800 properties removed from flood zone, but some new ones added – with a cost
“There was a bit of water in the street, but that was mainly from council drainage.
“There’s no historic record of the property having any impact from flooding, but apparently the potential is there.”
Tracy Davis, the chair of the Brisbane City Council’s environment, parks and sustainability committee, said in October the updates would reflect findings from recent hydrological studies.
“We’re continually seeking the most recent and detailed information to inform the range of free flood resources council offers to residents,” she said.
“No flood is the same, and we must ensure residents are armed with the correct information to help them prepare based on their own flooding risk.”
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The new overlays are based on five flood studies completed between September 2023 and June 2024. Over the past 10 years, the council has done 28 similar studies.
Like other Australians, many Brisbane residents have spent the last year copping higher premiums on home insurance – making flood predictions a sensitive topic.
The Insurance Council of Australia said “upward pressure” had been put on insurance premiums across the country from factors that included inflation, higher house prices and the higher cost of disaster recovery efforts.
“Insurance prices risk, and a higher premium generally indicates higher risk. Flood maps are just one part of what is used to calculate this,” an ICA spokeswoman said.
The council’s flood overlay codes also inform future development, through building codes specific to different flood zones, though existing buildings would not be affected by changes to the maps.
With much of Brisbane built on a flood plain, Green said that the risk of flooding came with the territory for Gordon Park residents.
Almost 1000 properties bordering Kedron Brook, Brighton Creek, Toowong Creek, Sandy Creek and Witton Creek were removed from the council’s most recent flood maps. Credit: Catherine Strohfeldt
“I think Gordon Park, in general, when it was designed in 1800-whatever, probably wasn’t designed for the amount of houses and humans that are in the area now,” he said.
“It’s a lovely part of the world, and being so close to the brook is probably worth that risk, given that for 99.9 per cent of the time it’s not raining [and] there’s no issue.”
The updated flood overlay map can be accessed on the Brisbane City Council website.
