Protecting Marburg from flood

A STUDY costing nearly $450,000 will be undertaken to help floodproof Marburg.

A STUDY costing nearly $450,000 will be undertaken to help floodproof Marburg.

The study will review previous flood studies and examine flood threats and hazards in an attempt to protect Marburg from future disasters.

The project has attracted funding from local, state and federal governments, with Ipswich City Council contributing $160,000.

State and federal governments have contributed the remaining $280,000.

Member for Ipswich West Wayne Wendt said the study would help the people of Marburg in the event of more disastrous flooding.

"The project will review existing flood studies of the area and define the extent and nature of the flood threat, identify the hazards and develop a flood risk management plan," he said.

"The flood risk management plan will provide a range of responses to the flood threat, including structural flood mitigation measures, land use planning, development control and community based resilience measures.

"The project will reduce the Marburg community's vulnerability to flooding, which is great news for all residents."

Marburg is one of 56 sites across Queensland to receive funding through the latest round of Natural Disaster Resilience Program funding.

The funding is a four-year, $44 million program designed to assist local councils to better prepare for and mitigate the effects of natural disasters such as January's floods.

Funding applications are assessed by a committee of representatives from the Local Government Association of Queensland, Emergency Management Queensland, Queensland Fire and Rescue Service and the Department of Community Safety.

State Emergency Services Minister Neil Roberts said while Queenslanders understood about preparing and responding to disasters, the damage and destruction brought by floods, storms, bushfires and other disasters were still heartbreaking.

"We cannot afford to bury our heads in the sand. We must work now to enhance resilience so we can reduce the potentially devastating impact of natural disasters in the future," he said.

Originally published as Protecting Marburg from flood