Councils on frontline of flood response

In total, 63 of Victoria’s 79 local government areas were affected and these councils stood alongside their communities as it happened, during the initial clean up, and will continue to lead and support their communities through the longer-term recovery.

It’s why the MAV is pleased to see the voices of affected community members from across northern Victoria feature in the Legislative Council Environment and Planning Committee’s release of its interim report for the 2022 flood event in Victoria.

We await the final report in June.

The key issues councils want the final report to address include:

• Amending the liability provisions in the Water Act to bring councils onto the same footing as water authorities so they can more confidently manage flood mitigation infrastructure
• Aligning the process for floods with bushfire in both land use planning and re-building/new builds. The State Government already applies bushfire risk to all Victorian planning schemes through a streamlined mapping, planning control and policy update process. The same approach should be applied to planning for other hazards, including flooding and coastal inundation, in consultation with councils and their communities.
• Introduction of further betterment funding programs early in the recovery process to ensure we can build back better.

You can read the MAV’s full submission here and the interim report here.