Saturday, October 20, 2012

Climate change bill of AUS $1 billion for suburbs

Cameron Houston in the Age (Australia): Waterfront communities from Southbank to the Mornington Peninsula face a damage bill of more than $1 billion from severe storms and rising sea levels over the next 90 years, according to a confidential climate change report.

The report, by federal, state and local governments, warns that parts of Rosebud foreshore could be completely submerged by 2100 during coastal flooding, while residents around Elwood's canals face massive annual losses if government and local councils fail to act.

Maps from the report show a large section of Point Nepean Road would be regularly cut off during storms, while local residents and businesses would encounter frequent floods resulting from climate change.

The research warns that riverfront properties at Southbank are at greatest risk from flooding, with the annual cost of damage expected to increase from about $3 million in 2011 to almost $20 million by 2100. The annual cost of flooding in Elwood would rise from about $2.5 million in 2011 to $15 million by the end of the century, according to the report, which is based on data from Melbourne Water. Mordialloc would also experience a sharp increase in flood damage without immediate government action.

Due to be released next February, the Port Phillip Coastal Adaption Pathways Program examined four vulnerable coastal areas and another flood-prone area in North Melbourne known as Arden-Macaulay. All four Melbourne councils involved with the research have been briefed on the findings....

Flash flooding in the intersection of Spencer and Flinders Streets during the 2010 Melbourne thunderstorms. Shot by Nick carson, Wikimedia Commons, under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license

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