The Australian Government has announced that applications for the second round of the National Flood Mitigation Infrastructure Program have opened, with $50 million for projects that will protect communities from future flood events.
Minister for Emergency Management and National Recovery and Resilience, Bridget McKenzie, said the Program will now deliver $100 million over two years.
“This funding – which is from the Emergency Response Fund set up in 2019 – is delivering priority disaster mitigation projects for the states and territories,” Ms McKenzie said.
“The Liberal and Nationals Government is committed to investing in mitigating the impacts of major flood events to reduce economic and social harm to Australian communities contributing to our long-term, sustainable flood mitigation efforts.
“The foundations of our commitment to supporting state, territory and local governments to construct or improve essential public infrastructure to prepare for extreme weather events and flooding through the first round of the program remain strong.”
The second round of the National Flood Mitigation Infrastructure Program will build on the success of the program last financial year, with a renewed focus in targeting levees, levee systems, infrastructure to promote floodplain restoration and specific green infrastructure initiatives that mitigate flood risk.
“This round of the program was determined by the National Recovery and Resilience Agency through evidence-based decisions surrounding the types of projects that best support local communities to better withstand severe flood events and align with the objectives of the Emergency Response Fund,” Ms McKenzie said.
“Beyond the Emergency Response Fund, the Government is already investing in complementary disaster resilience programs managed by the National Recovery and Resilience Agency.
“This includes the Disaster Risk Reduction Package providing $261 million over five years and the Preparing Australia Program that will provide $600 million over six years, starting this financial year.
“We will continue to commit to building Australia’s resilience to natural disasters – a long-term strategy to ensure we’re a step ahead when the next disaster hits to reduce the future burden of recovery on communities.”
The Program Guidelines for the National Flood Mitigation Infrastructure Program 2021-22 are now available and applications for funding are open to states and territories.
The Program guidelines and application form are available at www.recovery.gov.au.
