INQ217
Recommendations for this Inquiry
INQ-ref | REC-UID | CODE | SubCode | SrcNUM | Recommendation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
INQ217 | REC217-1807 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 1 | A revised Victoria Flood Management Strategy is needed and should clearly articulate the principles, roles and responsibilities for the ownership, management and ongoing maintenance of Victoria’s levees. |
INQ217 | REC217-1835 | A - Responsibility | 24 - Govt responsibility | Recommendation 29 | Within the jurisdiction of Melbourne Water, it shares with local councils the responsibility to manage local drainage systems as outlined under the Water Act 1989 and the Local Government Act 1989 respectively: |
INQ217 | REC217-1834 | E - Agency Organisation | 32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform | Recommendation 28 | The Department of Sustainability and Environment will develop clear policy for the coordinated management of rural drainage, clarifying the legal framework, and identifying authorities with responsibility for the management and ongoing maintenance of formal schemes, and their development: |
INQ217 | REC217-1833 | C - Response | 34 - Local knowledge | Recommendation 27 | Local knowledge on the management and ongoing maintenance of waterways, including vegetation clearing and debris removal, needs to be incorporated in the development of regional flood mitigation strategies and local flood plans. Specifically: |
INQ217 | REC217-1832 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 26 | The revised Victoria Flood Management Strategy should clearly identify authorities and assign responsibilities for stream blockage and debris removal in waterways posing a high risk to public infrastructure both during and after a flood: |
INQ217 | REC217-1831 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 25 | Significant modification of waterways in urban or rural areas will only be considered after the completion of a flood risk management process, undertaken in consultation with members of the community. |
INQ217 | REC217-1830 | E - Agency Organisation | 32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform | Recommendation 24 | The Department of Sustainability and Environment will develop a code of practice on the removal of vegetation around critical public assets, in consultation with councils, CMAs and asset managers. |
INQ217 | REC217-1829 | E - Agency Organisation | 32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform | Recommendation 23 | The Department of Sustainability and Environment should develop guidelines for streamlining the permitting system for works on waterways for incorporation in the revised Victoria Flood Management Strategy. |
INQ217 | REC217-1828 | E - Agency Organisation | 32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform | Recommendation 22 | The revised Victoria Flood Management Strategy should clearly articulate the policy guidelines for the management of vegetation and debris in Victorian waterways, for the purposes of flood protection and mitigation, taking into account the localised potential flooding effects of in‐stream vegetat |
INQ217 | REC217-1836 | F - Research and technology | 26 - Research | Recommendation 30 | Flood studies will be undertaken to determine the flood extent on the basis of a greater than 1 in 100 ARI, where appropriate: |
INQ217 | REC217-1837 | E - Agency Organisation | 32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform | Recommendation 31 | The state government give consideration to enacting legislation to provide protection from legal liability for public authorities conducting works on priority levees in good faith, acting reasonably and responsibly in the public interest, and in accordance with standards agreed to under approved |
INQ217 | REC217-1845 | E - Agency Organisation | 37 - Funding | Recommendation 39 | The state government should provide core, ongoing funding to the responsible authority for the FloodSafe community education program. |
INQ217 | REC217-1844 | C - Response | 34 - Local knowledge | Recommendation 38 | Public authorities such as councils and CMAs should continue to seek local knowledge in relation to flood management issues. In particular, councils will collaborate with VICSES and other key stakeholders in reviewing the system of flood wardens. |
INQ217 | REC217-1843 | A - Responsibility | 24 - Govt responsibility | Recommendation 37 | The state government implement the Victorian Floods Review recommendation 10 in relation to the datums used to describe river and stream heights. |
INQ217 | REC217-1842 | E - Agency Organisation | 37 - Funding | Recommendation 36 | The state government review the current funding approach used for the operation, maintenance and upgrade of river gauges, with a view to improving the river gauge network. |
INQ217 | REC217-1841 | C - Response | 34 - Local knowledge | Recommendation 35 | The state government establish a well coordinated and formalised system for the reading of river gauges by local people, including flood wardens. |
INQ217 | REC217-1840 | A - Responsibility | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | Recommendation 34 | The state government implement the Victorian Floods Review recommendation 8, to review the flood gauging network. |
INQ217 | REC217-1839 | A - Responsibility | 24 - Govt responsibility | Recommendation 33 | The state government accept recommendations 25 to 28, inclusive, of the Victorian Floods Review. |
INQ217 | REC217-1838 | E - Agency Organisation | 32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform | Recommendation 32 | That statements of obligations, issued under the Water Industry Act 1994 for water authorities, be amended to include a provision whereby managing authorities must: |
INQ217 | REC217-1827 | A - Responsibility | 24 - Govt responsibility | Recommendation 21 | The role of flood risk management planning rests with CMAs and Melbourne Water (under the Water Act 1989), and is a shared responsibility with local government. Shared responsibilities for flood risk management planning and implementation will be consistently reflected in government policy. |
INQ217 | REC217-1826 | B - Preparedness | 39 - Disaster Risk Management | Recommendation 20 | A revised Victoria Flood Management Strategy should identify and assign roles and responsibilities for the management and ongoing maintenance of Victoria’s waterways, for the purposes of flood protection and flood mitigation: |
INQ217 | REC217-1815 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 9 | A regular inspection and maintenance regime will be undertaken for all high priority levees managed by a public authority. All such levees will be inspected by the relevant public authority on an annual basis, and after a flood event. All levees will have a regular maintenance schedule. |
INQ217 | REC217-1814 | E - Agency Organisation | 37 - Funding | Recommendation 8 | The funding model for works on levees and their ongoing maintenance be revised, to be primarily based on the beneficiary pays principle. The state government should give consideration to wholly funding, or contributing to, the initial upgrade of high priority levees to an agreed standard. |
INQ217 | REC217-1813 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 7 | The Department of Sustainability and Environment will develop guidelines for streamlining the permitting system for conducting works on levees for incorporation in the revised Victoria Flood Management Strategy, in order for maintenance on all levees to occur more quickly. |
INQ217 | REC217-1812 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 6 | Streamlined processes to enable access to levees for the purposes of conducting works, including maintenance, must be implemented. |
INQ217 | REC217-1811 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 5 | Responsible authorities will identify low priority levees for potential removal, and have them removed when funding becomes available. |
INQ217 | REC217-1810 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 4 | Where a levee has been identified as low priority, and beneficiaries are not willing to contribute to its maintenance, public authorities will inform levee beneficiaries that they will not fund the repair of their levee following a flood event. |
INQ217 | REC217-1809 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 3 | All priority public levees not currently the subject of approved schemes, will become subject to approved schemes under Division 5, Part 10 of the Water Act 1989. Such schemes will articulate an agreed set of terms, including: |
INQ217 | REC217-1808 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 2 | The revised Victoria Flood Management Strategy should provide a strategic framework for the management and ongoing maintenance of Victoria’s levees. |
INQ217 | REC217-1816 | A - Responsibility | 21 - Role of Commonwealth Government | Recommendation 10 | That the Department of Sustainability and Environment continue to invest in the auditing of Victoria’s levee systems, both public and private, so that the Victoria Flood Database contains reliable and up to date data, including information on levees’ location, height, condition and ongoing viabil |
INQ217 | REC217-1817 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 11 | The current technical guidelines for the construction of levee systems will be reviewed. |
INQ217 | REC217-1825 | A - Responsibility | 22 - Role of local Gvt | Recommendation 19 | When developing flood mitigation options in lowland areas, local governments should give consideration to the use of temporary levees as an alternative or addition to permanent structures. |
INQ217 | REC217-1824 | A - Responsibility | 24 - Govt responsibility | Recommendation 18 | The Victorian Government to implement the recommendations of the Victorian Floods Review in relation to the development and implementation of appropriate flood mitigation and protection strategies for essential services. |
INQ217 | REC217-1823 | A - Responsibility | 24 - Govt responsibility | Recommendation 17 | The Victorian Government should work with the New South Wales Government and the Murray Darling Basin Authority to establish an appropriate floodplain management committee and to develop a floodplain management strategy for the Murray River. |
INQ217 | REC217-1822 | A - Responsibility | 24 - Govt responsibility | Recommendation 16 | The state government will work with Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water and stakeholders to determine ongoing ownership and associated responsibilities for redundant channel infrastructure in the Wimmera and the Mallee. |
INQ217 | REC217-1821 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 15 | Where flood investigations show positive and cost effective outcomes, infrastructure providers, such as VicRoads, will consider enhancing their infrastructure to act as levees. |
INQ217 | REC217-1820 | E - Agency Organisation | 32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform | Recommendation 14 | The Department of Sustainability and Environment will develop guidelines for the management of levees in emergencies, during and after a flood event, which can be incorporated into local flood response plans. |
INQ217 | REC217-1819 | A - Responsibility | 22 - Role of local Gvt | Recommendation 13 | In consultation with local communities, local councils will develop flood response plans as subplans to their current Municipal Emergency Management Plans. |
INQ217 | REC217-1818 | B - Preparedness | 1 - Land-use and building regs | Recommendation 12 | The Department of Sustainability and Environment to review ownership of Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water’s Yarriambiack Creek levee, with a view to the appointment of a more suitable public managing authority/authorities. |
INQ217 | REC217-1846 | A - Responsibility | 24 - Govt responsibility | Recommendation 40 | The state government should implement the recommendations of the Victorian Floods Review in relation to the creation of resilience committees and resilience plans, with responsible authorities. |