Media Release: Social Impact Assessment Resource

As a region the Upper Spencer Gulf (USG) spans the cities of Port Augusta, Whyalla and Port Pirie. The region is historically shaped by heavy industry and mineral resource extraction, it faces a complex interplay of social, demographic, economic, and environmental factors. Looking to 2035, the region’s trajectory will be influenced by the global transition to clean energy, demographic shifts, technological advancements, and broader industrial and environmental pressures.

The SGC have a keen interest in ensuring that when changes are proposed by governments or other stakeholders, the social impact and liveability issues in communities that are likely to be affected are considered and addressed prior to implementing changes.

Acting Chair, Mayor Linley Shine said:
“The SGC Councils have identified that there is, among the various stakeholders, a lack of a clear understanding or defined scope of what areas or issues encompass social impact and liveability in communities. This lack of shared understanding has been recognised as likely to lead to inconsistent responses, inefficient use of resources and could prevent timely responses to community needs.”

“As a strategic response to this concern, SGC has received funding from the LGA’s Regional Capacity Building Fund to prepare a resource for stakeholders that identifies the scope of areas that are likely required to be considered.”

“In developing this resource document consultations occurred with Councils in the region, State and Federal Government agencies, community-based organisations, businesses and industry and the individual SGC communities.

In broad terms the resource includes a checklist that considers matters such as:

• Way of Life: how people live, how they get around, how they work, how they play, and how they interact each day;
• Community: composition, cohesion, character, how the community functions, resilience, and people’s sense of place;
• Accessibility: how people access and use infrastructure, services and facilities, whether provided by a public, private, or not-for- profit organisation;
• Culture: shared beliefs, customs, practices, obligations, values and stories, and connections to Country, land, waterways, places and buildings;
• Health and Wellbeing: physical and mental health especially for people vulnerable to social exclusion or substantial change, psychological stress resulting from financial or other pressures, access to open space and effects on public health;
• Surroundings: ecosystem services such as shade, pollution control, erosion control, public safety and security, access to and use of the natural and built environment, and aesthetic value and amenity;
• Livelihoods: people’s capacity to sustain themselves through employment or business;
• Decision-making Systems: the extent to which people can have a say in decisions that affect their lives, and have access to complaint, remedy and grievance mechanisms.

The Resource is available on the SGC website:
https://upperspencergulf.com.au/download/121/planning-and-development/2333/social-impactassessment-resource-document-january-2026.pdf

Councils in the SGC will now integrate the checklist into their own approaches to developing and implementing new projects, services and programs and use it as a reference document in the assessment of the activities of Federal and State Governments.

Mayor Linley Shine said, “at a recent SGC meeting it was resolved to promote the resource widely across governments and the region’s communities. We will also be seeking support from the LGA to ensure State and Federal Governments are undertaking social impact assessments, taking a wide lens to the areas of assessment, engaging with communities and reporting on how they propose to tackle the issues identified and how they propose to monitor and evaluate impacts with input from communities and Councils.”

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Contact:

Mayor Linley Shine
Mob: 0419 423 777

Wendy Campana
Mob: 0417 861 783