Waylering 7, page-264

Inner West Council in Sydney has unanimously passed a motion to bring in new planning laws which will require all new homes and businesses built in their local government area to be fully electric.

This follows Lane Cove Council implementing revised planning regulations which ban new residential and business gas connections and require new developments to be all-electric.

Ten local governments in NSW have now either stated their intention to ban gas from new developments, or have already revised their planning regulations to enable a ban.

In the absence of a state-wide ban on new gas connections in NSW, local governments are using their planning powers to stop new buildings connecting to the gas network on health and economic grounds.

“We want to ensure that all future developments are sustainable, are healthy for their inhabitants, whether it's a residential development, or commercial development,” says Bernadette Riad, Manager of Sustainability and Resilience at Lane Cove Council.

“We're basically looking to minimise the installation of all the plant and equipment that rely on fossil fuels in buildings to reduce indoor and outdoor pollutants associated with gas,” says Chris Pelcz, Coordinator Strategic Planning, Lane Cove Council.

“We're also focusing on the economic aspects by reducing the cost to occupants by avoiding gas connections.”