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NEXT FMA MEETING FMA May Quarterly Meeting and Annual General Meeting, Thursday 18 May 2017 at the FMA National Conference in Newcastle. |
Press Release: Flood Costs Can Be Reduced |
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30 March 2017 As the remnants of ex-tropical cyclone Debbie dump huge amounts of rain over South East Queensland and North East New South Wales Councils and emergency responders are having to deal with river and flash flooding on a scale that has not been seen for some
time.
Floodplain Management Australia (FMA) President Ian Dinham said “It is weather events like this, which have regularly occurred in the past, that should remind us all of the need to be prepared for the worst that nature delivers. Natural disasters are costing Australia over $560 million a year on average, and flooding is the most costly, yet manageable, natural
hazard.
“Experience has shown that much can be done to reduce the risks from flooding through sensible land use planning, using appropriate building design and investing in flood mitigation infrastructure.
“Many of FMA’s Members are well prepared for this event, while others have plans to
better protect their communities but progress has been stymied by inadequate financial assistance. Numerous studies have shown that every dollar invested in well planned pre-disaster risk reduction activities saves ten dollars in disaster response and recovery costs. FMA will continue to work with governments to enable the personal and economic costs of future floods to be reduced.
“At this
time our thoughts go out to those who are suffering, and who will face the hardship of cleaning up and repairing their homes and businesses. The heroic efforts of our emergency services personnel are applauded as they carry out their often dangerous work of rescue and helping communities cope with the aftermath.”
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Press Release: Councils Count Flood Costs |
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11 April 2017
The performance of levees during the extensive flooding in Queensland and northern New South Wales has again demonstrated that investment in flood mitigation makes sound economic sense.
Floodplain Management Australia (FMA) President Ian Dinham
said there are numerous examples over the last ten years of investment in flood levees paying for themselves many times over. In 2007 the Hunter Valley Flood Mitigation Scheme protected the Maitland CBD, in 2016 the Launceston Levee saved much of the city from inundation, and the Lismore flood levee kept the city safe from floods in 2008, 2009 and 2016.
“There have been some suggestions that the Lismore levee failed during the recent flooding but these are quite
unfounded” Mr Dinham said.
“The levee was built to the height of a 1 in 10 year flood. This event was larger than a 1 in 10 year flood so the levee overtopped as it was planned to do. The CBD was flooded, but the flooding occurred in a controlled and predictable manner, maximising the time available for people to prepare and evacuate.
“There was a report of a crack in the levee but I understand that was simply a
construction joint in the concrete section where a small amount of water was seen. The Lismore levee has protected the city from several floods since it was completed in 2005 but it will occasionally overtop when a larger flood, such as this one, occurs.
Mr Dinham said more investment in flood levees, and more funding for flood studies and planning, will save lives, reduce community hardship and misery, and lower property damage.
“Rockhampton,
which has been a focus of attention over the past week, is a city which would benefit immensely from building a permanent flood levee” Mr Dinham said.
“Data from towns like St George in Queensland, which has recently constructed a flood levee, shows that when the flood risk is reduced, the community also benefits from reduced insurance premiums” Mr Dinham said.
In recent years the cost of natural disasters has sky rocketed. Mr Dinham said that
modelling by Deloitte's for the Australian Business Roundtable for Disaster Resilience and Safer Communities showed that the financial and social costs in 2015 alone were more than $9 billion and these costs are expected to double by 2030. |
Meet the 2017-2019 FMA Executive-Elect |
Nominations for the 2017-2019 Executive Committee closed on 18 April. As one nomination was received for each position those nominees are elected. Ian Dinham, Larry Bolitho, Danny Rose, Paul Grech and Sue Ribbons will retain their current positions and Dwayne Honor will take up duty at the conclusion of the May Annual General Meeting.
Executive
Officer Glenn Evans offered his congratulations and appreciation to all nominees for volunteering for these important roles. Mr Evans welcomed incoming Queensland Director Dwayne Honor from Bundaberg Regional Council who brings a wealth of practical experience to the Executive. “FMA has an excellent team with a range of backgrounds and areas of expertise to take the organisation forward over the next two years, particularly in Queensland.”
Mr Evans acknowledged retiring
Queensland Director Con de Groot’s very substantial contribution to the work of the FMA Executive, and to the national growth of FMA. “Mr de Groot has been instrumental in strengthening positive links between FMA Members and the Queensland Government, and has guided development of the Queensland Chapter activities” Mr Evans said. |
Ian Dinham President
Moree Plains Shire Council
Ian has been involved with FMA for over 10 years and has served as Chairperson since 2011. One of
Ian's key roles with FMA has been to develop the FMA-OEH FRM Short Course at UTS and a series of one day workshops. Larry Bolitho OAM Deputy President
FMA Individual Member
Larry has been a delegate for FMA for over 20 years
and has served as Deputy Chairperson since 2011. Larry has represented FMA in numerous delegations to NSW and Australian government Ministers, as well as industry meetings, forums and conferences. Allan Ezzy APM AM Immediate Past President
FMA Life
Member
Allan served as FMA Chairman from 1999 until 2011 when he decided not to renominate for the position. Allan has been awarded a Life Membership of FMA, and has had an FMA Excellence Award established in his name.
Danny Rose Technical Director Tweed Shire Council
Danny has served as Technical
Director since 2013. Danny has been a frequent presenter at FMA Conferences, workshops and meetings and
has been a member of the Program Advisory Committee for the National Conferences in 2013, 2015, and 2017. Paul Grech Land Use Planning Director GLN Planning
Paul has served as Land Use
Planning Director since 2013. One of Paul's roles includes delivering the planning component of the FMA/OEH FRM Short Course. Paul has also authored a number of papers on the topic of flood risk management. Sue Ribbons Communications Director FMA Professional Member
Sue was elected to the position of Communication Director during 2016. Sue has more than 25 years’ experience as a floodplain risk management professional working for NSW local government, NSW state government and for private consulting
practices. Dwayne Honor Queensland Director Bundaberg Regional
Council
Many FMA Members will be familiar with Dwayne from his extensive work in the flood risk management field, and his involvement with FMA meetings and events over the years. Dwayne has also recently completed a Churchill Scholarship focussed on development of evidence-based policy for community resilience and storm surge, which saw him travel to the Philippines and United
States.
FMA National Conference Update |
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This year’s National Conference will be our largest and most comprehensive yet. We already have over 320 people from 150 organisations confirmed, but if you have not registered yet there is still room for you!
We are pleased to announce this year’s program of outstanding Keynote Presentations: - Tracy Green, IAG, Executive General Manager Customer and Underwriting representing the Australian Business Roundtable for Disaster Resilience and Safer Communities - “Mitigation is the Key”
- Associate Professor Graham Brewer, Executive Director of CIFAL Newcastle, United Nations Institute for Training and Research
- "CIFAL Newcastle: Local Action Towards International Goals"
- Associate Professor Jacky Croke, University of Queensland – “What Did We Learn from the Lockyer Valley 2011 Flood? Lessons and Opportunities from the Big Flood Project”
- Quy Nhan Pham & Ngoc Huan
Tran, Hanoi University of Natural Resources and Environment, Vietnam - “Flooding in Vietnam: Current Status and Challenges”
- Simone De Kleermaeker, Deltares and Brian Jackson, Water Technology - “Australian-Dutch Collaboration for Water Resilient Cities”
- Thi Huong Lan Pham, Water Resources University, Vietnam - “Forecasting Study and Researches of Climate Change Impacts on the Red River Basin”.
FMA wishes to acknowledge the support of our 2017 National Conference Sponsors without whom we could not provide an event of this high standard:
Platinum: Insurance Council of Australia Gold: NSW Office of Environment and Heritage Silver: BMT WBM Bronze: WMAwater, NSW State Emergency Service, Royal HaskoningDHV Lanyard: HDR.
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HEC-RAS 5.0 Training at the National Conference |
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Have you registered for the pre-conference HEC-RAS 5.0 2D flood modelling workshop yet?
The training runs on Monday 15 May at the Newcastle Exhibition and Convention Centre in conjunction with the 2017 FMA National Conference.
During this intensive and interactive one-day course, you will learn how to build, run and animate 2D flood models which can be used in: - Floodplain Mapping
- Hydraulic Structures
- Flood Routing
- GIS Interfacing
- Grid Development
- Risk Assessment.
The Workshop will be taught by HDR's Mark Forest, and facilitated by Surface Water Solutions' Krey Price, with a CPD certification available to all participants.
FMA Members and registered conference delegates are also eligible for a 30% discount on the course fee.
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FMA President in Media - ABC Radio |
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FMA President, Ian Dinham, spoke to ABC Radio for their program The World Today this month regarding Australia's flood mitigation efforts.
Mr Dinham was interviewed by Kim Landers in response to the recent severe flooding in central Queensland and northern New South Wales.
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Tweed Shire Mayor Flood Appeal |
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Tweed Shire Council has established a Mayor Appeal Fund to draw together support from across the region and around the country in the midst of
the worst flooding the Tweed has ever experienced.
Launched by Tweed Shire Council Mayor, Councillor Katie Milne, the appeal provides the opportunity for Members of the public and the business community to contribute financially to support local families and recovery initiatives.
Donations are tax deductible, and can be made at Commonwealth Bank branches, or electronically.
Full details are available at tweed.nsw.gov.au/MayorAppealFund |
Risk Frontiers - New Flood Briefing Notes |
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The Briefing Notes discuss the recent flooding in the Lismore area, insights from those who sheltered-in-place, and how the new levee impacted perceptions and preparedness.
You can read the
Briefing Notes here.
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FMA Member Bluemont combines engineering capability with the distribution of a selection of the world's best tested and proven environmental solutions for: - Fire fighting systems (mobile)
- Mobile high volume water supply systems
- Flood defence and mitigation solutions
- Simulated incident command training solutions
- Erosion and environment management solutions for beaches and inland waterways.
The following is Justin Bear's report of how one of their products, the Hytrans Bulk Water Transfer System, was used in Lismore following the recent flooding.
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Always Start at the Pub...
The Fire and Rescue NSW Bulk Water Transfer System was
used at Lismore last week to dewater many low lying areas. Of course this included the cellar at the pub. Other sites were a motel swimming pool, an indoor swimming pool and an underground carpark. The hydraulically driven submersible pump was acquired by Fire and Rescue NSW as multi capability system, one that could deliver high volume water for fire water supply and also be used for dewatering in times such as the aftermath of
Cyclone Debbie. Fire and Rescue NSW took the unit north and spent the week helping the recovery effort. The portable and flexible design of the submersible pump means that it can access many tight spots and
deep water down to 60 metres, and pump at rates of up to 8,000 lpm. Before the trip to Lismore, the unit was used to pump out the carpark at the Salvation Army building at Redfern, and a multistorey underground carpark at
Burwood, from more localised flooding with the heavy rains in Sydney over the past few weeks.
A great effort by the team, as every bit helps in the recovery process.
Australasia-Pacific Disaster Mangement, Recovery and Emergency Communications Forum |
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The Australasia-Pacific Disaster Management, Recovery and Emergency Communications Forum will be held in Christchurch, New Zealand from 26-28 June 2017.
The forum will focus on Natural Disaster Warning, Response and Recovery and will feature: - Framework of Pre-Disaster Planning Essential to Post-Disaster
Resilience
- Design of Early Warning for Geographical Disaster Through Advanced Technology
- Sendai Supports Disaster Risk Reduction
- Emergency Communication in a Changing Media Network World
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POSITIONS VACANT
As a service to
our Members we welcome information on career opportunities in the area of floodplain management.
No Current Vacancies.
If you are interested in promoting a vacant position with us,
contact us. |
GRADUATES SEEKING EMPLOYMENT The FMA is occasionally contacted by young professionals in fields related to flood risk management seeking introductions to potential employers.
If your business is seeking a new employee please contact us, we may know of someone suitable. UPCOMING EVENTS
2017 FMA National Conference, Newcastle, New South Wales, 16-19 May 2017
Australasia-Pacific Disaster Management, Recover and Emergency Communications Forum, Christchurch, New Zealand, 16-18 June 2017
International
RiverSymposium, Brisbane, Queensland, 18-20 September 2017
FMA CAPS AROUND THE WORLD Where has your FMA Conference Cap been?
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Pictured: Three FMA Conference Caps sneaking in to listen to Karl Sullivan (General Manager Risk, IAG) talk about insurance in Australia at an FMA Queensland Chapter Meeting.
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Thanks for reading, and see you next month! P.S. HAVE YOU REGISTERED FOR OUR 2017 CONFERENCE YET?
GO ON...YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO!
If you found this Flyer interesting please forward it to a colleague, and suggest they sign up at floods.org.au to receive it directly in future. |
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