The NSW government has announced a new organization to streamline the long-term reconstruction of flood-hit communities. The creation of the Northern Rivers Reconstruction Corporation (NRRC) was welcomed by the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA).
“The NSW government is in this for the long haul. We will support the people of flood impacted communities, across the Northern Rivers, every step of the way,” NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said.
The ICA sent a letter to the government last week, with support from industry bodies, outlining the need for an overarching flood recovery plan beyond the immediate response and recovery phase.
“We know the community needs certainty. We are working through recovery, and we have an independent inquiry underway that will hear from all of those impacted, from experts and the scientific community,” Perrottet said.
The ICA has long urged governments to do more to reduce flood risk at a community and property level.
“This is a very welcomed and crucial next step by the NSW government,” said ICA CEO Andrew Hall. “Beyond the immediate clean-up and community recovery it is clear there are complex issues to work through if we are to ensure the Lismore community is made more resilient to future flood events,” he said.
Hall pointed to overlooked issues including the construction of community resilience infrastructure, the future insurability and lendability of homes and building codes and standards.
“The ICA understands community concerns that the cost of flood cover can be prohibitively high for some who are faced with high flood risk, leading to them to opt out of flood cover altogether,” said the ICA release responding to the government announcement.
The NSW Premier said the rebuilding of towns like Lismore will be a focus of the NRRC.
“The rebuilding of Lismore will require a united, effective and coordinated response to enable everyone in the community to plan for the future and get on with their lives, and that will be the driving responsibility of this new authority,” he said.
