| FLYER ISSUE 8: AUGUST 2023 | |
NEXT FMA MEETINGS: 8 NOVEMBER AT BRISBANE (QLD CHAPTER) AND 16 NOVEMBER AT SYDNEY (NSW/ACT CHAPTER)
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Thank you to everyone who participated in our recent FMA Meetings, both in Sydney and Brisbane. It was great to be able to get together to share ideas and discuss recent projects and
evolutions in the FRM space. While we hope not to discourage you from attending FMA Meetings in person, we understand the need for smaller
Councils, or those that can't travel, to be able to participate in these informative sessions. If you attended the Meeting virtually, we would love to hear your feedback on your experience. During these Meetings, through networking, presentations or workshops, I am heartened by the hard work and innovation our Members undertake each day in the name of recovery and resilience. Often these kinds of efforts appear overlooked or undervalued by most unless flooding is at the forefront of the news cycle. But as an FRM professional with decades of skin in the game, I can see the impact and the effect of your tireless hours. You are making our communities safer, braver and more adaptable to the disastrous nature of flood events, and that is very important
work. Over the next few months, I would encourage to consider the following diary highlights: Flood Risk Management Short Course Online (FMA + NSW Government) Block 2 Effective Consideration of Flood Risk in Land Use Planning 8, 15 and 22 September 2023 11 am to 12.30 pm Block 3 Managing Flood Risk to Existing Properties 6, 13 and 20 October 2023 11 am to 12.30
pm FMA Meetings Wednesday 8 November - Queensland Chapter Meeting at Brisbane. Thursday 16 November - NSW/ACT Chapter Meeting at Sydney. 2023 Rivers Group Conference, Living with Urban Rivers
8 - 10 November - Nelson, New Zealand I hope to see you all in
November.
ID Ian Dinham | FMA
President
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HAROLD STERNBECK MEDAL PRESENTED AT QUEENSLAND FMA MEETING |
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Jonah Chorley, winner of this year’s award for best presentation overall at the FMA National Conference, has received his Harold Sternbeck Medal at the August Quarterly Meeting in Brisbane.
Jonah is a Water Resources Engineer, employed at SMEC in Brisbane.
His Conference presentation, A Thousand Gauges: Using Personal Weather Stations to Hindcast Extreme Flood Events, discussed the results of a study investigating the use of precipitation data from personal
weather stations, which was verified by comparison to nearby Queensland Government weather stations.
As Jonah is a member of the FMA Young Floodplain Managers network, he also received the YFM Outstanding Presenter Award.
In congratulating Jonah for his exceptional achievement, Communications Director Sue Ribbons noted that the previous two Harold Sternbeck Medal recipients, Alex Nero and Prawi Woods, were also Young Floodplain Managers.
“This indicates a great outlook for FMA, and Older Floodplain Managers will need to up their game for future Conference presentations to remain competitive!”
Thanks again to AECOM for providing their magnificent venue for the Meeting. |
FIRST SYDNEY HYBRID MEETING |
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As resolved at this year’s Annual General Meeting, we are trialling options for remote access to FMA Quarterly Meetings. Two hybrid Meetings have been held in Queensland, and the August Sydney
Meeting was the first allowing people to view the discussions remotely using technology provided by Bax Audio Visual. The trials will continue
for the November Brisbane and Sydney Quarterly Meetings. In addition to the full program of updates from agencies and the Insurance Council of
Australia, Duncan McLuckie, Department of Planning and Environment (Environment and Heritage Group) Principal Flood Specialist, provided an introduction to the new Flood Risk Management Manual during the afternoon workshop. The new Manual breaks the flood risk management task for Councils down into 10 key principles, with a further 14 guideline documents in the toolkit covering administration and delivery of FRM, modelling
and floodplain categorisation, risk management and emergency management approaches, and economic and land use planning advice. More detailed
webinars will be held by DPE EHG for Councils in September and October, followed by regional face-to-face workshops. The manual is available
at: https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/research-and-publications/publications-search/flood-risk-management-manual |
HAWKESBURY-NEPEAN VALLEY FRM MOVES TO RECONSTRUCTION AUTHORITY |
The Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley Flood Risk Management Directorate, which was part of Infrastructure NSW, has now transitioned into the NSW Reconstruction Authority.
The Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley team will develop the state’s first local disaster adaptation plan, which will focus on flood risk in the Valley. The Hawkesbury-Nepean floodplain has the most significant and unmitigated community flood exposure in Australia, with over 140,000 people living or working on the
floodplain.
The Authority now also includes the former Resilience NSW and the Northern Rivers Reconstruction Corporation (NRRC). The NRRC will continue to focus on rebuilding communities in the Ballina, Byron, Clarence Valley, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Tweed local government
areas.
The Authority was established in response to the recommendations from the independent 2022 NSW Flood Inquiry, and is a statutory corporation reporting to the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, the Hon Paul Scully MP, and the Minister for Emergency Services, the
Hon Jihad Dib MP.
For more information see: https://www.dpie.nsw.gov.au/about-us/our-agencies/nsw-reconstruction-authority |
304 QUEENSLAND HOME BUY BACKS SETTLED |
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304 voluntary home buy-backs have now been settled in Queensland under the Resilient Homes Fund, following the 2021-2022 floods.
A further 193 homeowners have accepted offers to have their flood affected home to be bought. The program is jointly funded by the Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA), established following the 2021-2022 rainfall and flooding events.
110 homes have been demolished or removed, allowing the impacted residents to move to safer locations. |
EL NIÑO ALERT CONTINUES BUT ... |
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The Bureau of Meteorology has advised that the El Niño Alert continues, with El Niño development likely during spring. When El Niño Alert criteria have been met in the past, an El Niño event has developed around 70% of the time. The long-range forecast for Australia indicates warmer and drier conditions are likely across large parts of Australia
from September to November, however as Bureau Climatologist/Meteorologist Hugh McDowell explained at the Sydney FMA Meeting, the likelihood of widespread flooding to November, compared to recent decades, is close to average. |
FLOOD EDUCATION RESOURCES |
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FLOOD RISK MANAGEMENT SHORT COURSE ONLINE |
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Our Young Floodplain Managers network has continued to grow during the year, however we are always on the lookout for more members and committee representatives. YFM membership is guided towards those up-and-coming in the flood risk industry, catering for those with less than 15 years’
experience.
However, everyone is welcome to join and attend YFM events. One of the goals for this year is to seek more public sector representation to join the YFM and the various YFM committees around the country, so if you or any of your staff meet the requirements we would love for you to join.
Please feel free to email us
at [email protected] for further information. If you are interested in joining the network of YFMs, we would love to have you. For more information on joining, visit floods.asn.au/yfm |
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UPCOMING MEETINGS AND EVENTS
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Canterbury-Bankstown Council
Catchment Management Planner Bureau of
Meteorology
Decision Support Hydrologist (1xDarwin, 1xPerth) Senior Hydrologist Department of Planning and Environment
Project Officer (x2) Senior Project
Officer Senior Flood Specialist NSW State Emergency Service Assistant
Professional Standards Officer, Clerk Grade 5/6 Staff Officer, Clerk Grade 7/8 Planning and Research Officer, Clerk Grade 5/6 Operational Training Officer, Clerk Grade 5/6 Trainer and Assessor Coordinator, Clerk 7/8 Zone Training Advisor, Clerk Grade 7/8 Zone Operations Readiness Officer, Clerk Grade 5/6 Service Desk Support Officer, Clerk Grade 3/4 Administrative Support Officer, Clerk Grade 3/4 Systems Development Lead, Clerk Grade 9/10 Data Analytics Administrator, Clerk Grade 7/8 Recruitment and Membership Officer, Clerk Grade 3/4 Government Relations Support Officer, Clerk Grade 3/4 ICT Field Support Officer, Clerk Grade 5/6 Strategic People and Development Partner, Clerk Grade 9/10 Deputy Zone Commander, Clerk Grade 9/10 Senior Manager Communications and Field Support, Clerk Grade 11/12 Website Upgrade Program Manager, Clerk Grade 9/10 Zone Delivery Officer, Clerk Grade 5/6
If you are interested in promoting a vacant position with us, please contact us.
Please remember that while we circulate Vacant Positions in this monthly Flyer, sometimes position closing deadlines don't align with the time of its distribution. Make sure you head
to floods.asn.au/jobs to check for Vacant Positions that may not be listed here due to shorter closing dates.
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TRAVELLING CAPS AND BEANIES
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Pictured: Margot and Catherine Walker with a 2023 FMA Conference Cap at the August NSW/ACT Chapter Meeting in Sydney. |
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