Bega Valley Shire Resilience
Enhancing the overall resilience of the Bega Valley Shire.
Project Summary/background
Bushfire, the pandemic and multiple flood events have put significant stress on our community and critical infrastructure.
State and federal grants are funding Bega Valley Shire Council’s work to enhance the overall resilience of the shire.
These grant funds include:
- $2.7 million from Black Summer Bushfire Recovery Grants (Commonwealth Government)
- $1.5 million from the Disaster Risk Reduction Fund (NSW Government)
- $2.5 million from Prepare Australian Communities – Local Stream (Commonwealth Government)
Purpose
The grants will help Council and the Bega Valley community focus on three outcomes:
- Improve infrastructure resilience
- Improve organisational resilience
- Improve community resilience.
Funding
Black Summer Bushfire Recovery Grants
Under the Black Summer Bushfire Recovery Grants, Council was able to work on three projects totalling more than $2.7 million.
Water Catchment and Sanitation Project
This project is a partnership with the Pambula Rotary Club, Social Justice Advocates and Connecting Communities Australia It enables water and sanitation pods to be built for 14 families who lost their homes in the Black Summer bushfires and are living on their land in temporary accommodation with only very basic water and sanitation systems in place.
Investing in Rural Community Futures across the Bega Valley: Resilience, Connection and Place
This project is a partnership between the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal and the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation. It is aimed at building and supporting the capacity of not-for-profits in the shire to maximise the impact of their work as they actively support social recovery following the Black Summer bushfires.
Dedicated Recovery Resources
Council received funding for additional, dedicated resources to support recovery through:
- providing tailored, personal support to people who lost their homes in the Black Summer bushfires, to work through the rebuilding process
- additional planning staff, including a development hub officer, a planner and an environmental health and building officer, to help address the significant increase in development applications
- curating information for businesses seeking inspiration for innovation, diversification and transition to a circular economy, using case studies of local business recovery success stories
- embedding resilience approaches into Council policies and practices when engaging with the community to ensure an ongoing focus on resilience beyond our Local Recovery Action Plan.
Disaster Risk Reduction Fund
The Disaster Risk Reduction Funding stream focused on:
- taking action to reduce existing disaster risk
- minimising the creation of future disaster risk
- equipping decision-makers with the capabilities and information they need to manage and reduce disaster risk.
Council used the funding to enhance our capability in:
- collecting, analysing and sharing disaster risk knowledge and data
- developing and employing methods and tools to reduce systemic risk and disaster risk.
This project focused on Council’s organisational resilience. It brought in external expertise from CSIRO to strengthen infrastructure investment prioritisation.
CSIRO and its partner, Value Advisory Partners (VAP), have developed an analytical tool that generates place-based risk mitigation options. The project will embed this tool in Council’s asset management system and provide guidance on how to better value resilience through the infrastructure lifecycle.
Using this tool, CSIRO and VAP will assist Council to identify two potential investment projects for future funding opportunities. These will focus on infrastructure that will benefit both local communities and those in neighbouring local government areas.
How this tool can be applied at an operational level will be shared with members of the Canberra Region Joint Organisation and government agencies.
Council will engage with the community and key stakeholders in the selection of the investment projects.
Preparing Australian Communities
The objectives of this funding stream are to:
- improve the long-term resilience of Australian communities to natural hazards including bushfires, floods and tropical cyclones
- support communities to undertake disaster risk reduction and resilience initiatives.
This project will focus on the shire’s infrastructure resilience.
Using CSIRO’s investment analytical tool, Council will develop and design up to six infrastructure investment projects to ‘shovel ready’ stage for future funding opportunities. These projects will be essential to the preparedness of our community. They will help us build climate resilience to avoid future losses, reduce future disaster costs and unlock economic opportunities and social benefits.
Council will engage with the community and key stakeholders in the selection of the investment projects.
Connection to Council's Community Strategic Plan
This project aligns with Bega Valley Shire Council Community Strategic Plan through:
- A - Our Community: A connected and vibrant community where people are happy, safe and well.
- C - Our Environment We embrace sustainable living and value and conserve our natural environment.
- D - Our infrastructure: Our infrastructure complements our natural surroundings and character while enhancing the lives of our community.
Who to talk to
Gemma Edwards
Corporate Resilience Coordinator
Bega Valley Shire Council
Phone: 0403 129 689
Email: GEdwards@begavalley.nsw.gov.au
Timeline of works
News and Updates
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Contact Us
- 02 6499 2222
- council@begavalley.nsw.gov.au
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Zingel Place
PO Box 492
Bega NSW 2550 -
Monday to Friday 9.00AM to 4.30PM
Administration building Zingel Place Bega
Australia -
ABN: 26 987 935 332