A joint federal-state initiative to create spatially explicit flood projections for regional New South Wales communities will only cover 'plausible' climate futures.
The federal and NSW governments announced $13 million in projects in the state to address various disaster scenarios.
South Australia is preparing for inundation in the Murray River from NSW and Victorian inflows and provides detailed spatial mapping of various scenarios based on inflows over the border.
The NSW Department of Planning and Environment will spend $404,263 converting regional climate projections into spatially explicit flood projections. The project will also assess 'future changes in annual probabilities of regional-scale flood hazards under plausible climate futures'.
The University of Washington recently released research expressing concern that the current La Niña system delivering wetter conditions in Australia could persist for some years, contrary to climate modelling expectations.
NSW Emergency Services Minister Steph Cooke said:
"The projects receiving funding cover a range of hazards including floods, fires, heatwaves and storms, with initiatives ranging from capability building and community engagement to new data systems and technology.”
Federal Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt said:
“Over the past three years New South Wales has copped disaster after disaster which have left communities reeling. Recovery is ongoing and we continue to support those efforts, but it is equally important to make sure we are investing in risk reduction projects for future disasters.”