Narooma Coastal Inlets Flood Risk Management Study and Plan

Floodplain Risk Management Study and Plan

In 2016, Council prepared a flood study for the Narooma and Dalmeny areas. From this study we learned some parts of Narooma are more prone to flooding than others. These areas included homes, businesses and essential transport routes.

With assistance from the NSW and Australian Governments, we are preparing the Narooma Coastal Inlets Floodplain Risk Management Study and Plan. This project will support our commitment to finding solutions to reduce the social and economic damages of flooding in those areas previously identified as being flood prone.

How the plan will be prepared

The project will start with reviewing existing flood models. Computer-based models will be updated to reflect changes to the catchments that may have occurred since the first flood study was completed. These changes could include new road and drainage works, changes to land-use planning and zoning or changes of use in the catchment.

Modelling will focus on running scenarios of different management actions that aim to reduce the risk from living or running a business on flood-prone land. These scenarios may include the impact on flood behaviour of implementing solutions such as fill, additional drainage, raising infrastructure or combinations of any of the possible mitigation options.

Council has engaged WMAwater to prepare the Floodplain Risk Management Study and Plan. It will be prepared in line with the NSW Government's Flood Prone Land Policy, as outlined in the Flood Risk Management Manual 2023.

• Learn more about the NSW floodplain management process on the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water's website.

How this project is different from the existing flood study

Unlike the existing flood study, which is simply a technical project that identifies flood behaviour, the Floodplain Risk Management Study and Plan will investigate and prioritise actions to manage and reduce the risk from flooding.

The Floodplain Risk Management Study and Plan will help us consider the consequences of living on flood-prone land. The plan aims to minimise the losses to our community from flooding. These losses can include financial and property losses but most importantly, floods can, and have, resulted in the loss of lives.

Local councils are responsible for managing flood-prone land in NSW with support from the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI), which provides specialist technical knowledge. Preparing this plan is nearing the final steps in the floodplain risk management process outlined in the Flood Risk Management Manual 2023.

The Flood Risk Management Study and Flood Risk Management Plan stages propose actions to manage flood behaviour. The final steps of the process are to implement the actions identified in the plan, and the floodplain risk management process is constantly reviewed and monitored for improvement. For example, the performance of management actions will be observed and reviewed following flooding events to determine if there is any scope for improvement.

How you can get involved

During November 2018, we sought community input through a survey we sent to residents in flood-prone areas and made available online for other interested community members to share their ideas and concerns related to flooding.

We also hosted a drop-in information session in November 2018 at the Narooma Youth Cafe, where community members came to talk with us and share their experiences in person.

Community participation is critical to the plan's success, particularly when it comes to collecting historical flood information. Council would like to thank all those who shared information and ideas photographs with us to help develop the plan.

More information