Rochester residents voted against more levees in 2020

A $7.1 million investment in flood mitigation works was rejected by Rochester residents in 2020. They now face a damage bill of $50-$100 million.

Rochester residents are evacuated from their homes last month as the Campaspe River rises. Picture: Jason Edwards

Rochester residents who rejected spending $7.1 million on flood mitigation works in 2020, are now faced with a damages bill of $50-$100 million in the wake of last month’s inundation.

In 2020 The Weekly Times reported Rochester residents rejected spending $7.1 million on constructing flood levees and drains, despite a major 2018 study showing it would have cut the number of homes inundated to above their floors from 355 down to 172 during a repeat of January 2011 floods.

Leigh Wilson, who was Campaspe Shire mayor at the time, said more than 70 per cent of residents rejected the proposal in the postal ballot as it would have meant directing more flood water onto farming properties around neighbouring Nanneella.

He said levees could have been built around the homes on those 30-40 Nanneella farms, but the Rochester community found that unacceptable.

At the time then Campaspe Shire Infrastructure general manager Jason Deller told The Weekly Times a cost-benefit analysis of the proposed Rochester mitigation works showed it would only deliver a “net annual average reduction in flood damage costs of $82,400”.

“This information was presented to the community and soundly rejected by the town’s people as a group,” Mr Deller said.

Mr Deller has since left Campaspe Council, but in 2020 he said the community’s rejection of the flood mitigation works had meant focusing instead on improving flood warning systems.

Rochester township floods from the Campaspe River as it rises through the streets. Picture: Jason Edwards

At the time Rochester State Emergency Services controller Judith Gledhill said households at risk of flooding had been sent fridge magnets that indicated river gauge heights that would flood their homes.

“So, hopefully they’ll be more prepared,” Ms Gledhill said. “They’ll know when to panic and not panic.”

But Mr Wilson said even the flood forecasting had failed during last month’s floods.

“This time around they said it would be 100mm higher than 2011, but it was 300mm higher,” he said.

Mr Wilson said the Rochester community could not afford to again dismiss investing in flood mitigation works, given the huge cost of the most recent flood.

He said flood mitigation work needed to be revisited and modelling needed to be done on whether enlarging Lake Eppalock’s outlet could have meant creating more airspace in the dam to absorb some of the impact.

Campaspe Shire’s current communications manager Sandy Ennis did not provide any comments on the issue, simply supplying a series of past media releases, which summarised the councils and communities’ decision to reject conducting the flood works.