Government responds to flood inquiry

By Emily Donohoe

Feb 17, 2025

Inquiry into the 2022 flood event in Victoria committee members Dr Samantha Ratnam, Rikkie-Lee Tyrell, Wendy Lovell, chair Sonja Terpstra, Melina Bath and Gaelle Broad at the Shepparton inquiry hearing in September 2023. Photo: Megan Fisher. Photo by Megan Fisher

The Victorian Government tabled the Legislative Council Environment and Planning Committee Inquiry into the 2022 flood event in Victoria on Thursday, February 6.

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The final report for the inquiry was released in July 2024, identifying 73 recommendations for the government to consider.

Of the 73 recommendations, 16 are supported in full, 43 in principle, six in part, six are under review and two are not supported.

The recommendations fit into six categories: Victoria’s flood governance arrangements, planning and flood risk, flood mitigation infrastructure, flood emergency warnings, resourcing and response of the Victoria SES, and flood relief and recovery.

Recommendations that have been supported in full include:

providing all Victorians with access to FloodZoom;
more consideration for the needs of vulnerable communities;
increased flood modelling;
collaboration between councils and catchment management authorities;
improved emergency warning system; and
review and assessment of flood mitigation measures.

Some of the recommendations that have been supported in principle are:

to increase funding and support for the VICSES;
to investigate an increased outlet capacity at Lake Eppalock;
to simplify Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements; and
to develop temporary operating rules for water storage and release, accounting for stakeholders

One of the recommendations that is not supported is the funding of a resilient homes program “to raise or retrofit residential properties at risk of flood inundation and which prioritises homeowners affected by the 2022 flood event”.

The report recognised the importance of submissions to the inquiry, including 344 from Rochester residents.

“The Victorian Government wishes to acknowledge the significant contributions of community members who made submissions and gave evidence to inform the final report, including those still feeling the flood event's impacts,” it said.

“The recommendations from the final report are reflective of issues that are well-known to the Victorian Government.

“In many cases, they reflect issues that are relevant to all communities and all emergencies ... as a result, a substantial portion of the final report’s recommendations have activities under way to address key and underlying issues.”

State Member for Murray Plains Peter Walsh criticised the response to the recommendations, labelling it “inadequate in the extreme“.

“Nearly 900 submissions were received by (the) Victorian Legislative Council inquiry into this flood event, and it held public hearings in flood-affected communities including Echuca and Rochester, where the town hall was packed out for the whole day,” he said.

“Yet the Labor government response to the recommendations made by the parliamentary inquiry shows nothing but callous disregard for the impassioned pleas from those making submissions and giving evidence for better preparation for future major flooding events by kicking real outcomes down the road.

“And let’s never forget, for many of those making submissions, this was their second devastating flood in 11 years.”

A copy of the full response can be accessed at tinyurl.com/tabledfloodstudy