Office of Climate Change

Partnership on the Inland Flooding Study

The Inland Flooding Study partnership with the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) was designed to improve Queensland’s resilience to extreme flood events due to climate change.  Flooding causes significant impacts on Queensland communities and the economy – and with our changing climate, extreme flooding events are likely to become more intense.

The project was established to recommend options to increase community resilience to extreme flood events by providing:

  1. a recommended climate change factor for use by local councils in future flood studies
  2. specific policy options for improved flood risk management in the Gayndah case study area
  3. recommendations for inclusion in the review of the State Planning Policy 1/03 Mitigating the Adverse Impacts of Flood, Bushfire and Landslide.

The key outcomes from the Inland Flooding Study were released publicly on 10 November 2010 following extensive consultation with key stakeholders. The study delivers much needed guidance for local councils on planning for increased flood risk from extreme events resulting from climate change.

As a result, local governments are now better equipped with clearer guidance on how to factor climate change into their flood studies. The study also produced practical examples of how the effects of climate change can be incorporated into planning schemes that will be considered further as part of the review of the State Planning Policy 1/03, scheduled for completion in 2013.

The final report Increasing Queensland's Resilience to Inland Flooding in a Changing Climate (PDF, 83K)* is accompanied by two detailed companion reports on how the climate change factor was derived and the policy options from the Gayndah case study area.

For further information about the study or the terms of reference, contact occ.communication@derm.qld.gov.au 

* Requires Adobe Reader

Last updated 12 November 2010

Queensland's response