Glossary
Activity nodes
- existing developed areas in a modified and resilient environment, that
are most able to meet ecologically sustainable development principles
for coastal planning and management.
Aquaculture - cultivation of fish, molluscs and other aquatic organisms
in fresh or salt water for human use.
Ballast water - water carried in a ship's tanks for stability,
which is normally discharged to the sea when the ship is loaded and can
be contaminated with pollution or exotic organisms.
Biodiversity - the diversity of plants, animals and micro-organisms
and the ecosystems they form.
Biological diversity - the variability among living organisms from
all sources, including terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems
and the ecological complexes of which they are part, this includes diversity
within species, between species and of ecosystems.
Bioregion - an area that reflects underlying environmental and
ecological features.
Catchment - the area of land that drains to a watercourse or estuary.
Coast (Victorian) - It is broadly defined in this Strategy to
include: the sea and the seabed to the State limit - three nautical miles
or 5.5 kms; and land and inland waters within the coastal catchment.
Coastal action plan - plan that identifies strategic directions
and objectives for use and development in the region or part of the region
to facilitate recreational use and tourism, and to provide for protection
and enhancement of significant features coast, including the marine environment.
Coastline - is generally where the land meets the sea.
Committee of Management - appointed under the Crown Land (Reserves)
Act 1978 to manage reserved Crown land on behalf of the Minister.
For coastal land, Committees are either an agency (eg. the local municipality,
Parks Victoria or the Department of Natural Resources and Environment)
or appointed through an expression of interest process.
Conservation covenants - a legal agreement by private land owners
to protect conservation elements on private land, that is administered
by the Trust for Nature.
Crown land - public land not vested in a public authority, including
land which has been temporarily or permanently reserved under the Crown
Land (Reserves) Act 1978.
Ecologically sustainable development - that improves the total
quality of life both now and in the future, in a waydevelopment that maintains
the ecological processes on which life depends.
Ecologically sustainable use - the use of a species or ecosystem
which allows it to naturally renew.
Ecosystem - a dynamic complex of organisms in a community and their
associated non living environment.
Effluent - a liquid, partially or completely treated or in its
natural state, flowing from a water or sewage treatment plant.
Endemic - native to a particular area, and not found naturally
anywhere else.
Environmental flow - minimum flows of water (by volume and season)
necessary to maintain all aquatic life.
Estuary - inlet or river mouth that is influenced by tides and
freshwater inputs from the catchment.
Exotic marine organism - refer to 'pest'.
Fire regime - the patterns of fire (frequency, intensity and seasonality)
that have an impact on an ecosystem.
Foreshore - the coastal fringe. Generally the land between the
coastal road and the low water mark.
Freehold land - refer to 'private land'.
Geomorphology - science of the evolution of landforms and geological
formations and the processes that shape them.
Habitat - the preferred location, or 'home' for each species of
plant and animal.
Historic building - site, building or group of buildings which
have aesthetic, historic, scientific or social value for the past, present
or future generations.
Indigenous people - the people that are descendants of Aboriginal
tribes in Australia.
Indigenous species - species that occur naturally in a region.
Infrastructure - physical structures which facilitate use of the
coast (eg. roads, paths, toilet blocks).
Integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) - a framework that attempts
to integrate planning and management in a region (eg. The State of Victoria)
across the land and sea interface and the private and public land interface,
to treat the coastal zone as one biophysical entity.
Intertidal zone - area between low and high tide which is subject
to daily changes in physical and biological conditions from tide movement
(also known as littoral zone).
Municipal strategic statement - a concise statement of the key strategic
planning, land use and development objectives for a municipality and the
strategies and actions for achieving those objectives.
Nature-based tourism - involves educating tourists about the natural
environment and is ecologically sustainable.
Ocean outfall - sewerage pipes which discharge to the ocean.
Pest - plant or animal which is or has the potential
to become a serious threat to the indigenous flora and fauna.
Planning scheme overlay - additional requirements to a planning
zone which provide for specific development issues or policy matters.
Planning scheme - legal instrument, developed by municipalities
under the Planning and Environment Act 1987, that sets out policy and
requirements for use, development and protection of land. It consists
of a written document and any maps and plans it refers to.
Private land - land which is under freehold
tenure (privately owned).
Public land - land which is unalienated land of the Crown (refer
to Crown land) or land vested in a public authority.
Recreational Nodes - are areas outside established settlements
that have priority for recreation and water related activities or improved
facilities and that can be developed consistent with the ESD principles
of this Strategy.
Remnant vegetation - the remaining natural vegetation.
Sediment - insoluble material suspended in water that contains
mainly particles derived from rock, soil and organic material.
Sewage - household and commercial waste water that contains human
or trade waste.
Sewerage - the system which facilitates the collection, transport,
treatment and discharge of sewage.
Stakeholders - an individual or group who has a vested interest
in or may be affected by a project or process.
Stormwater - runoff from land during and following rain. Stormwater
removes accumulated material including litter, soil, nutrients, pathogens,
chemicals, pesticides, oils and grease.
Subdivision - the division of land into two or more parts which
can be separately sold.
Wetland - land where saturation by water is the dominant factor
for soil type and plant and animal communities (eg. tidal areas, saltmarshes
and mangroves).
