Greater Sydney Local Land Services

More than 30% of the region’s residents speak a language other than English. The region includes important Aboriginal sites and sites of early European settlement.  Six Local Aboriginal Land Councils operate within the region.

Agricultural production involves intensive industries such as market gardens, poultry and turf. Preservation of high value precincts such as the Hawkesbury floodplain and the orchard areas on volcanic soil at Bilpin are important in ensuring food security for Sydney.

Foxes and rabbits are an issue in built up areas of the region.

Greater Sydney Local Land Services works to encourage sustainable production and environmental stewardship.

There is wide variability in climate. In the Blue Mountains, summers are traditionally mild with an average temperature of 23°C and the temperatures can fall to an average of 9°C in winter in Katoomba. Temperatures rarely fall below 0°C at sea-level, but frosts are common at higher altitudes in the mountains. Areas west of Sydney on the Cumberland Plain experience average maximum January temperatures approaching 30°C with mild winters. The catchment receives approximately 800 to 1,400 mm of rainfall each year. Peak precipitation occurs between November and March and the variability in rainfall from one year to the next is high.

The Greater Sydney Local Land Services region is home to some of the state’s most iconic natural landforms, including Sydney Harbour, Botany Bay and the Blue Mountains.

The region consists of a central shale/clay basin surrounded by elevated sandstone escarpments.

The basin is drained by the Hawkesbury-Nepean River as well as the Parramatta, Georges, Cooks and Wyong rivers. On the coast these rivers form some 100km of coasts and estuaries including Tuggerah Lake, Brisbane Waters, Pittwater, Narrabeen Lagoon, Port Hacking and the Ramsar-listed Towra Point.

There are extensive wetlands within the inland floodplains of the Hawkesbury-Nepean River, including the Broadwater, the Richmond Lowlands and Pitt Town Lagoon. Patches of unique hanging swamps are found in elevated areas of the Blue Mountains and Gosford.

With 80 national parks and 7 state forests, almost 70% of the region contains native vegetation. This protection focuses on the forests of the elevated sandstone plateau.

The western escarpment of the Blue Mountains is dominated by more than one million hectares of world heritage and wilderness listed national parks. Many pockets within the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area are pristine, with little to no impact from European settlement, providing a sanctuary for native wildlife and plants. The sandstone plateau to the north and south also include large, reserved areas, including the Royal and Ku-ring-gai Chase national parks. By contrast, the woodland communities of the clay basin (the Cumberland Plain) have been heavily cleared for urban development and agriculture, and very little of the remaining vegetation is protected.

The forests, woodlands and wetlands of the Greater Sydney Local Land Services region are significant assets. In addition to their intrinsic value, social value and recreational value, these ecosystems provide drinking water supply to 4.3 million people and are the backbone of a multi-million-dollar tourism economy.