6 days ago
More than 17,000 properties impacted by latest Brisbane City Council flood mapping
The Brisbane City Council has updated its flood risk map, earmarking more than 10,000 properties as being at some risk of a future flood event.
In a statement, the council said these changes stemmed from studies conducted at Breakfast Creek, Jindalee and the Lota Creek catchments in 2024.
An extra 10,129 properties have been incorporated into the revised flood risk map, with more than 2,000 other properties subject to an increase in flood risk category.
Four hundred properties have been removed from the map.
The updates only apply to creek and waterway flooding, not Brisbane River or overland flooding.
The risk facing many of the owners "can be as low as a one-in-2,000-year event" and council has warned insurance companies not to unfairly hike their premiums as a result.
Chair for Environment, Parks and Sustainability Councillor Tracy Davis said the changes would help to improve disaster preparedness.
"Whether it's preparing a family home or planning new infrastructure, knowing your flood risk matters and we want residents to have the latest information," Cr Davis said.
Letters will be sent to affected owners next month to explain the update and changes are expected to be made to the online flood awareness map tool.
Greens Paddington Ward Councillor Seal Chong Wah said council had not provided impacted residents with enough time to understand the changes.
"Residents should have been told about this last year so they had the opportunity to challenge or discuss the study," she said.
"I was pretty shocked because I didn't get a briefing on it, which I think is irresponsible because I want to be able to respond to my community.
"The communication that council is providing is very limited … this is serious for many residents."
