ZoneScout

Where can you build Aquaculture in NSW?

“Aquaculture” is a defined term in the NSW planning system, and every council’s Local Environmental Plan decides which zones allow it. Across 147 council LEPs it is permitted in 23 zones and prohibited in 15.

Zone by zone, across 147 NSW councils

Each row counts councils, not properties. “Without consent” means no application is needed; “with consent” means a development application. “Can’t say” is not a ban. Either the council has no rule for this use in that zone, or the use is a broad term whose types the table treats differently, so the answer depends on which type a project is.

ZoneWithout consentWith consentProhibitedCan’t sayCouncils with this zone
SP2 Infrastructure—135——135
RE1 Public Recreation—134——134
RE2 Private Recreation—125——125
RU1 Primary Production—107——107
RU3 Forestry—81——81
SP1 Special Activities—78——78
W1 Natural Waterways—63——63
W2 Recreational Waterways—59——59
RU4 Primary Production Small Lots—54——54
SP3 Tourist—50——50
RU2 Rural Landscape—49——49
W4 Working Waterfront—23——23
C3 Environmental Management—1227185
W3 Working Waterways—10——10
RU6 Transition—5—914
C4 Environmental Living—4—5761
R5 Large Lot Residential—44854106
E5 Heavy Industrial—315826
RU5 Village—25147100
C2 Environmental Conservation—1—9091
E3 Productivity Support—1751995
R1 General Residential—1564097
R2 Low Density Residential1—176987
C1 National Parks and Nature Reserves——123—123
E1 Local Centre——9922121
E2 Commercial Centre——531265
E4 General Industrial——9826124
MU1 Mixed Use——672087
R3 Medium Density Residential——284674
R4 High Density Residential——82230
SP4 Enterprise——13114
SP5 Metropolitan Centre———11

How those answers were reached. 127 of the “prohibited” answers come from the zone’s catch-all row. The scheme doesn’t name this use in that zone, but it says what happens to everything it has not named. That is a real answer, not a guess, and it is the reason a count of explicit listings would tell you the opposite in some zones.

What this page cannot tell you

Which zone your land is in, and whether your project is characterised as a aquaculture in the first place. The first is a question about an address; the second is a planning judgement. Check an address for the zone and the overlays on it.

Frequently asked questions

Are aquaculture allowed in every council in New South Wales?

No. Each council’s Local Environmental Plan has its own land use table, and they differ. This page counts, zone by zone, how many of the 147 NSW council LEPs permit it, prohibit it, or say nothing either way.

My zone shows a number under “Can’t say”. What does that mean?

It means the council’s table doesn’t settle it. Either it neither names this use in that zone nor has a catch-all row for everything it has not named, or this is a broad term (such as agriculture or retail premises) and the table lists some of its types but not the term as a whole. It is not a ban and it is not permission.

Does this tell me whether my project counts as aquaculture?

No, and that is deliberate. Deciding which defined term your project is called is a planning judgement, not something this page can do for you. Search your address for the zone, then talk to a planner about how the project is characterised.

Sources

Last reviewed: the published LEPs. Rules can change, so verify with your council before starting work.

General guidance only. Not professional planning advice. Land use tables change as councils amend their LEPs; always confirm against the current instrument for your land.

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