A new online tool has been launched that aims to save farmers thousands of dollars and months of work as they negotiate often complex planning laws when applying for development approvals to build farm infrastructure.
The State Government platform is called myFarmPlanner and it provides farmers with all the information they need to know to lodge a development application in as little as 15 minutes using a tailored questionnaire and interactive map.
The app brings together information from all approval organisations including local councils, consenting authorities and industry guidelines.
Woodview dairy farmer Terry Toohey said the tool will enable farmers to look at whether their land can accomodate expansion plans.
“myFarmPlanner will be a very useful tool for the dairy industry as a lot of farmers are land locked, and this will be further intensified by building barns and feedpads,” Mr Toohey said. His family have been dairy farmers at Woodview, west of Casino since 1901.
The myFarmPlanner app provides information about approval pathways and consent authorities, required licences, permits and approvals, details relevant legislation regulations and guidelines and provides location-specific constraints including flood zones, bushfire areas and sensitive receptors.
Everything a farmers needs to know before building.
Usally it takes up to 12 months for a farmer to gather all the required DA information needed to build farm buildings, animal housing, processing facilities and other infrastructure particularly after a flood, bushfire or a storm.
By entering farm data individually, producers using the tool can also save money, with the self-service capabilities estimated to eliminate up to $2,000 in consultant fees per application.
The new tool supersedes a 2021 beta version of the tool, which was targeted at the poultry industry, and is now expanded to cover dairy, horticulture, poultry and agritourism.
Future updates of the myFarmPlanner platform will include additional agriculture sectors and integrate with the Planning Portal to improve efficiencies even further.
The development of the myFarmPlanner platform was jointly funded by the Australian and State governments through the Storm and Flood Industry Recovery Program.
To access the tool, go here.
Read about the cow crossing lights at the Toohey farm here.
This information was provided by the NSW Government.