-fits-all controls and ensure that development assessment and advice are matched to the actual level of bushfire risk presented by a site and its proposed land use.
A proportionate approach avoids imposing excessive or unnecessary mitigation measures where the bushfire hazard is low or can be effectively managed through other design responses. It also recognises that resources and compliance costs should be directed to where they deliver the greatest improvement in life safety, property protection and community resilience.
Applying this principle supports good planning outcomes, enabling well-located and appropriately designed development while maintaining robust protection standards where risk is higher. This means applying the technical framework in Planning for Bushfire Protection 2019 with flexibility and professional judgment, ensuring advice is evidence-driven and tailored to the specific hazard, rather than defaulting to the most restrictive controls regardless of site conditions.
