December 3, 2024

Central Vic calls for the Victorian Government to fund Community-Led Climate Adaptation

The Victorian government is running an Inquiry into Climate Resilience, which is looking into the preparedness of communities facing climate disasters across the state. The submissions stage of the Resilience Inquiry process is closed, and the committee undertaking the Inquiry is now conducting hearings.

The seventh of these hearings was at the Victorian Emergency Management Institute in Mount Macedon on 3 December 2024. At the event, local government from Bendigo and Macedon Ranges, Central Vic Greenhouse Alliance, Bendigo Sustainability Group, local CMAs, Foundation for Rural & Regional Renewal, and others spoke to the Legislative Council Environment and Planning Committee about local climate resilience.

Before going into the hearing, local community members gathered outside to show support for government funding of community-led climate adaptation. They held up a banner with the words ‘Fund Community Climate Resilience’ on it.

“To prepare for locked-in climate impacts, we need adequate and ongoing funding for community-led adaptation work. This funding will enable communities to fulfil their plans to build resilient communities in a changing climate and keep those most at risk safe,” Vicky Ellmore, Act on Climate Community Organiser, said.

Friends of the Earth Melbourne’s Act on Climate collective has been ensuring community members' voices are heard through this Inquiry, both their concerns and the solutions they want to see enacted. The collective is calling for the committee to recommend a Victorian Community Climate Adaptation Fund (VCCAF). The fund would distribute money annually to community groups that apply to undertake localised adaptation initiatives.

Over three quarters (83.75%) of submissions to the Inquiry called for increased funding in climate adaptation, with half (49.58%) calling for ongoing funding and over a third (39.58%) calling for Act on Climate’s VCCAF specifically.

In their submissions to the Inquiry into Climate Resilience, people from Central Vic shared their concerns around high fire risk, floods, storms, drought, and extreme heat and heatwaves. In addition, there is concern about the disruption to transport routes and community services due to increasing climate change impacts, as well as community health and wellbeing being impacted due to living and working in buildings that are not resilient to extreme temperatures or which are at risk from flooding, storms and bushfires. Other worries mentioned are rental housing safety and the fact that insurance costs are increasing while coverage is decreasing.

In its submission, the City of Greater Bendigo notes that it has experienced an increase in the number of natural disasters in recent years, and that it has suffered substantial financial implications due to fires and floods. These events also placed a significant burden on the council’s staff resourcing, both during the response and the recovery process, with it writing:

“The concurrent events and the long tail of recovery have meant Council is responding to new events whilst still actively recovering from previous events. Slow onset climate impacts such as drought, increased heat and lower rainfall will also impact on our built environment and infrastructure in the future.”

In their submissions, the actions and solutions locals are calling for include:

• Prioritise Indigenous knowledge and cultural burning
• Centralise flood modelling to speed up the introduction and review of flooding overlays to ensure they reflect new climate informed modelling
• Investment in retrofitting to make homes climate resilient
• Local community climate vulnerability assessments and action plans,
• Stop high density development - build new houses with more space between them,
• Fund the protection and enhancement of existing remnant native vegetation on public and private land, as well as revegetation,
• Minimum energy efficiency and climate resilience standards for rental properties, 
• Support local governments to undertake proactive maintenance and upgrades to assets as standards change to account for climate change, and
• The establishment of a permanent Victorian Community Climate Adaptation Fund (VCCAF).

Quotes from local submissions include: 

“Having worked in climate change at the Australian Conservation Foundation some 35 years ago, I know the increased risk of fire created by global warming. I believe that the community would benefit from First Nations people being paid to help locals with advice and cool burning and supervising regularly cool burning the areas of state forest and bushland which surround our town. In addition, clearing the blackberries, broom and weeds and planting low-growing indigenous plants in Cornish Hill would reduce this area so close to houses from being such an ongoing high fire risk.”

“Lack of energy efficient homes are cited as the primary factor in deaths associated with heat waves, which are the deadliest of all other extreme weather events combined. Approximately 50% of Greater Bendigo homes were built before 1990. A Sustainability Victoria study found that homes of this era generally perform in accordance with a 1.6 star energy rating. The same Sustainability Victoria study found that homes built between 1990 and 2004 (20% of Bendigo’s housing stock) are likely to perform in accordance with a 3.1 star energy rating. These homes are vulnerable to both extreme heat and cold and are expensive for residents to run.“  

“A state or national retrofitting program would help enhance the resilience of existing homes to climate risks. For disaster resilience, simple initiatives such as raising electrical switchboards, installing flood resistant floor coverings and permeable fencing can help reduce damage from flood events in established neighbourhoods and townships with housing stock built before contemporary flood mitigation standards. Similarly, support for installation of fire retardant plantings and external sprinkler systems can help reduce the risk of property damage in fire prone areas.”

A survey of Victorian councils by FinPro found that the costs associated with climate change are contributing to significant financial pressure on local governments. The ability of Victorian councils to keep up with regular asset maintenance and renewal, and to invest in upgrades for climate resilience, is severely hampered by resource and funding constraints.

Adding to the above actions, the Central Vic Greenhouse Alliance of local government and statutory authorities, which is made up of Ararat Rural City Council, Ballarat City Council, Buloke Shire Council, Central Goldfields Shire Council, Gannawarra Shire Council, Greater Bendigo City Council, Hepburn Shire Council, Loddon Shire Council, Macedon Ranges Shire Council, Mildura Rural City Council, Mount Alexander Shire Council, Pyrenees Shire Council, and Swan Hill Rural City Council, together with other Victorian Greenhouse Alliances, is calling for:

• increasing access to financial support for asset risk assessments and resilience upgrades,
• mainstreaming betterment for climate resilient assets ("build back better"),
• increasing access to data and support for evidence-based decision-making,
• embedding climate change as a priority consideration at all levels of the Victorian planning system,
• green infrastructure programs,
• increasing coordination of and support for emergency management services,
• investing in the resilience of facilities used for shelter and emergency relief, and
• a multilevel governance approach to climate adaptation and resilience.

“Communities know what climate adaptation plans and projects are most needed and relevant for them, but they are not getting the support they urgently need to implement them. They are looking to the state government for leadership and assistance to adapt to climate impacts,” said Ms Ellmore.

“Building resilience to climate disasters in our communities demands centering the needs of those most at risk in our disaster preparation, planning and response. In preparing for climate impacts the Government must follow a just adaptation framework that addresses multiple and intersecting injustices. This includes integrating learnings from the ancestral knowledges and ongoing adaptive practices of Indigenous Peoples.”

“While the Vic Government has undertaken adaptation planning work, this has not been sufficiently acted on and has not been backed up with ongoing funding to prepare communities for the climate impacts forecast to affect Victoria. Every step we take to help communities adapt to now unavoidable climate impacts secures a safer future and builds resilience, protecting people and Country.”

IMAGE: Community photo taken outside the Macedon Resilience Inquiry hearing with Annika Kearton from the Central Victorian Greenhouse Alliance, Jeff from the Macedon Ranges Sustainability group and Act on Climate’s Fund Community Climate Resilience banner

MORE INFORMATION ON AoC’s VCCAF: https://www.melbournefoe.org.au/budget_2025-26_proposals_climate_adaptation 

CONTACTS:

Vicky Ellmore

Community Organiser, Act on Climate collective, Friends of the Earth Melbourne 

0424687809

[email protected] 

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India Rowles

Community Organiser, Act on Climate collective, Friends of the Earth Melbourne 

0434 269 777

[email protected] 

Join the call for A Community Climate Adaptation Fund for Victoria by adding your name to our petition