Land Clearing in Emerald

Land Clearing in Emerald: Local Conditions and What That Means for Your Property

Land clearing in Emerald operates inside a regulatory framework that is more constraining than most areas in the outer east, and the vegetation on typical blocks is more complex than the paddock or scrub blocks common in Cockatoo or Gembrook. Cardinia Shire's planning scheme requires a permit for the removal of native vegetation from most properties in the Environmental Significance Overlay and Vegetation Protection Overlay areas that cover large parts of Emerald, and because much of the residential land was carved out of mountain ash and messmate forest, even long-established properties often carry remnant native understorey and mid-story plants that are captured by those overlays. The practical starting point for any clearing job is a pre-works site check to identify whether the target vegetation is native or exotic, whether any exemptions apply under the Planning and Environment Act (for example the ten metre zone around a dwelling for fire protection), and whether replacement planting conditions will be imposed. For subdivisions and new builds (and Emerald continues to see infill development on larger lots along streets like Auhl Road and Butterfield Road), the tree-protection conditions on development permits can restrict clearing to specific development envelopes, requiring us to work carefully around fenced tree-protection zones while still delivering the site preparation the builder needs. Bush block clearing for acreage properties that have been neglected and reverted to mixed scrub typically involves multiple passes: slash the groundcover, remove the mid-story exotics and weed trees, chip the brushwood, and hand-treat the resprouting stumps through the following season.