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Home , Brisbane River, Cyclone Tasha, Oxley Creek

CASE STUDY - , INTEGRATED RIVER BASIN MANAGEMENT IN ITS INFANCY With reference to the Room for the River conference with the keynote speech given by: Graeme Milligan*

After building the , the community of state of thought it had flood risks under control. After years of severe drought, attention for the river was largely focused on water quality and a diminishing supply of freshwater for the . Then tropical cyclones and associated seasonal rainfall suddenly contributed to flooding large areas of Queensland in January 2011, including the flood plains along the Brisbane River. The Queensland Commission of Inquiry was established to investigate the circumstances of the floods occurring which led to recommendations for better practices relating to community safety; land use planning; forecasting of flooding; and management and operation of water infrastructure being made. The Queensland Recovery Authority has facilitated the restoration of a great deal of the damage, but a consolidated integrated river basin management has yet to be determined. The current approach relies upon the co- operation and co-ordination of a number of policies and on the ground delivery agencies.

uses. Closer to the coast, it flows through urban and Geographical Context industrial areas, including large cities such as Ipswich The Brisbane River and its catchment is a and Brisbane. Below the Wivenhoe Dam, the Lockyer significant river system in . The Creek, Bremer River and are significant river flows through the city of Brisbane with an average waterways that contribute to water flows in the discharge capacity of 6000 m3/s, and feeds into the Brisbane River. which then flows into the Pacific Ocean. A drought that lasted most of the 2000’s across The Brisbane River catchment has nine dams and Australia (particularly in Queensland) resulted in weirs, which include its two main dams – Wivenhoe the providing additional Dam and . The Wivenhoe Dam was infrastructure including waste water recycling, a constructed for the purpose ofis water storage, desalination plant, a pipeline network connecting freshwater provision for the city of Brisbane 80km multiple reservoirs and a water use efficiency program. downstream of the Dam and it contributes to The government owned corporation SEQwater is mitigation for Brisbane and Ipswich. Its location responsible for monitoring water supplies and levels in divides the river into two parts. the main dams, including Wivenhoe Dam. Upstream of the Dam, lies the source of the Brisbane A great deal of attention has also been paid to the River in an undulating landscape consisting of water quality of the Brisbane River. The high density agricultural land uses. Downstream from the Wivenhoe of agricultural land uses along the river as well as waste Dam, the Brisbane River flows through a valley water discharge into the river results in high levels of consisting of agricultural and rural residential land nutrients in the river’s water. Much to the displeasure

* Mr Graeme Milligan, General Manager, Environmental Liaison, Queensland Reconstruction Authority of the approach to integrated river basin management in the Brisbane River catchment, Australia.

© Baltzer Science Publishers WATER GOVERNANCE – 02/2013 – 11 CASE STUDY - BRISBANE RIVER, AUSTRALIA

of recreational fishermen and nature lovers, this has before and during the rain events, noting that other resulted in algae blooms in the Moreton Bay. and major creeks contribute flows downstream of Healthy Waterways is a not-for-profit, non government the Wivenhoe Dam. organization working to protect and improve waterway One month later, the northern part of the state health in South East Queensland. As a part of was hit by Tropical , which resulted in their Ecosystem Health Monitoring Program, they extreme winds, storm surge and associated rainfall annually assess catchments and in South East which contributed to flooding in some parts of the Queensland to advise councils, land managers on areas state. A total of 37 people were killed in the 2011 of declining health, report on the effect of different Queensland Floods and cyclones, 59 rivers flooded, land uses, and provide actions to protect the aquatic 12 of which broke existing flood records and the World ecosystems1. Bank estimated $15.9 billion in total damages and SEQ Catchments is a community based not-for- economic losses with a public reconstruction cost of profit organization that seeks to build a sustainable approximately $7.2 billion dollars3. community and promotes the values of natural resources and the biodiversity of South East Queensland. SEQ Catchments works with Australian, Jurisdictional Responsibility Queensland and local governments to influence policy, Queensland has been managing river basins under align planning and secure funding for environmental an Integrated Catchment Management policy for projects as well as provides technical advice on data over twenty years. This integrated approach is collection, vegetation management, water quality central to natural resource management to ensure and property management to the community2. With that individual issues and links are considered, not-for-profit groups such as Healthy Waterways and developing holistic approaches to productive, resilient SEQ Catchments, the coordination of caring for and landscapes. This includes integrating economic, social enhancing the ecosystems that are our rivers and and environmental values, as well as engaging the their catchments (in this case the Brisbane River and community and industry, in planning, decision making its catchment) can be promoted to the community, and delivery. governments and other stakeholders. The Queensland Government works with thirteen non- statutory regional National River Management groups, local authorities and the Australian Government Flood History and Risk Perception to manage our natural resources wisely, address From December 2010, Queensland was hit by seven environmental problems and build healthy regions. severe weather events in a four month time period. SEQ Catchments is the regional natural resource Three of these events were Tropical Cyclones – management group providing on-ground services in the Tasha, Tropical Cyclone Anthony Brisbane River catchment. and Tropical Cyclone Yasi. These weather events The states are responsible for river management in brought a great deal of rain to an already sodden Australia, with Queensland being responsible for the landscape resulting in the flooding of an area as large Brisbane River. The integration and coordination of as France and Germany combined (or 41.5 times the planning and implementation of flood risk management size of the Netherlands). occurs between state government departments and After severe flooding in Queensland in 1974, the agencies at a chief executive officer level. government of Queensland built the Wivenhoe Dam, After the January 2011 floods, the Queensland which resulted in the perception that the Brisbane Floods Commission of Inquiry (QFCOI) performed River no longer posed a threat. In early January 2011, a thorough investigation of the circumstances the Brisbane River flooded resulting in large parts of surrounding the deadly and destructive weather events. the city of Brisbane being submerged or isolated by One of the main matters that was in focus of the floodwaters. This lead to many community members QFCOI was to investigate the implementation of the questioning the function of the Dam and its operation systems operations plans for dams across the state and in particularly the Wivenhoe and Somerset release strategy and an assessment of compliance with, and suitability of the operational procedures relating to COMPARING WATER GOVERNANCE: flood mitigation and dam safety. AUSTRALIA VERSUS THE NETHERLANDS During the QFCOI, an initial report was released in August 2011 including 177 recommendations, with Extended periods of drought have resulted in an Australian the final report being released in March 2012. The river management primarily focused on the freshwater implementation of QFCOI recommendations was supplies required for potable water, industrial and split into implementation groups, which are overseen agricultural purposes. Water shortages are an ongoing and coordinated by the chief executive officers of key issue, while excessive rainfall and related flooding, such as government departments and agencies. occurred in 2011, are still considered incidental. One specific recommendation relating to implementation of a study of the entire length of the

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The Brisbane River during the flood of January 2011 (source: Jason Royals, www.flickr.com)

Brisbane River, pertained to the principal of Integrated Recovery and Resilience are each partially responsible River Basin Management (IRBM). The Brisbane River for different components of the water cycle. A cohesive Catchment Study is currently being performed by water safety policy does not exist. Department of Natural Resources and Mines (DNRM); In addition to government agencies, there are two key Department of State Development, Infrastructure and non-government organizations contributing to the Planning (DSDIP); Department of Energy and Water management and monitoring of the Brisbane River Supply (DEWS) and SEQwater in conjunction with catchment. The Queensland Reconstruction Authority the four relevant local governments. The study also (QRA) has published specific planning guidelines links with the QFCOI recommendations to optimize accompanied by interim assessment management of the Wivenhoe Dam and water supply mapping that identify areas that have the potential to for the city of Brisbane. flood, which identifies strategies to manage flood risks Generally speaking, water safety policy in Australia at a local and regional level. These guidelines also is strongly focused on evacuation. After all, heavy promote a multi-disciplinary approach to floodplain local rains could result in flooding anywhere in this management which encourages interaction with immense country. For this reason, policy has been numerous stakeholders to achieve a higher level of focused on making local communities resilient against community and landscape resilience to the impacts of flooding and recovering from disaster events as soon flooding. as possible. Within the government of Queensland, the Department of State DSDIP; DNRM; DEWS; the Department of Housing and Public Works; the Recovery Operations Department of Environment and Heritage Protection; Flood damage in 2011 was so great that the the Department of Community Safety; and the government of Queensland decided to appoint a Department of Local Government, Community special board to coordinate recovery operations. This

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became the Queensland Reconstruction Authority , which is still fully active under the leadership of Retired SOURCES LISTED BY GUEST SPEAKER AND REVIEWER: Major General Richard Wilson, Chair of the QRA 1] Wikipedia. board. The mandate of the QRA has recently been 2] Van Den Honert R.C. and J. McAneney (2011). The 2011 extended until 2015. Brisbane Floods: Causes, Impacts and Implications. Water Financing of recovery operations is under the (3). 1149-1173. Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements. 3] Middelmann-Fernandez, M. (2009). Review of the Australian The Federal Government will contribute 75% of Flood Studies Database. Canberra, Geoscience Australia. required money, and the state of Queensland will 4] Queensland Government (2011). Climate Change: contribute 25%. Initially, the available budget for Adaptation for Queensland, Issues Paper. Brisbane, the recovery operations amounted to $3.2 billion Queensland Government. Australian dollars, but due, among other things, 5] National Flood Risk Advisory Group (2008). “Flood Risk to additional flooding in 2012, the amount has Management in Australia.” The Australian Journal of currently been raised to more than $12 billion Emergency Management 23(4): 21-23. Australian dollars. At present (March 2013), the 6] http://www.riskfrontiers.com/newsletter_images/Vol10_ pipeline of works for events actively managed by the Issue2_January11_forweb.pdf. Authority immediately prior to Tropical Cyclone 7] Eyre, B., S. Hossain and L. McKee (1998). A Suspended Oswald in 2013 (2009 to 2012) has an estimated Sediment Budget for the Modified Subtropical Brisbane program value of $12.2 billion of which $10.9 River , Australia. Estuarine, Coastals and Shelf billion has been administered in the program of Science 47, 513-522. works comprising of: Additional internet sources $1.0 billion dollars of reconstruction works used for this article: under assessment; Queensland Flood Commission: http://www.floodcommission.qld.gov.au $3.0 billion works in the market; and Queensland Reconstruction Authority: http://www.qldreconstruction.org.au $6.8 billion of works in progress or delivered. Queensland Department of Energy and Water Supply: http://www.dews.qld.gov.au/ : Integrated River Basin Management http://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au The challenge is to increase the level of protection against future flooding of the Brisbane River, and expand it into an Integrated River Basin Management (IRBM) approach. To achieve this, land uses must be examined. This will allow additional goals to be included in the management plan, such as nature preservation, , urban planning and agriculture.

Important items in this matter are:

Involving stakeholders, and streamlining their individual activities.

Collecting information from the many studies that have recently been performed, and are ongoing.

Including the results of climate change, based on scenarios.

Justifying costs as return-on-investment.

In order to implement an Integrated River Basin Management, land use and urban planning 1 Heathy Waterways – Ecosystem Health Monitoring perspectives will require adjustment. The government Program – http://healthywaterways.org/ of Queensland must develop a strategy for risk EcosystemHealthMonitoringProgram/AboutEHMP.aspx management. At the same time, a special governing 2 SEQ Catchments – What we do – http://www.seqcatchments. organization to carry responsibility for the entire com.au/what-we-do.html trajectory of the Brisbane River as its river commission, 3 http://www.qldreconstruction.org.au/u/lib/cms2/ still does not exist. world-bank-report-1.pdf

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