Climate change adaptation and floods: Australia's institutional arrangements. Case Study

Abstract

This case study addresses a ‘threat’ attribute, flood, in terms of each of the seven institutional mechanisms. Flooding is Australia’s most expensive natural hazard and the federal government allocated 5.6 billion in recovery funding to Queensland alone, primarily to restore public infrastructure (BITRE, 2008, Gillard, 2011). Climate change scenarios predict an increase in intensity and frequency of floods, potentially exposing Australia to even greater damages in the future. Floods are thus a key area for improving adaptive capacity. Past research identified inadequacies in institutional and regulatory arrangements, development planning and funding mechanisms (Wenger et al 2013). That research overwhelmingly pointed to the need for improvements in non-structural measures, particularly in the preventative phase of emergency management. It also found that adaptive approaches that are proving successful and cost-effective overseas are largely unknown in Australia, and would have difficulty being implemented under current arrangements. Accordingly, this paper explores flooding from the perspective of government function to determine: • current policies and institutional arrangements in place to address flooding • the types of reforms that would be required to reduce Australia’s vulnerability to flooding in the future.

The case study that contributed to a broader climate change adaptation project. The case study used project methodology developed by Karen Hussey, Steve Dovers and Richard Price. Details of the umbrella project are: Hussey, K, Price, R, Pittock, J, Livingstone, J, Dovers, S, Fisher, D & Hatfield-Dodds, S 2013, Statutory frameworks, institutions and policy processes for climate adaptation: Do Australia’s existing statutory frameworks, associated institutions and policy processes support or impede national adaptation planning and practice?, National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility, Gold Coast, 193 pp.

The case study also drew upon work undertaken as part of a second NCCARF project under its synthesis and integrative program (referred to in this paper as the SIRP Report): Wenger, C, Hussey, K & Pittock J 2013, Living with floods: Key lessons from Australia and abroad, National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility, Gold Coast, 267 pp.