| FLYER ISSUE 11: NOVEMBER 2022 | |
NEXT FMA MEETINGS: QLD CHAPTER 15 FEBRUARY, BRISBANE + NSW/ACT CHAPTER 23 FEBRUARY, SYDNEY
A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
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On 26 November, Channel 7 PLUS screened an excellent documentary called “Sydney’s Water Torture”. It is a well-balanced documentary which shows the devastation from recent floods in NSW but also talks about what we should do about it. It can be found by logging on to 7 PLUS and search “Sydney’s Water Torture”. Meanwhile the devastation continues in mid-western NSW and Victoria while everywhere else is cleaning up and trying to survive this dreadful
calendar year. I sincerely hope some good will come from this year’s events and we can start to see government action as well as announcements. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who attended our FMA National Conference in May and our resumption of “face to face” Quarterly Meetings in November. It was fantastic to see every one of you again after such a long pause with COVID. I look forward to seeing you at our 2023 National Conference in Sydney and our Quarterly Meetings and
Workshops in Brisbane and Sydney throughout the year. As Glenn would say….reserve the dates in your diary now! Best Wishes for the upcoming festive season and Merry Christmas to all.
ID
Ian Dinham | FMA President
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FACE TO FACE QUARTERLY MEETINGS AT LAST! |
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What a joy it was to meet personally at our first Quarterly Meetings and Workshops in Brisbane and Sydney since February 2020! The attendance numbers at both events confirmed Members’ strong support for resuming our traditional meeting format. It was pleasing to see so many Council representatives at the Brisbane Meeting, from as far away as Bundaberg and Rockhampton, and as a result of this interest we
will be scheduling an FMA Meeting in North Queensland next year. Thank you to AECOM for hosting the Brisbane Meeting at their spacious board room, which provided the ideal location for the afternoon “big circle” discussion on flood forecasting approaches, technology and what can be done better. |
Queensland Director Will Prentice has prepared the following list of future Workshop topics, if you have a particular interest in one please contact Will: [email protected] - Nature Based Solutions in Floodplain
Management
- Integration of Flood Hazard Overlay and Storm Tide Inundation into Planning Schemes
- Community Awareness and Resilience
- Insurance in Flood Prone Areas
- Household Resilience Programs
- Interstate Lessons Learnt
- Township
Relocation.
The Sydney FMA Meeting filled the Mercure meeting room almost to capacity, with colleagues travelling from across NSW for this much needed industry catch-up. The Meeting heard of the extraordinary efforts being made by numerous organisations in response and recovery including NSW SES, NSW Public Works and the Insurance Council of Australia. With no let-up in current weather
conditions, the months and years ahead will be challenging, but offer opportunities for once in a generation improvements to all aspects of flood risk management. Please make sure you lock in the dates of the next Quarterly Meetings: Brisbane: Wednesday 15 February Sydney: Thursday 23 February
THERE'S STILL TIME TO SUBMIT YOUR CONFERENCE ABSTRACT |
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The 2023 Floodplain Management Australia National Conference will be held at Luna Park Venues, Sydney, NSW from Wednesday 24 – Friday 26 May 2023, with optional pre-conference workshops on Tuesday 23 May. The Call for Abstracts are now open, but will close 7 December 2022. We are looking for a range of high-quality presentations from across Australia, and overseas, dealing with riverine,
overland and flash flooding, and coastal inundation. The content can be technical or non-technical to suit our varied audience, so you don’t need to be a “flood expert” to provide a presentation. The subject of the presentation should align with one or more of the following topic areas: - Modelling and flood data
- Flood prediction and warning
- Land use planning
- Infrastructure projects and
asset management
- Flood policy, guidance and best practice
- Emergency preparedness, response and recovery
- Flood case studies and stories
- Environmental aspects, climate change, coastal hazards and adaptation
- New technology and research
- Flood damages and
insurance
- Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and Māori perspectives
- Social sciences, human behaviour and communication.
Make sure to submit your abstract by 7 December. If you require an extension, plesae contact East Coast Conferences. Details are at: floodplainconference.com |
FLOODS DOMINATE 2022 INSURANCE CLAIMS |
The November FMA Meeting in Sydney heard that the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) have declared four Significant Events or Catastrophes this year, and all had a significant flood component. Mark Campbell, Chief Information Officer at the ICA, told the meeting that the events impacted 312 of the 537 Local Government Areas across Australia (58.1%). Of those 312 LGAs, 45.5% had two or more events, and
31.4% had three or more events. 2022 flood claims, excluding the recent NSW and Victorian events, totalled 258,000 valued at almost $6 billion. The average personal insurance claim value was $17,616 (233k claims), and the average commercial claim value was $68,740 (24,429 claims). Commercial claims included significant crop losses and business interruption. The flooding at Lismore resulted in community infrastructure losses of more than $500 million, with more than 1,600 people requiring emergency
accommodation in the Northern Rivers region. For more information on the ICA’s Declared Catastrophes see: insurancecouncil.com.au/news-hub/current-catastrophes |
FMA RESPONSE TO THE NSW INDEPENDENT FLOOD INQUIRY |
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The report of the NSW Independent Flood Inquiry contains 28 recommendations, of which the NSW Government supports six, and supports 22 in principle "with further work to be done on implementation". As previously reported it is very wide-ranging, across all levels of Government and communities. Huge changes have been recommended including a new NSW Reconstruction Authority, changes in river gauge
ownership and centralisation of the Bureau of Meteorology, Resilience NSW reforming into Recovery NSW, a single NSW disaster app, a back-office merger of the Rural Fire Service and SES, and many recommendations focussed on town planning. FMA Land Use Planning Director has established a Discussion Group to review the document, and the November FMA Workshop held in Sydney explored what we support, what we don’t understand and what concerns we hold, with the intention of developing comments
to be provided to the NSW Government. The FMA Executive Committee discussed the Inquiry findings at its Strategic Planning Workshop on 16 November, and decided that it would be appropriate for FMA to provide comment to the NSW Government not only on the land use planning issues, but on all aspects of the findings. Deputy President Allan Gear raised this issue at the Sydney Quarterly Meeting and advised the intention to establish a Working Group to develop a detailed FMA
position statement which could be provided to the NSW Government. It is envisaged that a consultant would be engaged to prepare the final document. The proposal was unanimously approved by Members. If you are interested in joining the Working Group, please contact Executive Officer Glenn Evans: [email protected] |
FMA AT NEW ZEALAND RIVERS CONFERENCE |
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Technical Director Danny Rose
recently had the pleasure of attending the NZ Rivers Conference held at Lower Hutt, near Wellington. Two days of invited speakers, networking with 160 delegates, plus a field trip to the Wairapa River and wetlands were a great introduction to floodplain management in NZ. There were lots of new concepts such as braided rivers, seismic avulsion, and stop bank liquification to learn about, as well as plenty of familiar conversations – frustrations with legal rulings, the need to link with strategic planning, and requests for consistent national policies across natural hazards. The conference emphasised the strong connection that floodplain management in NZ has with geomorphology, catchment health, local communities and the Maori. Our NZ colleagues are well
aware of the current flooding disasters in Australia and are also keen to learn what we are doing to “make room for rivers” (the conference theme). While
in Wellington, Danny also visited Greater Wellington Regional Council, dropping in our good friend Sharyn Westlake, and presented a membership certificate and FMA merch to their Chief Executive Nigel Corry. We look forward to further collaboration and stronger ties with our NZ colleagues. |
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NSW YFM End of Year Event
This year we are bringing back and elevating our popular end of year bowls event, which is proudly sponsored by WMS, so you won't want to miss out! When: Thursday 8 December
Time: 5-7pm Bowls and Beers at
Petersham Bowls Club, 7pm Onwards Dinner and Drinks at White Cockatoo Hotel
Tickets: Available from Eventbrite at https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/yfm-nsw-2022-end-of-year-event-tickets-464708765427?aff=ebdssbdestsearch
Are you a YFM Member yet?
The FMA Young Floodplain Managers (YFM) network exists to represent, engage, and inspire young floodplain management professionals across
Australia.
The objectives of the YFM are to: - collaborate and share knowledge through networking opportunities, mentorships with industry leaders, professional development workshops and events, and social media
platforms and forums where YFMs can discuss key issues and share innovative ideas
- inspire and empower YFMs to share new ideas and engage in industry discussions
- connect YFMs from across the public and private sectors as well as other young professional groups; and
- promote gender equality and diversity in all YFM activities and
the broader industry.
Any floodplain manager is welcome to apply if committed to the objectives of the YFM. Whilst the YFM's mission is to represent, engage, support and inspire young floodplain management professionals across the nation, anyone who supports this objective is welcome to apply for membership of the YFM and engage in the group's actions, irrespective of their age or level of experience. You can visit the YFM Linkedin page.
To join the network, visit floods.asn.au/yfm to apply for Membership. |
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The FMA Flyer reaches a wide range of industry professionals from Australia and overseas,
and if you have any recent projects or exciting news we would love to share it with our readers.
Send through details of your stories and we can include them in our upcoming issues by contacting [email protected]. |
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UPCOMING MEETINGS AND EVENTS
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TRAVELLING CAPS AND BEANIES
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Pictured: FMA Technical Director Danny Rose on the conference field trip at a restoration project on the Wairapa Moana Wetlands, upstream of Lake Wairapa, New
Zealand.
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