Address to the Torrens Resilience Institute
Adelaide
2 July 2010
First, may I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we meet on – and pay my respects to their elders, both past and present.
Alastair McAslan, Director of the Torrens Resilience Institute.
The Hon John Rau MP, Attorney-General of South Australia.
Ladies and gentlemen.
It is a great pleasure to join you today at the Torrens Resilience Institute, a new body which is making a valuable contribution to the growing field of emergency management policy. I look forward to working with the Institute on an issue that is of central relevance to all Australians.
Australia has always been a country of extreme natural events. While previous generations confronted similar challenges to those we face today, we are seeing disasters increase dramatically in both their frequency and severity. This presents Governments, communities and citizens with unprecedented demands on their resources and expertise.
Most Australians could easily recall the catastrophic events of recent years, from the 2009 flooding that affected 62 per cent of Queensland to the tragic Victorian bushfires that claimed 173 lives. The costs of such disasters have been immense, reflected in the fact that the Australian community has borne over $1 billion annually in costs associated with damage over the last thirty years. This cost is increasing. Estimates for the upcoming financial year suggest that the Commonwealth alone will provide in the order of $650 million for recovery assistance.
A number of national as well as international factors have exacerbated this risk. For example, it is widely acknowledged that climate change is playing a critical role in the nature and scale of disasters. Growth in the urban-rural fringes of our cities and towns is also increasing community exposure.
Today I would like to outline the Government’s approach in addressing these challenges.
All Hazards Approach
In December 2008, the Government acknowledged that national security can be as easily threatened by disaster or disease, as by traditional national security threats such as terrorism.
As I have outlined, the nature and scale of these events has meant that all available resources and expertise must be brought together and consistently applied, regardless of the cause. Accordingly, the Government has pursued a comprehensive agenda drawing together Commonwealth agencies, different levels of Government, the private sector and communities towards a consistent, ‘all-hazards’ approach.
Put simply, an ‘all-hazards’ approach is about protecting Australia from risks to its safety and interests whether from man made or natural events.
A good example of this was the launch this week of the Government’s Critical Infrastructure Resilience Strategy. While critical infrastructure protection has previously been looked at through the prism of possible terrorist threats, it is now acknowledged that natural disasters can equally threaten vital public infrastructure.
In recognition of this ‘all hazards’ principle, I can today announce that the Government has decided to extend the operation of the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA) to also include terrorist events.
As you would be aware, NDRRA payments are made by the Commonwealth to the States and Territories to help pay for disaster relief and recovery costs.
Today’s announcement means that the payments will not only apply in the event of a natural disaster, but also in response to a terrorist event.
This will provide greater certainty in funding arrangements and improve the resilience of our communities to quickly bounce back from a disaster or emergency event.
Despite all these measures, adopting and implementing a true ‘all-hazards’ approach will require a degree of cultural change as well as ongoing work between Governments and the broader community.
This is an area which we are constantly examining to ensure we continue to get the approach right.
National Leadership in Emergency Management
States and Territories hold primary responsibility for emergency management. This is appropriate, as they are usually best placed to understand local needs and address them through their local emergency service organisations.
However, the nature and scale of threats and disasters will increasingly require a nationally coordinated and consistent response. This is vital to ensure that all jurisdictions can cooperate in the face of catastrophic events, and that Australians can rely on similar processes no matter where in the country they live or travel.
There is a clear and increasing role for the Commonwealth to work with States and Territories in developing this consistency. Since taking office, the Government has been actively pursuing this agenda.
Last year, for example, the Government led efforts to establish the National Emergency Management Committee (NEMC) through the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) to drive and coordinate national policies and capability development in relation to emergency management.
This includes the ability to influence and facilitate decisions beyond the traditional emergency management portfolio into more traditional national security sectors.
The NEMC is already providing advice on the prioritisation of projects and the development of a National Disaster Resilience Strategy to guide Governments, the private sector and communities in a common and consistent approach.
Another good example has been work to develop simplified, cooperative response procedures.
The new National Catastrophic Natural Disaster Plan outlines the national coordination of support by Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments.
For the first time, a plan has been developed to specifically coordinate the national response to significant disaster events. This will serve as a model for future arrangements.
Recent experience has also shown that large-scale emergency management capabilities can often best be acquired through jurisdictions working together.
A good example of this is the National Aerial Firefighting Arrangements, which enable the joint procurement and management of specialised firefighting aircraft – such as the 'Elvis' air cranes – that might otherwise be financially out of reach of individual jurisdictions.
Aircraft are procured each year by the National Aerial Firefighting Centre – a corporation supported by Commonwealth funding and managed by States and Territories. This arrangement achieves maximum value through cooperative leasing and enables the assets to be utilised according to need and specifically the location of the emergency.
Perhaps the most significant collaborative project in recent years has been the development of a national telephone-based emergency warning system.
Completed in December 2009, ‘Emergency Alert’ allows States and Territories to send voice warnings to landlines and text warnings to mobile phones based on the customer’s registered address.
Although no one warning method should ever be relied upon as the only source of information, the development of this 24/7 tool means that we are now better prepared to deal with either localised emergencies or catastrophic disasters.
The Government was pleased to facilitate national agreement in the development of ‘Emergency Alert’, and has provided more than $26 million to help the States and Territories develop it.
As part of this commitment, the Government has also invested over $1.3 million to support research into the feasibility of delivering warnings to mobile phones based on the location of the handset at the time of sending a message. Encouraging work is occurring on this project.
There are a number of other areas that will also benefit from further collaboration. I have recently spoken about some of these, including enhancements to the Emergency Triple Zero Service to enable States and Territories to assist each other when surge capacity is required.
The Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy and the Attorney General’s Department are also developing plans for a harmonised band for emergency radio communications across jurisdictions.
This will make it easier for emergency responders called in for backup from another State or Territory to more easily plug into the communications network of the State they are assisting.
This process will be assisted through a new source of funding to projects of national significance, provided under the recently implemented Natural Disaster Resilience Program (NDRP).
Each of these examples demonstrate the practical results that can be achieved when all governments work together for the good of Australia. Community-led Resilience
I have talked today about the role that Governments should play in disaster management, through an ‘all-hazards’, cross-jurisdictional approach.
However, even the best efforts of Government will never be sufficient to protect against all risks.
In recognition of this, we have moved emergency management policy making from ‘response’ to ‘resilience’. This is a significant departure from the traditional approach to emergency management in Australia as it seeks to manage risks through detailed planning and preparation by governments at all levels, as well as communities and individuals.
Put simply, resilience means the ability to bounce back.
Specifically, in the event of Australia being attacked or suffer a disaster or emergency event, we need to have the systems in place to ensure we can bounce back in the quickest and most sustainable ways possible.
That may involve, for example, ensuring we can get power to our hospitals, food to our people or find alternative water supplies. In short, whatever we need to do to ensure the continuity of our economy and our society.
This requires a clearer understanding of individual and community roles and responsibilities as well as what can realistically be expected of Government.
Each of us has a personal responsibility to make informed choices about where and how we live, the impact of our everyday behaviours, and necessity of precautions such as household safety preparations and even private insurance.
Useful strategies could be as basic as having a plan and knowing evacuation routes if you live in a bushfire prone area, or reinforcing your windows and securing household fixtures if you live in an area prone to cyclones.
This understanding is at the core of a resilience based approach. These strategies all assist in enabling households and hence communities to better withstand and respond to disasters.
Having said that, there is also a role for Government in facilitating greater awareness in the community. At its meeting in December last year, COAG noted that ‘disaster resilience is the collective responsibility of all sectors of society, including all levels of government, business, the non-government sector and individuals’.
That is why the Commonwealth is working with the States and Territories to ensure this recognition is supported by practical and positive programs to increase community resilience.
In that context, this week I launched three new computer-based education resources for primary and secondary school students which focus on understanding natural disasters, as well as steps for preparation and recovery.
Along with a number of other educational resources prepared by my Department, they are available on the Emergency Management Australia website and I encourage all schools to consider utilising them.
The Commonwealth is also conducting a review, in cooperation with States and Territories, of the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA) to ensure that post-disaster recovery is completed in a way that builds on lessons learnt and leaves communities stronger.
For example, rebuilding a washing out bridge to better withstand a future flood.
In future, Governments will also need to develop planning and building regulations to maximise individual and community resilience.
In short, we all have mutual responsibility to each other. Reckless or poor planning decisions in one locality can impact on all other Australians who are required to foot the bill for recovery.
Australians are incredibly generous to those who have suffered misfortune, but we need to be aware of how rapidly the recovery demands are escalating. We need to develop a response that is both reasonable and sustainable.
Conclusion
The present environment presents Governments with unprecedented challenges in emergency management.
There are many measures that Governments will need to take in response, from pursuing an ‘all-hazards’ approach, to increasing cooperation across jurisdictions.
The Commonwealth is playing a lead role in this process.
The Australian community, however, will also need to become more resilient in the face of this changing environment, to complement the work and support of Government.
The Australian Government is committed to encouraging this process in order to achieve truly ‘shared responsibility’ between individuals, communities, businesses and governments.
I am sure that by working in partnership we will continue to build our strengths and capabilities to better understand and meet the risks we face into the future.
Thank you.
