Carisbrook, Dunolly flood maps should be updated: report

But the changes are vital if people and the wider community are to avoid "significant financial, psychological and health related consequences" of flooding into the future, shire officers say.

They have urged councillors to update outdated planning scheme maps when they gather on Tuesday.

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It would be the latest in a long line of reforms sparked in part by major flooding events in 2011 and 2012.

The latest proposal would update the shire's planning scheme with flood studies commissioned in 2019 and which outlined the number of properties that could be inundated during a major weather event.

It includes a number of changes made after community consultation during a meeting last August.

Shire officers have urged councillors to adopt the proposal, saying flooding is a frequent problem especially for a number of Carisbrook properties..

"The effects of flooding in Central Goldfields are magnified by the proximity of urban development to natural or modified creeks and channels resulting in damage to roads, residential, commercial and industrial properties," the officers said.

The reforms would be based on 2014 flood modelling which predicted how both townships would be affected by extreme weather, as well as extensive consultation with the community and planning authorities, according to shire officers.

The reforms would affect 911 properties in Carisbrook and Dunolly.

A total of 481 would get a new Land Subject to Inundation Overlay because of flooding linked to waterways and open drainage systems..

Ten would get a more high-risk Floodway Overlay where land is flooded most frequently.

Another 274 would get both overlays.

Shire officers warned the changes could mean higher building costs on affected land, at least in the short term.

"It is expected that this amendment will result in changes to new building proposals that will be designed to respond to the constraints of the land and its capacity to flood."

Shire officers told councillors they could choose to abandon the amendment but said it was not a good option.

"There is no planning justification for this approach and it would be contrary to the recommendations of both township flood studies," they said.

"It would leave in place the provisions currently in the Central Goldfields Planning Scheme that have been demonstrated to be inadequate in addressing flood risk in Carisbrook and Dunolly."

Councillors could also choose to change parts of the amendment, though that could increase the risk of the state's planning minister rejecting it.

The minister will have the final say on any changes.

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