ZoneScout

Where can you build Dairies (pasture-based) in NSW?

“Dairies (pasture-based)” 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 27 zones and prohibited in 28.

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
RU1 Primary Production107———107
C3 Environmental Management273424—85
RU4 Primary Production Small Lots3816——54
RU2 Rural Landscape49———49
R5 Large Lot Residential192562—106
C4 Environmental Living131335—61
RU5 Village81181—100
C2 Environmental Conservation21673—91
RE1 Public Recreation68120—134
E4 General Industrial67111—124
RE2 Private Recreation49112—125
RU6 Transition833—14
RU3 Forestry4572—81
E5 Heavy Industrial1520—26
SP1 Special Activities6—72—78
SP2 Infrastructure511281135
SP3 Tourist3344—50
MU1 Mixed Use—582—87
R1 General Residential2194—97
R2 Low Density Residential2184—87
E1 Local Centre—21181121
E3 Productivity Support1193—95
W1 Natural Waterways1161—63
R3 Medium Density Residential1—73—74
SP4 Enterprise—113—14
SP5 Metropolitan Centre—1——1
W2 Recreational Waterways—158—59
C1 National Parks and Nature Reserves——123—123
E2 Commercial Centre——65—65
R4 High Density Residential——30—30
W3 Working Waterways——10—10
W4 Working Waterfront——23—23

How those answers were reached. 1,213 of the “prohibited” answers and 25 of the “with consent” 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 dairies (pasture-based) 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 dairies (pasture-based) 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 dairies (pasture-based)?

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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