Corangamite welcomes $219,000 for flood study

Published on 12 June 2023

Corangamite Shire has thanked the Federal Government for $219,000 towards the Corangamite Flood Study - Stage 2 Data Acquisition project.

The funding comes from Round One of the Disaster Ready Fund (DRF) 2023-24.

Mayor Ruth Gstrein said the funding was just one part of a much larger project that will take some time and millions of dollars to complete.

“Natural disasters will always happen. This funding will allow us to buy data which we can use to model future floods and plan ahead appropriately.

“The Corangamite Flood Study will provide interactive flood mapping for the whole Shire.

“It will allow us to better predict flooding and respond to flood emergencies proactively, for example, by closing high-risk roads in advance.”

Cr Gstrein said the study would also help Council identify and plan infrastructure priorities such as drainage upgrades, and decisions around planning permits.

Council’s Community Safety and Resilience Coordinator Belinda Bennett said the study will cover all risks including riverine, overland and flash flooding.

“The study will be delivered in stages as a series of flood investigations that progressively build an understanding of flood risks across the municipality,” Ms Bennett said.

“Stage 1 is underway to scope and develop a roadmap for the delivery of this study.

“That has identified the need for LiDAR data (digital elevation data) to inform future modelling.

“This latest funding will support stage 2 which involves acquiring LiDAR data for the whole Shire to inform flood modelling in the next stages of the flood study.”