Welcome to the Corangamite Regional Catchment Strategy

What is the Regional Catchment Strategy?
The Corangamite Regional Catchment Strategy (RCS) is a high level blueprint for catchment health. It provides a strategic, integrated framework for natural resource management in the Corangamite Catchment Management Authority’s region of Victoria.

The Strategy identifies:

The nature, causes, extent and severity of land and water degradation of catchments

The region’s land, water and biodiversity resources and how they are utilised

A long-term vision for the region

Regionally significant land, water and biodiversity assets and landscapes

Catchment condition objectives, and

A program of management measures for the life of the strategy delivered through Landscape System based actions.

Why is it important for our Region?

The RCS identifies desired regional outcomes and priorities, as well as describing an approach for further inclusion of local priorities. It is an overarching strategic framework for action.

The RCS is a high-level strategy supported by implementation plans and will be supported by a relevant integrated sub-strategies. It is a whole of region strategy that reflects what the catchment partners as a collective are striving to achieved for Natural Resources Management within the region.

It provides the principles for appropriate, integrated land and water management within the region by identifying roles and responsibilities of those involved in the management of such land and water-based assets and promotes stewardship by the community. It identifies the various systems that drive land and water management within the regional context and provides the basis of integrated place-based action within local areas.

We acknowledge landholders, Landcare, farming bodies, volunteers, community groups and members of the Corangamite region for their significant contribution and investment in the development of this strategy 

Vision for the Corangamite Region

Healthy and productive lands and waters cared for and enjoyed by thriving communities

The vision for the Regional Catchment Strategy sets the long-term aspirations for the condition of the region at 2050. It provides the basis for delivery of long, medium and and short term outcomes at both a regional and landscape system level that will contribute to the delivery of this vision. The regional outcomes align with statewide policies and outcomes, thereby improving the way the RCS reinforces, promotes and supports Government policy and objectives.

The Strategic Directions identified within the strategy provide the basis for action at both a regional and landscape system level that supports the delivery of the outcomes through Landscape System based actions.

How the Regional Catchment Strategy fits in a broader framework?

State & National – Contribution of RCS to relevant state and national policy.

Regional Vision – RCS

Regional Outcomes by Themes – RCS

Landscape System Outcomes by Themes – RCS

Priority Directions within Landscape Systems – RCS

Implementation plan & Monitoring, evaluation and reporting plan – Delivery of RCS outcomes

The Regional Catchment Strategy is a high level strategy that focuses on the vision for the region and the desired outcomes; it is not an action plan and does not focus on outputs or activities. Implementation plans based on landscape systems are where the activities required to deliver the RCS will be developed, articulated, delivered, monitored, evaluated and reported against with further input from and collaboration with relevant communities, partners and stakeholders.

Themes

The Corangamite RCS includes nine local areas called Landscape Systems that are based on current priority landscapes as shown in the map below. The landscape systems for the Corangamite region have been developed based on the principles of Landscape (the visible features of an area of land), Livelihood (how the land is used for productive purposes) and Lifestyle (the way that people live), with areas having common traits relating to these providing the basis for the local areas.

The landscape systems are the following:

Northern Uplands, Basalt Plains, Western District Lakes, Heytesbury, Otway Coast, Barwon Plains, Bellarine & Surf Coast, Geelong City, and Ballarat City

The Regional Catchment Strategy provides the framework for integrated management of the region’s natural resources. It is not an action plan, but provides the basis for the development of action plans that are guided by the Priority Directions for each landscape system (local area) as shown in the map above. Landscape system based programs that involve all relevant partners and stakeholders provide the basis for on-ground coordinated action to deliver the six year (life of strategy) outcomes and contribute to its longer term (20 year) aspirational outcomes and vision.