Teralba to Toronto Climate Resilience Planning

Climate resilience is the capacity to prepare for, respond to, and recover from the impacts of climate hazard events and/or trends to try to minimise negative impacts on societal wellbeing, the economy and the environment.

Council is committed proactively identifying, planning and identifying actions to minimise the impacts of climate risks on our vulnerable communities.

Climate resilience planning involves Council and the community working together to better prepare for flooding, sea (and lake) level rise, bushfire, urban heat and other climate risks that can impact on community and environmental wellbeing.

Decisions we make now can have lasting impacts. New roads, drains and homes built today will still be around in 50 to 100 years, so we need to plan for the future now.

The Bureau of Meteorology, CSIRO and NSW Government agencies predict an increase in climate related risks over the coming decades, including rising lake levels, flooding and bush fires.

The impacts on our local community could be:

• Damage to public and private assets including our homes, community facilities, roads, drainage and other infrastructure
• Threats to valuable ecosystems including our unique plant and animal communities
• Pressures on food and water security and the cost of living.

Climate resilience planning closley looks at the level of risk exposure to people, assets, infrastructure and the environment and identifies actions to adapt and/or reduce the impact of climate hazard impacts.

Emergencies can arise at any time, so it is important to take simple steps to protect yourself, your family, pets and property during a natural disaster or local emergency.

1. Know your risk - Think about the area you live in and the types of disasters that could affect you.

2. Plan now for what you'll do - Sit down and talk with your family and plan for what you will do if a disaster affects your area.
    
3. Get your home ready - Prepare your home by doing general home maintenance and checking your insurance.

4. Be aware - Find out how to prepare and what to do if there is a disaster in your area. Download emergency services apps, for example Hazards Near Me, on your phone to stay informed.

5. Look out for each other - Share information with your family, friends, neighbours and those who may need assistance.

Find out more on our website

The plan is informed by data from existing flood studies and bush fire risk management plans.

Insurers use data from a variety of sources including historical flood measurements, Federal, State and Local government studies, the Insurance Council of Australia’s (ICA) National Flood Information Database and through their own research i.e. own assessment of risk. In essence, different companies will assess the risk in different ways and Council does not control what data insurers choose to use, or how they use it.

Over the past few years several factors have combined to raise the price of flood cover and insurance more generally. These include:

• the cost of claims generated by the series of major disasters (including storms, flooding and bushfire) since 2010
• Australian insurers paying more for reinsurance (insurance that insurers take out to cover major events) because of these disasters
• changes in understanding where and when floods will occur and how much it costs to fix damage.

The Insurance Council of Australia advised Council that people should shop around if they are dissatisfied with the cost or coverage of their flood insurance. Residents are also advised to look carefully at what they are covered for, rather than just basing their decision on the price. For further information on insurance, residents can visit Insurance Council of Australia.