Key points
- The CSIRO team behind the Northern Rivers Resilience Initiative has delivered its final report.
- It brings together years of extensive community engagement, robust flood mitigation options, high-resolution hydrodynamic modelling and analysis of historical flood events.
- Lessons learnt through this project could be applied in other flood-prone areas of Australia.
CSIRO hydrologist Dr Jai Vaze has lost count of how many times over the past four years he has been asked if he can flood-proof the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales.
He first started working in the region with his team following the terrible loss of lives and homes due to unprecedented flood events in February-March 2022.
His answer is still 'no'.
However, his optimism about reducing the region's vulnerability to future floods has only grown.
"No one can stop a flood from happening," he said.
"While we might not be able to prevent a flood like 2022, with a coordinated approach we can reduce flood heights and impacts, which can help lessen damage and support future resilience for the community."
Dr Vaze leads the CSIRO team behind the Northern Rivers Resilience Initiative (NRRI) which is funded by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and aims to identify flood mitigation options for areas such as Lismore, Ballina, Casino and Kyogle.
The final report outlines the project's welcome and significant results, bringing together years of extensive community engagement, robust flood mitigation options, high-resolution hydrodynamic modelling and analysis of historical flood events.
A final report with lots of hope
Often referred to as the flood capital of Australia, Lismore has always been an area of focus in media reports and recognised as one of the worst hit areas in the region in 2022.
The final report not only shows promising results for Lismore but also for the entire Richmond River catchment. CSIRO used the hydrodynamic model to test how flood mitigation measures could perform across the whole Richmond River Catchment.
It found that strategically located water detentions and other infrastructure upgrades could reduce flood peaks, inundation extent and flood depth across the catchment. The larger or more comprehensive bundle of measures, known as Bundle 2 , delivered the greatest benefits.
The modelling shows how water could have been held below levee banks during the 31 March 2022 flood in Lismore and significantly reduced for the February 28 event that occurred just a month earlier.
By applying Bundle 2 measures, these flood peaks at Lismore could have been reduced by up to 1.71 metres for the March event and by as much as 2.07 metres in the February flood.
The Hydrodynamic model at work. On the left the model shows the two major flooding events in February and March 2022 in Northern Rivers. On the right it shows the bundle 2 measures applied to the same events, with significant less water depth across the region. The red pockets of water you can see on the bundle 2map are the water detention basins filling up and emptying.
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