Come and join us at the 2020 National Forum on Coastal Hazards

NOTICE – NATIONAL FORUM ON COASTAL HAZARDS

The Australian Coastal Councils Association has postponed the National Forum on Coastal Hazards as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The event was scheduled to be held at Fremantle from 20 to 22 May.

A meeting of the Association’s Committee of Management on 16 March 2020 decided to postpone the event until the risks associated with the coronavirus outbreak have abated.

A new date for the Forum will be set once the current coronavirus restrictions have been eased.

Additional support needed for coastal councils

The National Forum on Coastal Hazards is an important event which is aimed at gaining additional support and guidance for coastal councils in their efforts to deal effectively with coastal hazards.

The decision to hold the Forum was made by the Australian Coastal Councils Association in response to a number of recent developments including the following:

• The increasing impact of coastal erosion along the Australian coastline in recent times.
• Mounting concern by state governments and coastal councils about how to best respond to coastal hazards.
• The financial effect of coastal hazards on coastal councils and their communities.

The Forum is being planned to feed into the process announced at the Meeting of Federal and State Environment Ministers in Adelaide on 8 November 2019. The statement issued after the meeting announced the formation of a Coastal Hazards Working Group to:

“collate existing information on costal erosion and inundation hazard risk management and propose a collaborative approach to coastal erosion for consideration at a future meeting of environment ministers.”

There will be innovative and informative speakers on issues of critical importance to coastal managers. Plus, there will be good networking opportunities at an iconic coastal location that has experienced severe coastal erosion. There will also be an opportunity to make input into important new coastal policy initiatives.

Topics will include:

• Coastal Hazards Policy Forum
• Options for responding to coastal erosion
• Case studies from around Australia
• Development of an improved coastal governance model
• Nature-based coastal defence in Australia.

Survey on Coastal Hazards

The Association is to conduct a national survey in the lead-up to the forum to assess the impact of coastal hazards on coastal communities and to explore policy options for responding to coastal erosion and other hazards.

All coastal councils in Australia will be invited to participate in the survey and to provide further details of their experiences of coastal erosion and other hazards which can be used as case studies in the survey report. The results of the survey will form the basis for discussion at a policy workshop on coastal hazards at the National Forum on Coastal Hazards.

For inquiries email: info@coastalcouncils.org.au