7 April 2022

$1.28 MILLION DELIVERED TO REDUCE NATURAL DISASTER RISK AND BUILD RESILIENCE IN FRANKLIN

The Morrison Government is reducing the risk and minimising the impact to communities of large-scale natural disasters like floods and bushfires in Kingborough and the Huon Valley by directly providing funding of:

  • $46,000 to the Garden Island Creek Erosion and Flood Disaster Reduction Planning Project, led by Friends of Garden Island Creek Incorporated to develop assessment and mitigation strategies for natural disasters like floods and bushfires in the Huon Valley
  • $46,000 Friends of North Bruny Incorporated, to assist the purchasing of dedicated Fire Water Tanks at North Bruny Fire Station
  • $1.19 million to the Ngune Nire Program, led by the South East Tasmanian Aboriginal Corp (SETAC) to implement a cultural burning schedule

The Preparing Australian Communities Program – Local stream is the first tranche of the Preparing Australia Program, an investment by the Morrison Government of $600 million over six years to build the nation’s resilience to natural disasters.

“We know communities are best placed to understand their unique needs and how they can best improve their resilience and reduce their level of risk to natural disasters that’s why these projects have been assessed to be so important to the Kingborough, Huon Valley and wider Franklin regions.” Senator Jonno Duniam said.

Friends of Garden Island Creek and SETAC are two of 158 projects across the country that shared in $150 million dollars from the Commonwealth Government.

“Disasters currently cost Australian taxpayers $18.2 billion per year and this has been forecast to rise to $39 billion per year by 2050, even without increased frequency and intensity of weather events due to climate change.”

In delivering this program, the Morrison Government is not only increasing disaster preparedness and resilience, but also reducing the cost in time and money of recovery following future disasters.

There are three streams of the Preparing Australia Program:

  • Preparing Australian Communities Program for projects of local significance (Communities Local program) – focussed on public risk reduction.
  • Preparing Australian Communities Program for projects of National Significance – focussed on public risk reduction.
  • Preparing Australian Homes Program – focussed on private risk reduction.

For more information and a full list of projects funded under Round One of the Preparing Australian Communities Program – Local stream visit: https://recovery.gov.au/disaster-risk-reduction/preparing-australia-program

ENDS