Case study: North Queensland Natural Disasters Mitigation Program
The Queensland Reconstruction Authority has made $10 million available to eligible councils for projects to reduce disaster risk in northern Queensland through the North Queensland Natural Disasters Mitigation Program. This project will improve community resilience to natural disasters and climate change, and reduce insurance costs by funding physical mitigation works. This could include drainage systems that reduce disaster risk as well as studies or investigations to support a better understanding of a community’s risk including floor height surveys and flood mapping.
With close to 90 natural disasters over the past decade, Queensland gets hit harder than any other state in the country. Unfortunately, over that period some insurance premiums have skyrocketed making insurance unaffordable for some of our most vulnerable communities, particularly in the north and far north. Insurance Council of Australia modelling suggests that in Townsville and Cairns alone, reducing flood risk through permanent mitigation measures could reduce insurance premiums by up to 21%.