Plan to address 'inaccurate' Central Goldfields flood controls

The council will seek authorisation from Minister for Planning, Richard Wynne, to amend overlays for Carisbrook, Dunolly and rural areas along Tullaroop Creek.

About 275 homes in Carisbrook were flooded and some 800 people were displaced by the January 2011 floods.

The proposed amendments would add an overlay never before used in the Central Goldfields Shire, which is applied in higher hazard areas.

The planning scheme only identifies land subject to inundation, at the moment.

Existing overlays have been found to be inaccurate in all areas - "significantly" so in Dunolly.

The proposed amendments mean some areas with overlays will have them lifted, and others will be subject to new or heightened overlays.

Flood controls in Dunolly and the Tullaroop Creek arm downstream of Carisbrook would be significantly reduced.

Controls will be scaled up in the central Carisbrook township. Overlays would be amended upon completion of further levee works.

Story continues below meeting agenda

Suggested amendments would be publicly displayed.

The process would bring the council a step closer to implementing the recommendations of two documents, which are at least five years old.

Council staff have identified "ongoing concern arising from outdated and inaccurate flood overlays, coupled with limited guidance on what developments will or won't be approved prior to applying for a permit."

Work to implement the recommendations of the Carisbrook Flood and Drainage Management Plan 2013 and the Dunolly Flood Investigation 2014 was identified as high priority.

The North Central Catchment Management Authority has been working with the council on the proposed amendments.

It had initially sought to include the Central Goldfields Shire's proposed amendment in a group application, involving a number of other councils in its area.

The CMA has received funding to help councils implement a backlog of amendments.

Council staff advised the shire's administrators to make the most of the resources the CMA could provide to get the work done.

"It is uncertain when this amendment could be implemented if not completed now," they said.

Administrators moved at this week's council meeting to advance the process further by putting the proposal to the planning minister for authorisation.

They expect a response within 10 days of the request's submission.

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