On July 30, the Legislative Council’s Environment and Planning Committee tabled its long-awaited report into the devastating floods, which included 73 recommendations to be adopted.
Ms Cleeland described Victoria’s approach to planning and flood recovery as confusing, complicated, and time-consuming, with the government’s “lacklustre attitude” impacting residents across the region.
“The report expresses several recommendations in areas such as flood mitigation, emergency warning systems and how families can more easily access support following floods,” Ms Cleeland said.
“We cannot see flood events like this occur again without mitigation measures in place and serious reform to the system, and this means revisiting conversations about a flood levee in Seymour.
“While a flood levee has been controversial in the past, we need a genuine and factual community conversation about this.
“Seymour won’t have a future without some sort of mitigation infrastructure.”
A government spokesperson expressed appreciation for the extensive report, which consolidates months of rigorous research and valuable first-hand accounts from flood-affected communities.
“We will consider the findings and recommendations as we continue to work on flood recovery and preparedness across the state,” they said.
“Working with the Commonwealth, we have delivered more than $2.5 billion of support to help communities, businesses, farmers and not-for-profits affected by the 2022 floods.
“We are also investing more than $22 million for council flood planning, including $10 million to complete more than 30 flood studies in regional Victoria.”
Meanwhile, Shadow Water Minister Tim McCurdy said he was dissatisfied with the government’s failure to listen to Seymour residents over the years.
“The residents of Seymour have been asking for help for years to plan for a major flood, and look at preventative measures,” he said.
“Unfortunately, the Victorian Government has failed to listen to these concerns, failed to prepare and plan, and locals are still paying the price.
“Where was Labor before, during and after the flood? Sitting back and letting others pick up the pieces of their own incompetence.”
The government spokesperson clarified that before the 2022 floods, the community and Mitchell Shire Council had evaluated a levee for flood mitigation but ultimately decided against it.
“Funding is still available for this work, and we encourage council and the Catchment Management Authority to continue working with community to find the best option,” they said.
Among the 73 recommendations listed, the report highlighted the need to:
- Help communities be better prepared to manage a crisis;
- Better manage and maintain flood mitigation including levees, dams and culverts;
- Improve early warning systems;
- Stop building inappropriate developments in flood plains; and
- Ensure that infrastructure is built back better.
The report was formally tabled in parliament on Tuesday, July 30, and the Victorian Government has six months to respond.
