Gympie’s New Biodiversity TLPI: What Changed for Development in 2026
If you are planning development, a subdivision or vegetation clearing anywhere in the Gympie region, a planning rule that took effect in February 2026 may now sit over your land. Gympie Regional Council has a biodiversity Temporary Local Planning Instrument (TLPI) in force, and it changes what you need to demonstrate before Council will support an application. Here is what is protected, what is not, and what it means for your project while the region finishes writing its new planning scheme.
In force from 23 February 2026
TLPI 1/26 - Protection of Biodiversity Values, Gympie Regional Council
What is a TLPI, and why does Gympie have one?
A Temporary Local Planning Instrument is an interim planning rule a council can make under the Planning Act 2016 to protect an important value quickly, without waiting for a full planning scheme amendment. It suspends or overrides parts of the existing planning scheme, but it does not permanently amend it, and it can only be made with the approval of the State (the Minister for Planning), who can attach conditions.
Critically, a TLPI has a shelf life. Under the Act it can have effect for a maximum of two years. Gympie’s instrument, formally the Temporary Local Planning Instrument (TLPI 1/26) - Protection of Biodiversity Values, was adopted by Council on 11 February 2026 and commenced on 23 February 2026. It renews an earlier biodiversity TLPI that ran from 2024, keeping the protections live while Council prepares its new planning scheme under the “Planning our Future” project.
The TLPI is a bridge, not the destination - it holds biodiversity protections in place until Gympie’s replacement planning scheme is finalised.
What the TLPI actually protects
The instrument introduces a Biodiversity Overlay Code supported by three sets of maps. If your land is touched by any of these layers, an application can trigger an ecological assessment and, in some cases, environmental offsets.
The three biodiversity map layers
What the overlay maps, and why it matters for an application.
| Map layer | What it captures | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Ecological linkages | Core and other habitat corridors that connect areas of vegetation across the landscape | Clearing or building that severs a corridor is a red flag Council will scrutinise |
| Priority species habitat | Mapped habitat for significant species, including matters of state environmental significance (MSES) and the koala | Triggers targeted assessment and can attract offset obligations |
| Wetlands and waterways | Mapped wetlands, watercourses and their buffers | Setbacks and avoidance measures apply to works near water |
The overlay is not limited to one type of application. It can apply to a material change of use (for example a new use or intensification of a site), reconfiguring a lot (subdivision), building work and operational work, which includes vegetation clearing. That breadth is the point: the TLPI is designed to catch impacts on biodiversity wherever they arise in the development process.
The Rural Zone question: what is - and is not - covered locally
Here is the part that surprises many landowners. When the State approved the TLPI, the local biodiversity controls did not land uniformly across every zone. In practice, the Rural Zone sits largely outside the local biodiversity overlay, which means Council cannot use the TLPI as the trigger to assess vegetation clearing on rural-zoned land in the same way it can elsewhere.
That does not mean rural land is a free-for-all. It means the controls that apply there are the State’s vegetation and biodiversity laws - principally the Vegetation Management Act framework and matters of state environmental significance - rather than Council’s local overlay. For a rural landholder, the question shifts from “what does the Gympie planning scheme require?” to “what do the State clearing rules and any accepted development codes allow?” It is a genuinely different assessment pathway, and getting the two frameworks confused is where projects come unstuck.
Who this affects
What it means for your project
The good news is that a TLPI does not stop good projects - it asks you to show your work. A clear, well-evidenced ecological case is often the difference between a smooth approval and a request for information that adds months. Three steps keep you ahead of it.
Check the mapping
Confirm whether your land is captured by ecological linkages, priority species habitat or wetlands and waterways, and which zone it sits in.
Assess the values on the ground
Verify what the maps say against real field conditions. Mapping is a starting point, not the final word, and ground-truthing can change the picture.
Design to avoid, then justify
Lay out an application that avoids or minimises impact first, and supports any residual impact with the assessment and offsets the overlay expects.
This is exactly the work we do for clients across the Gympie region. Where a site is captured by the overlay, an ecological assessment report gives Council the evidence it needs. Where clearing is proposed, a vegetation clearing assessment sets out what is lawful and how to justify it, and on rural land we help you navigate the State framework and any accepted development clearing code that may apply. Where koalas are in the picture, a koala habitat assessment addresses the species head on.
Frequently asked questions
How long will the Gympie biodiversity TLPI stay in force?
A TLPI under the Planning Act 2016 can have effect for a maximum of two years. TLPI 1/26 commenced on 23 February 2026, so it is scheduled to run until early 2028 unless Council’s new planning scheme replaces it sooner. The protections are intended to carry through until that new scheme is in place.
Does the TLPI apply to my land?
It depends on whether your property is captured by any of the three biodiversity map layers - ecological linkages, priority species habitat, or wetlands and waterways - and on your zone. Rural-zoned land largely sits outside the local overlay and is governed by State vegetation law instead. The fastest way to know is a constraints check against the current mapping.
I am in the Rural Zone. Can I clear vegetation freely?
No. Even where the local biodiversity overlay does not apply, the State’s Vegetation Management Act framework, matters of state environmental significance and other laws still govern clearing. The pathway is different, not absent. We can confirm what is lawful for your specific property before you commit.
Will the overlay stop my development?
Not usually. The overlay requires you to identify biodiversity values, avoid or minimise impacts, and justify any residual impact - often with an ecological assessment and, where relevant, offsets. Projects that engage with this early and design around the values tend to progress well.
What happens when Gympie’s new planning scheme is finalised?
The new scheme is expected to carry biodiversity protections forward in a permanent form, at which point the temporary instrument is no longer needed. Until then, the TLPI is the operative rule, so current applications must address it.
Planning a project in the Gympie region? Find out in a day whether the biodiversity TLPI captures your land and what it means for your application. Request a quote or call (07) 3018 7538.