Client
Hawkesbury City Council
Overview
EnvironmentalResearch and Analysis
Disciplines
Landscape Architecture
Location
Hawkesbury, NSW
Date
2023
Imagery
Tract
Awards
2024 AILA Award of Excellence – Landscape Planning (NSW)
The ‘Greening the Hawkesbury’ strategy outlines a vision to transform the City of Hawkesbury with progressive urban greening initiatives. Encouraging a conversation around urban greening, not just urban forestry.
It simplifies this vision into a practical action plan, organised in a simple and clear strategic hierarchy to:
- Assess what is needed at a place and network level, then address these gaps considering community needs, biodiversity corridors and connections, and water sensitive urban design
- Protect existing green spaces in public and private land
- Empower and engage residents, businesses, First Nations people and cross-council collaboration to respond to the challenges and opportunities in the area, such as low existing canopy cover and understory.
Urban greening, including urban forestry
Tract was engaged by Hawkesbury City Council to create an urban forest strategy. However, it became clear that this approach would not address urban biodiversity or integrate water sensitive urban design. Tract successfully proposed that the work should be a holistic strategy that considered urban greening, including biodiversity and water sensitive urban design.
Inclusion of First Nations perspectives
The First Nations Community Liaison Officer played a key role in the consultation process. A recent survey of the First Nations community about the environment’s value allowed the project team to place First Nations views front and centre in the strategy, and embed ongoing mechanisms to ensure this community shapes local outcomes.
Public and private land
The team advocated that the project include public and private land, considering the significant portion of privately owned land in the Hawkesbury region and the role it will play in better greening outcomes.
WSUD, biodiversity and community stewardship
While the main focus for the strategy was liveability, the project team were able to introduce the importance of water, biodiversity and community stewardship into the conversation and embed these into the action plan.
Single site vs a network view
Hawkesbury City Council was focused on place-based outcomes. Tract emphasised that taking a broader network view was essential for making decisions at a place-based level, from their experience developing the Penrith Green Grid Strategy, in a nearby council area with similar challenges.
Integrating evidence-based ideas
Tract created an initial briefing document for the council project team, outlining best practices, opportunities and challenges. This document became a useful advocacy report as the project progressed. It drew on best practice urban greening literature combined with clear maps of heat distribution, existing canopy coverage data and real-life examples where these factors negatively impacted the local population.
A clear and simple document
The resulting strategy document shares vision, goals, principles, actions, and a monitoring and evaluation framework in a visual and easily understandable format. It was important that the final document was inviting to read and supported council to initiate next steps.
An implementation and monitoring plan
Tract established focus areas and targets to direct on-going funding and council commitments.
Public and private land
The team advocated that the project include public and private land, considering the significant portion of privately owned land in the Hawkesbury region and the role it will play in better greening outcomes.
WSUD, biodiversity and community stewardship
While the main focus for the strategy was liveability, the project team were able to introduce the importance of water, biodiversity and community stewardship into the conversation and embed these into the action plan.
Single site vs a network view
Hawkesbury City Council was focused on place-based outcomes. Tract emphasised that taking a broader network view was essential for making decisions at a place-based level, from their experience developing the Penrith Green Grid Strategy, in a nearby council area with similar challenges.
A process that shared findings effectively and focused on achievable urban greening goals, with a progressive strategy, adopted unchanged by a diverse group of councillors.
Engagement time
The approach to the strategy involved council officers and stakeholders, and evolved alongside their input. A dedicated workshop session was held for councillors to review the progress, share evidence and test ideas for the strategy.
Advocacy for a progressive position
There was a concerted effort to advocate for a forward-thinking approach. Securing support from all council members was a significant goal, not initially guaranteed. Demonstrating the importance of urban greening through green infrastructure, highlighting the role of biodiversity and water in achieving place-based urban shade and tree canopy goals, and illustrating the reality of why it’s necessary, and how this translates into real projects, was essential in gaining support across the councillors.
This Strategy is placed to provide Council with opportunity for practical improvement to tree and shade coverage across the LGA urban areas. While a large proportion of Hawkesbury consists of well vegetated national park, a substantial portion of the urban areas has a little as 5% canopy cover. The heat mapping data reflects this very clearly.
The implementation plan provided as key part of this Strategy provides a pathway to the planting of more trees and vegetation across the areas of the LGA that need it most. The plan outlines key targets, priority actions and time frames to provide practical steps for progress towards implementing Urban Greening and a cooler shadier experience for those in these urban areas.
