These works, roughly $10 million worth, will be carried out across eight different projects, including work in the Ipswich city centre. The funding has been allocated as part of the National Insurance Affordability Initiative which aims to improve the overall performance of the state’s built infrastructure in the event of another severe flood.
With Ipswich experiencing three significant flooding events in the last five years, there has been a real impetus within the city to improve these defences. Most of these new projects have been in the pipeline since 2013, when the last major flood occurred.
City Infrastructure Committee Chairperson Councillor Cheryl Bromage emphasised the improvements these projects would offer, following flooding in 2008 and 2011, as well as 2013.
“Ipswich has faced numerous flooding concerns and challenges over its history, in particular over the last five years,” said Ms Bromage. “This localised flooding has occurred along with riverine flooding associated with the Bremer and Brisbane Rivers impacting significantly on the city.”
“Now that the flood mitigation funding has been received council will enter the design and delivery phase of each of these projects.
Ipswich isn’t the only city that has begun to take flood mitigation seriously, with a number of communities across Queensland building new defences to keep out high river levels. Earlier this year, new flood-prevention works were undertaken in Townsville and nearby communities in order to improve the flood resilience of these far-north regions.
As a result, these eight projects in Ipswich are just some of the more than 80 being undertaken right across the state.
Flood mitigation an opportunity for apprentices
As flood mitigation works continue to gather pace, there will be new opportunities for those seeking an apprenticeship or traineeship in Ipswich. These projects are likely to create a variety of employment positions, as each flood resilience measure has a number of components.
For example, the flood protection works in central Ipswich are mostly excavation works to create a new catchment basin, while Thagoona will see much larger construction work. For those who are looking to develop skills in an area like civil construction or earth-moving, these developments will be very valuable.
As flood mitigation becomes a key priority across the state, there are also likely to be further employment opportunities for future apprentices.
By Leanne de Toerkenczy, Public Relations Coordinator
