Supporting our neighbours – public land boundary fencing program
The Supporting Our Neighbours program was a $42 million NSW Government initiative to help bushfire affected landholders with the cost of rebuilding boundary fences adjoining public lands following the 2019/20 bushfires.
Continuation and Landholder Agreement Acquittals
Through the program, 3,473 applications from landholders were funded, with 5,700 km of fencing bordering public lands re-constructed. The program has faced a number of challenges including COVID-19 impacts, severe storms, floods and prolonged wet weather and conditions. These challenges have resulted in some landholders being unable to meet contract timelines which resulted in numerous contract extensions over a number of years.
The programs final contract extension finished on May 31, 2023. Landholders have been provided with options to finalise their contractual obligations including contract acquittal and the returning of funds where works are incomplete. The program is now in closure.
Supporting our Neighbours Program staff are available to discuss contract acquittal or returning funds at fencing@lls.nsw.gov.au
What is the Supporting Our Neighbours fencing program?
Supporting Our Neighbours is a grants program to help bushfire-affected landholders with the cost of rebuilding boundary fences adjoining public lands.
Private landholders, including Aboriginal Land Councils, who share a boundary with public land and were impacted by the northern and southern bushfires between August 2019 & February 2020 were eligible to receive up to $5,000 per kilometer to contribute to the replacement of damaged boundary fences.
For the purposes of this program, public lands included:
- National parks
- Forestry Corporation land
- Travelling stock reserves
- Crown reserves, tenured roads & leases
- Roads managed by Roads & Maritime Services or local government.
Grants were able to be issued retrospectively to cover costs already incurred by landholders replacing fire-damaged fencing where a boundary is shared with public lands.
Case studies
The Supporting our Neighbours Program has been credited by landholders as providing valuable support in the early stages of recovery, a view that is shared by Warren Allen from Adelong.
Read about Warren Allen's case study "Greenview".