Updated flood hazard information for Veresdale and Canungra township adopted at Council meeting

Scenic Rim Regional Council has endorsed a new flood study for Veresdale and a minor update to the existing flood study for the Canungra township to inform a Minor Amendment to the Scenic Rim Planning Scheme 2020.

As part of Council's ongoing commitment to increasing the community's awareness of the risk of flooding and ensuring that the best information is used to inform planning for flood-affected land, a new flood study for Veresdale and a minor change to the Canungra township flood study have been completed.

The updated flood hazard information provided by these studies will ensure that Council can provide improved information to landowners about the nature of flood hazard on the land to inform new development and building work. 

Mayor Greg Christensen said the updates to these studies will ensure that current and potential property owners will have access to up-to-date flood information based on current best practice and Queensland Government requirements expressed through the State Planning Policy 2017.

"For these localities, it means that a flood level can be provided through a Flood Search Request to inform development and building work, including the freeboard requirement for habitable rooms of new dwellings," he said.

Division 2 Councillor Jeff McConnell said Veresdale is experiencing strong interest in residential building growth and the Veresdale Flood Study provides information about the defined flood level* to inform the design and siting of development in the area, which was previously unavailable.

Division 3 Councillor Virginia West welcomed the update to the flood study for Canungra.

"The updates to the flood study for Canungra can provide a level of confidence to residents and prospective buyers and the Planning Scheme will be amended to include the current model and best available flood data at this point in time," she said.

Council will now proceed with incorporating the updated flood mapping from the studies in the Flood Hazard Overlay in the Scenic Rim Planning Scheme 2020 by making a Minor Amendment in accordance with the Planning Act 2016 and the Minister's Guidelines and Rules.

The final Veresdale and updated Canungra Township Flood Studies are available on Council's website.

*Defined flood level = 1% Annual Exceedance Probability (AEP). A flood with a 1% AEP has a one in a hundred chance of occurring in any one year.

ENDS