Footnotes

Preliminary Pages

[1]       Ms Janet Holmes, Mr Richard Selth and Mr Peter Keele also held the position of Secretary for various periods from January 2008 through to April 2009. Ms Natalya Wells provided research support for the secretariat for a six-week period in mid 2009.

Chapter 1 Introduction

[1]       Professor Woodroffe, Submission 24, p. 8.

[2]       Professor Tomlinson and Mr Lazarow, Submission 58, p. 4.

[3]       The terms ‘coastal zone’ and ‘coast’ are used interchangeably in this report and refer to the catchment-coast-marine continuum, unless otherwise specified. (The ‘coastal zone’ can be variously defined according to linear boundaries such as the mean high water mark, local government administrative boundaries or biophysical features.)

[4]       Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 3.

[5]       Professor Thom, Submission 6, pp. 1-2.

[6]       Northern Territory Government, Submission 106, p. 26.

[7]       Victorian Government, Submission 90, p. 9.

[8]       NSW Government, Submission 55, p. 5.

[9]       Western Australian Department of Planning and Infrastructure, Submission 89, p. 1.

[10]     Queensland Government, Submission 91, p. 5.

[11]     Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 3.

[12]     See further discussion on IPCC sea level rise projections in Chapter 2.

[13]     See Professor Steffen, Submission 45; and Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, Submission 46.

[14]     COAG meeting outcomes, 20 December 2007, COAG website accessed on 17 July 2009 <http://www.coag.gov.au/coag_meeting_outcomes/2007-12-20/index.cfm>

[15]     COAG meeting outcomes, 20 December 2007, COAG website accessed on 17 July 2009 <http://www.coag.gov.au/coag_meeting_outcomes/2007-12-20/index.cfm>

[16]     COAG, National Climate Change Adaptation Framework,  COAG website accessed on 17 July 2009 <http://www.coag.gov.au/coag_meeting_outcomes/2007-04-13/docs/national_climate_change_adaption_framework.pdf>

[17]     Manly Council, Submission 72, p. 11.

[18]     Australian State of the Environment Committee, Australia: State of the Environment 2006, Independent Report to the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Commonwealth of Australia, 2006.

[19]     NT Government, Submission 106, pp. 26-27.

[20]     National Sea Change Taskforce (NSCT), Submission 79, pp. 7-8.

[21]     NSCT, Submission 79, p. 30.

[22]     Professor Woodroffe, Submission 24, p. 1, p. 3.

[23]     Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Submission 103, p. 2.

[24]     Dr Wescott, Submission 60, p. 6.

[25]     Mr Stokes, NSCT, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 2.

[26]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 6.

[27]     House of Representatives Standing Committee on Environment and Conservation, Management of the Australian Coastal Zone, 1980, p. ix.

[28]     House of Representatives Standing Committee on Environment, Recreation and the Arts, The Injured Coastline: Protection of the Coastal Environment, 1991, p. xiii.

[29]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 1.

[30]     RAC, Coastal Zone Inquiry: Final Report, Commonwealth of Australia, 1993, p. 13.

[31]     Agenda 21, UNCED, Rio de Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992, para 5, chapter 17.

[32]     N Gurran et al, Meeting the Sea Change Challenge: Best Practice Models of Local and Regional Planning for Sea Change Communities (Report No. 2 for the NSCT), University of Sydney Planning Research Centre, 2006, p. 7—Exhibit 20.

[33]     Dr Wescott, Submission 60, p. 2.

[34]     The NRMMC was established in 2001 under the auspices of COAG. It consists of the Commonwealth and state/territory government ministers responsible for primary industries, natural resources, environment and water policy.

[35]     NRMMC, National Cooperative Approach to Integrated Coastal Zone Management: Framework and Implementation Plan, Commonwealth of Australia, 2006, pp. 6-7—Exhibit 79.

[36]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 10.

[37]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 1, p. 10.

[38]     NSCT, Submission 79, p. 9, p. 10.

[39]     NSCT, Submission 79, p. 4, p. 30.

[40]     NSCT, Submission 79, p. 12.

[41]     N Gurran et al, Meeting the Sea Change Challenge: Best Practice Models of Local and Regional Planning for Sea Change Communities (Report No. 2 for the NSCT), University of Sydney Planning Research Centre, 2006, pp. 8-9—Exhibit 20.

[42]     See, for example, Professor Thom, ‘the US system works well in a federation and needs to be ... considered by this Inquiry’, Submission 6, p. 4.

[43]     See B Norman, Planning for Coastal Climate Change: an Insight into International and National Approaches, Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment and Department of Planning and Community Development, 2009—Exhibit 176.

[44]     IPCC, Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the IPCC, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2007, p. 317, p. 319.

[45]     Department of Climate Change, Australian Climate Change Science: A National Framework, May 2009, p. 1, DCC website accessed on 24 July 2009 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/science/publications/pubs/cc-science-framework.pdf>

[46]     Media release by Senator the Hon Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change and Water, and the Hon Stephen Smith MP, Minister for Foreign Affairs, ‘Australia announces funding priorities for Pacific climate change adaptation’, 6 August 2009.

[47]     DCC website accessed 25 August 2009 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/international/index.html>

[48]     Department of Climate Change, ‘Assessing the vulnerability of Australia’s coasts to climate change’, fact sheet, DCC website <http://www.climatechange.gov.au>

[49]     Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 7.

Chapter 2 Climate change and the coastal zone: the science and the impacts

[1]       Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, Submission 46, p. 5.

[2]       Department of Climate Change, Australian Climate Change Science: A National Framework, May 2009, p. 1, DCC website accessed on 24 July 2009 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/science/publications/pubs/cc-science-framework.pdf>

[3]       IPCC, Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis, Contribution of Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the IPCC, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2007. (The comprehensive information in the IPCC reports is based on peer-reviewed, published scientific evidence from relevant experts from all regions.)

[4]       ‘Very likely’ is defined by the IPCC to mean >90% probability of the occurrence or outcome.

[5]       IPCC, ‘Summary for policymakers’, Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis, pp. 5-13.

[6]       The IPCC’s Fifth Assessment Report will be finalised in 2014.

[7]       Professor Steffen, Submission 45, p. 1. See also Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 5.

[8]       Article 2, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 1992.

[9]       See Annex B, Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC, 1998.

[10]     Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme: Australia’s Low Pollution Future, White Paper, Volume 1, Commonwealth of Australia, 2008, p. xix.

[11]     Media release by the Treasurer and the Minister for Climate Change and Water, ‘A new target for reducing Australia’s carbon pollution’, 4 May 2009.

[12]     Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 3.

[13]     Professor Woodroffe, Submission 24, p. 7.

[14]     Ms Brooke, Climate Action Newcastle, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 68.

[15]     Mr Clarke, Great Ocean Road Coast Committee, Transcript of Evidence, 20 May 2009, pp. 71-72.

[16]     N Stern, The Economics of Climate Change: the Stern Review, 2006, p. vi, UK Treasury website accessed on 20 July 2009 <http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/stern_review_report.htm>

[17]     R Garnaut, The Garnaut Climate Change Review: Final Report, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2008, p. xvii.

[18]     The Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS) is a cap-and-trade emissions trading scheme designed as Australia’s contribution to limiting the global emissions of greenhouse gases so as to contain global warming and climate change. The Australian Government released Green and White Papers on the scheme in July and December 2008 respectively. Exposure drafts of the bills to introduce the CPRS were released in March 2009 and the bills were introduced into Parliament on 14 May 2009.

[19]     Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme: Australia’s Low Pollution Future, White Paper, Volume 1, pp. 1-8.

[20]     Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 2, p. 11.

[21]     Professor Steffen, Submission 45, p. 3.

[22]     Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report 2009: In Brief, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Commonwealth of Australia, 2009, p. ii.

[23]     RJ Nicholls et al, ‘Coastal systems and low-lying areas’, Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the IPCC, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2007, pp. 315-356.

[24]     K Hennessy et al, ‘Australia and New Zealand’, Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, pp. 507-540.

[25]     Nicholls et al, ‘Coastal systems and low-lying areas’, Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, p. 317.

[26]     Australian Bureau of Meteorology, Submission 15, p. 1.

[27]     Dr Hunter, ACE CRC, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 4.

[28]     ACE CRC, Submission 46, p. 2.

[29]     See J Church et al, ‘Briefing: a post-IPCC AR4 update on sea level rise’, ACE CRC, 2008; ‘Position analysis: climate change, sea-level rise and extreme events—impacts and adaptation issues’, ACE CRC, 2008; Position analysis: polar ice sheets and climate change—global impacts’, ACE CRC, 2009; Position analysis: changes to Antarctic sea ice—impacts’, ACE CRC, 2009; and Position analysis: CO₂ emissions and climate change—ocean impacts and adaptation issues, ACE CRC, 2008. ACE CRC website accessed on 28 July 2009 <http://www.acecrc.org.au/drawpage.cgi?pid=publications&aid=797037>

[30]     See Church et al, ‘[o]bservations since 1961 show that widespread decreases in glaciers and ice caps (excluding the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets) have contributed significantly to sea-level rise. These areas are estimated to contain only enough water to raise global average sea level by less than about 40 cm,’ ‘Briefing: a post-IPCC AR4 update on sea level rise’, p. 5.

[31]     Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 2.

[32]     Church et al, ‘Briefing: a post-IPCC AR4 update on sea level rise’, p. 5.

[33]     ‘[W]e project a sea level rise of 0.09 to 0.88 m for 1990 to 2100, with a central value of 0.48 m’, IPCC, Climate Change 2001: The Scientific Basis, p. 642.

[34]     IPCC, Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis, p. 13.

[35]     Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2008, p. 1.

[36]     The IPCC noted that higher sea level rises could not be ruled out: ‘[m]odels used to date do not include ... the full effects of changes in ice sheet flow, because a basis in published literature is lacking ... Larger values cannot be excluded, but understanding of these effects is too limited to assess their likelihood or provide a best estimate or an upper bound for sea level rise’, IPCC, Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis, p. 14.

[37]    Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2008, p. 2.

[38]    Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 2.

[39]     Professor Steffen, Submission 45, pp. 1-2. See also Dr Church, ‘[t]he current rate of rise, as observed both from satellite altimeters and in situ tide gauges, is tracking along the upper limit of those projections ... that upper limit leads to a sea level rise in the order of 80 to 90 centimetres, by 2100, relative to 1990’, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 2.

[40]     Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2009, p. 2.

[41]     Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2009, p. 2.

[42]     Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2009, p. 2.

[43]     Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2009, p. 2.

[44]     Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2009, p. 2.

[45]     Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 2.

[46]     J Church et al, ‘Briefing: a post-IPCC AR4 update on sea level rise’, ACE CRC, 2008, p. 4.

[47]     Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2009, p. 2.

[48]     Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 3, 5.

[49]     Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2009, pp. 2-3, p. 4.

[50]     W Steffen, Climate Change 2009: Faster Change and More Serious Risks, Department of Climate Change, Commonwealth of Australia, 2009, p. 11 (emphasis added).

[51]     Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 13.

[52]     Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 7, p. 13.

[53]     ACE CRC, Submission 46, p. 1, p. 2.

[54]     Professor Woodroffe, Submission 24, p. 5.

[55]     Changing ocean waves have the potential to add to extreme sea level events through large wave events or changes in wave direction—see MA Hemer et al, Variability and Trends in the Australian Wave Climate and Consequent Coastal Vulnerability, Final Report for Department of Climate Change Surface Ocean Wave Variability Project, CSIRO, 2008.

[56]     Dr Hunter, ACE CRC, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, pp. 3-4.

[57]     Dr Hunter, ACE CRC, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 4.

[58]     Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2008, p. 7.

[59]     Australian Bureau of Meteorology, Submission 15, p. 3.

[60]     Dr Hunter, ACE CRC, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 7.

[61]     Professor Woodroffe, Submission 24, p. 5.

[62]     Dr Sloss, AQA, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 23, p. 24.

[63]     Dr Sloss, AQA, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 25.

[64]     See Steffen, ‘[b]ecause the concentration of carbonate ions is related to the acidity of seawater, marine organisms that use dissolved carbonate ions to build solid calcium carbonate shells ... are sensitive to the pH of the ocean. Higher acidity (lower pH) reduces the saturation state of aragonite (a form of calcium carbonate) and makes it more difficult for these organisms to form shells ... The effects of the increased acidity in the ocean can already be observed in some biological systems’, Climate Change 2009: Faster Change and More Serious Risks, p. 22.

[65]     Church et al, ‘Briefing: a post-IPCC AR4 update on sea level rise’, p. 5.

[66]     Reef and Rainforest Research Centre, Submission 30, p. 13. See also Professor Woodroffe, ‘[r]esearch on this topic is in its infancy, and more needs to be undertaken’, Submission 24, p. 5.

[67]     CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research (CMAR) aims to advance Australian climate, marine, and earth systems science. CMAR’s research is delivered largely through research themes in CSIRO’s Wealth from Oceans Flagship and, with the Bureau of Meteorology, through the Centre for Australian Weather and Climate Research. CSIRO is also involved in sea level research through the ACE CRC.

[68]     The Bureau of Meteorology seeks to observe and understand Australian weather and climate and provide meteorological, hydrological and oceanographic services in support of Australia’s national needs and international obligations. The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Innovation is currently inquiring into long-term meteorological forecasting in Australia, including potential applications for emergency response to natural disasters—Parliament of Australia website accessed 4 August 2009 <http://www.aph.gov.au/house/committee/isi/weather/tor.htm>

[69]     For example, a consortium of four major universities undertaking significant climate research have recently integrated their research and education programs under the Universities Climate Consortium. The consortium works in collaboration with CSIRO, the Bureau of Meteorology and other universities—ANU website accessed on 22 July 2009 <http://www.anu.edu.au/climatechange/current-events/aucc>

[70]     ACE CRC is funded under the Australian Government’s Cooperative Research Centres Program. One of the centre’s science programs is dedicated to research on sea level rise and its implications for the Australian coastal zone.

[71]     DCC website accessed on 22 July 2009 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/science/accsp/index.html>

[72]     DCC, Australian Climate Change Science: A National Framework, May 2009, p. 1 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/science/publications/pubs/cc-science-framework.pdf>

[73]     DCC, Australian Climate Change Science: A National Framework, p. 1 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/science/publications/pubs/cc-science-framework.pdf>

[74]     Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 15.

[75]     DCC, Australian Climate Change Science: A National Framework, p. 17 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/science/publications/pubs/cc-science-framework.pdf> See also Powering Ideas: An Innovation Agenda for the 21st Century, Commonwealth of Australia, 2009; and Review of National Innovation report, Venturous Australia: Building Strength in Innovation, Cutler and Company Pty Ltd, 2008.

[76]     Sydney Coastal Councils Group, Submission 77, p. 9.

[77]     ACE CRC, Submission 46, p. 5.

[78]     Dr Hunter, ACE CRC, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 14. See also Dr Church, ‘we ... require more coordinated studies, particularly on the issues of inundation and erosion’, ACE CRC, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 34.

[79]     DCC, Australian Climate Change Science: A National Framework, p. 17 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/science/publications/pubs/cc-science-framework.pdf>

[80]     Sydney Coastal Councils Group, Submission 77, p. 9.

[81]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 4.

[82]     Local Government Association of Tasmania, Submission 86, p. 9.

[83]     ACE CRC, Submission 46, p. 5.

Chapter 3 Climate change and the coastal zone: adaptation strategies and practices to promote resilience

[1]       COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 3.

[2]       COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 3.

[3]       COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 3.

[4]       Department of Climate Change website accessed on 22 July 2009 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/impacts/about.html> The National Climate Change Adaptation Program, established in 2005, was an early federal government initiative predating the COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework.

[5]       The Department of Climate Change recently updated the report, Climate Change and Adaptation Actions for Local Government, which adopts the Australian Standard for Risk Management (AS/NZS 4360: 2004) as a means of addressing and managing the risks posed by climate change, and assessing what adaptation work is required. See Department of Climate Change, Climate Change and Adaptation Actions for Local Government, 2009, p. 15. See also Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, Submission 28; Attorney-General’s Department and Emergency Management Australia, Submission 56; and Surf Life Saving Australia, Submission 57.

[6]       Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment, Submission 90b, p. 1.

[7]       COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 12.

[8]       COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 12.

[9]       Department of Climate Change, ‘Fact Sheet: Assessing the Vulnerability of Australia’s Coasts to Climate Change’ <http://climatechange.gov.au/impacts/coasts.html#research>

[10]     Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 2.

[11]     Department of Climate Change website accessed on 30 July 2009 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/impacts/coasts.html#research>

[12]     The Spatial Information Council is also commonly known as ANZLIC from its former name the Australian and New Zealand Land Information Council.

[13]     Mr Hopkins, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 September 2008, p. 3.

[14]     Mr Hopkins, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 September 2008, p. 3.

[15]     Mr Hopkins, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 September 2008, p. 3.

[16]     Engineers Australia, Submission 29, p. 4.

[17]     Mr Hopkins, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 September 2008, p. 3.

[18]     Mr Hopkins, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 September 2008, p. 3.

[19]     University of Tasmania, Submission 104, p. 2.

[20]     Media release by the Hon Greg Combet AM MP, Minister Assisting the Minister for Climate Change, ‘Erosion Potential of Australia’s Coasts with a Changing Climate’, 4 August 2009.

[21]     See <http://www.ozcoasts.org.au>

[22]     See <http://www.ozcoasts.org.au/coastal/smartline.jsp>

[23]     Mr Sharples, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 26. See also C Sharples, C Attwater, J Carley, Exhibit 67, p. 3.

[24]     Mr Sharples, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 26.

[25]     The Department of Climate Change’s three pillars are: reducing Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions, adapting to the impacts of climate change we cannot avoid and helping to shape a global solution. The work of the department is focused around these three priorities.

[26]     Department of Climate Change website accessed 7 August 2009 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/impacts/about.html#professionals>

[27]     Ms Norman, Transcript of Evidence, 20 May 2009, p. 33. See also PIA, ‘skill shortages exist in the planning profession and related professions especially in Local Governments’, Submission 51, p. 4.

[28]     Department of Climate Change website accessed 7 August 2009 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/impacts/localgovernment/index.html>

[29]     SCCG, Submission 77, p. 3.

[30]     Local Government Association of NSW, Submission 31a, p. 1.

[31]     Mr Townsend, Engineers Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 12 March 2009, pp. 10-11. Representatives of the Western Australian Government, in evidence to the Committee, also raised concerns regarding the program, calling for greater collaboration between state and federal government and pointing to a lack of coordination in the program—see Transcript of Evidence, 7 April 2009, pp. 11-12.

[32]     Mr Carruthers, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 18 June 2009, p. 6.

[33]     National Climate Adaptation Research Facility website accessed on 7 August 2009 <http://www.nccarf.edu.au>

[34]     National Climate Adaptation Research Facility website accessed on 7 August 2009  <http://www.nccarf.edu.au/about-facility>

[35]     The Australian Government has announced that as part of the 2009-10 Budget, it will be abolishing Land and Water Australia (LWA). LWA will be fully wound-up by December 2009. In that context, LWA is currently negotiating the completion or transfer of projects it administers. LWA website accessed 14 September 2009 <http://lwa.gov.au/land-and-water-australia/closure-and-wind-information>

[36]     NCCARF, Human Health and Climate Change: National Adaptation Research Plan, December 2008.

[37]     Media release by Senator the Hon Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change; the Hon Nicola Roxon MP, Minister for Health and Ageing; and Senator the Hon Kim Carr, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, ‘$10 million for research into health and climate change’, 27 January 2009.

[38]     CSIRO Climate Change Adaptation National Research Flagship website accessed 10 August 2009 <http://www.csiro.au/org/ClimateAdaptationFlagship.html>

[39]     CSIRO Climate Change Adaptation National Research Flagship website accessed 10 August 2009 <http://www.csiro.au/org/ClimateAdaptationFlagshipOverview.html>

[40]     COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 4.

[41]     C Sharples, for Tasmanian Department of Primary Industries and Water, Indicative Mapping of Tasmanian Coastal Vulnerability to Climate Change and Sea-Level Rise: Explanatory Report (second edition), May 2006, p. 4.

[42]     See Western Port Greenhouse Alliance, Impacts of Climate Change on Settlements in the Western Port Region, October 2008; Clarence City Council, Exhibit 97; Griffith University, Climate Change, Health Impacts and Urban Adaptability: Case Study of Gold Coast City, February 2009; and Sydney Coastal Councils Group—Exhibit 105.

[43]     C Sharples, C Attwater, J Carley, Exhibit 67, p. 3.

[44]     Victorian Government, Submission 90, pp. 9-10.

[45]     Victorian Government website accessed 19 August 2009 <http://www.climatechange.vic.gov.au/futurecoasts>

[46]     Victorian Government, Future Coasts Newsletter, December 2008, p. 2.

[47]     Sydney Coastal Councils Group, Systems Approach to Regional Climate Change Adaptation Strategies in Metropolises: Mapping Climate Change Vulnerability in the Sydney Coastal Councils Group, 2008—Exhibit 105.

[48]     Gippsland Coastal Board, Climate Change in Eastern Victoria: the Effect of Climate Change on Coastal Wind and Weather Patterns—Stage 1 Report, June 2005; Gippsland Coastal Board, Climate Change in Eastern Victoria: the Effect of Climate Change on Storm Surges—Stage 2 Report, June 2005; Gippsland Coastal Board, Climate Change in Eastern Victoria: the Effect of Climate Change on Extreme Sea Levels in Corner Inlet and the Gippsland Lakes—Stage 3 Report, August 2006.

[49]     Gippsland Coastal Board, Exhibit 44.

[50]     Lake Macquarie City Council, Submission 44, p. 5. See also NSW Department of Planning, Exhibit 37.

[51]     Tasmanian Department of Primary Industries and Water, Indicative Mapping of Tasmanian Coastal Vulnerability to Climate Change and Sea Level Rise: Explanatory Report (second edition), May 2006.

[52]     Tasmanian Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment website accessed on 12 August 2009 <http://www.dpiw.tas.gov.au/inter.nsf/WebPages/PMAS-6B56BV?open>

[53]     Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 2.

[54]     Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 2.

[55]     Mr Beresford-Wylie, ALGA, Transcript of Evidence, 16 October 2008, p. 5.

[56]     Australian Council of Local Governments, Summary of Outcomes, June 2009 <http://www.aclg.gov.au/meetings/jun_09/session_outcomes.aspx>

[57]     CSIRO, Submission 49, p. 17.

[58]     Queensland Government, Submission 91, p. 9.

[59]     Mr Townsend, Engineers Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 12 March 2009, p. 3.

[60]     Department of Climate Change, Climate Change Adaptation Actions for Local Government, 2009, p. 52.

[61]     Professor McIlgorm, Submission 47, p. 1.

[62]     CSIRO Climate Adaptation Flagship, Working Paper 2, 2009, p. 30.

[63]     WA Government, Submission 89, p. 15.

[64]     Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 2.

[65]     Engineers Australia, Submission 29, p. 1.

[66]     Mr Bicknell, WA Department of Planning and Infrastructure, Transcript of Evidence, 7 April 2009, pp. 5-6.

[67]     Victorian Coastal Council, Submission 83, p. 9.

[68]     COAG National Adaptation Framework, p. 10.

[69]     NCCARF website accessed 13 August 2009  <http://www.nccarf.edu.au/water>

[70]     NCCARF website accessed 13 August 2009  <http://www.nccarf.edu.au/water>

[71]     NCCARF website accessed 13 August 2009  <http://www.nccarf.edu.au/national-adaptation-research-plans>

[72]     SGS Economics and Planning, Submission 105, p. 17.

[73]     CSIRO, Submission 49, p. 14.

[74]     ANEDO, Submission 73, p. 36.

[75]     DEWHA, website accessed 13 August 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/water/australia/priorities.html>

[76]     COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 16.

[77]     COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 16; and see Mr Coburn, Department of Health and Ageing, Transcript of Evidence, 14 May 2009, p. 5.

[78]     IPCC, Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Chapter 8: Human Health, p. 414.

[79]     Department of Health and Ageing, Submission 100, p. 4.

[80]     Chikungunya fever is a tropical disease not yet present in Australia. The first non-tropical outbreak of the disease was in Italy in 2007. This has implications for Australia, as the Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti mosquitos can carry this disease as well as dengue, and are becoming more prevalent in northern Australia and the Torres Strait.

[81]     Human Health and Climate Change: National Adaptation Research Plan, 2008, p. 24.

[82]     Human Health and Climate Change: National Adaptation Research Plan, 2008, p. 24.

[83]     Ms Halbert, Department of Health and Ageing, Transcript of Evidence, 14 May 2009, p. 3.

[84]     Ms Krestensen, Department of Health and Ageing, Transcript of Evidence, 14 May 2009, pp. 11-12.

[85]     See Department of Health and Ageing, Submission 100; ANEDO, Submission 73; and Western Australian Local Government Association, Submission 53.

[86]     Submissions 18 (Ports Australia), 32 (Port of Melbourne Corporation) and 80 (Maritime Union of Australia) also highlighted issues relating to ports and shipping. The Committee received a submission from the National Farmers Federation highlighting the impacts of climate change on agriculture in Australia—see Submission 92.

[87]     COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 16.

[88]     The Australian Government has announced that as part of the 2009-10 Budget, it will be abolishing Land and Water Australia (LWA). LWA will be fully wound-up by December 2009. In that context, LWA is currently negotiating the completion or transfer of projects it administers. Website accessed 14 September 2009  <http://lwa.gov.au/land-and-water-australia/closure-and-wind-information>

[89]     NCCARF website accessed 15 August 2009 <http://www.nccarf.edu.au>

[90]     CSIRO Climate Adaptation Flagship website accessed 17 August 2008 <http://www.csiro.au/science/AdaptivePrimaryIndustries.html>

[91]     GBRMPA, Submission 81, p. 2.

[92]     GBRMPA, Submission 81, p. 11.

[93]     Quicksilver Group of Companies, Submission 11, p. 2.

[94]     Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism website accessed 15 August 2009 <http://www.ret.gov.au/tourism/policy/tourism_climate_change_framework_for_action/Pages/TourismandClimateChangeAFrameworkforAction.aspx>

[95]     ‘The impact of climate change on Australian tourism destinations—developing adaptation and response strategies’, Sustainable Tourism website accessed 15 August 2009 <http://www.crctourism.com.au/Page/Research/Innovations/Climate+Change+Project.aspx?p=destinations%20OR%20adaptation>

[96]     CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship is also undertaking research under five research themes, including ‘The dynamic ocean: building foundations for climate, national security and sustainable marine industries’, which is researching the impacts of climate change on marine industries and methods for adaptation in this area. CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship website accessed 15 August 2009 <http://www.csiro.au/science/TheDynamicOcean.html>

[97]     A Hobday, E Poloczanska, and R Matear, CSIRO Climate Adaptation Flagship, Implications of Climate Change for Australian Fisheries and Aquaculture: a Preliminary Assessment, Report to the Department of Climate Change, August 2008.

[98]     GBRMPA, Submission 81, p. 11.

[99]     COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 19.

[100]   COAG, Communique, 30 April 2009, p. 2.

[101]   Mr Pearce, Emergency Management Australia, Attorney-General’s Department, Transcript of Evidence, 18 September 2009, p. 1. See also Attorney-General’s Department website: ‘While recognising that the Constitutional responsibility for the protection of lives and property of Australian citizens lies predominantly with the States and Territories, the Australian Government accepts that it has a broad responsibility to support the States in developing emergency management capabilities’ <http://www.ema.gov.au/www/emaweb/emaweb.nsf/Page/AboutEMA_PolicyInitiatives_AustralianGovernmentEmergencyManagementPolicyStatement>

[102]   COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 19.

[103]   The Committee notes that as part of the 2009-10 Budget, the Australian Government announced the new Disaster Mitigation Program to amalgamate the National Disaster Mitigation Program (NDMP), the Bushfire Mitigation Program (BMP) and the National Emergency Volunteer Support Fund (NEVSF).

[104]   Attorney-General’s Department, Submission 56, p. 3.

[105]   Attorney-General’s Department, Submission 56, p. 2.

[106]   Attorney-General’s Department, Submission 56, p. 2.

[107]   Attorney-General’s Department, Submission 56, p. 2.

[108]   Attorney-General’s Department, Submission 56, p. 1.

[109]   Ms Hunt, FaHCSIA, Transcript of Evidence, 19 March 2009, p. 2.

[110]   Remote Indigenous Communities Advisory Committee, Keeping our Mob Safe: a National Emergency Management Strategy for Remote Indigenous Communities, 2007.

[111]   Emergency Management Australia website accessed 18 August 2009 <http://www.ema.gov.au/www/emaweb/emaweb.nsf/Page/EmergencyManagement_Communities_NationalEmergencyManagementStrategyforRemoteIndigenousCommunities>

[112]   Territories and Native Title Division, Attorney-General’s Department, Submission 40, p. 3.

[113]   Dr Schneider, Geoscience Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 4 September 2008, p. 8.

[114]   ICA, Submission 12, p. 7.

[115]   Professor Woodroffe, Submission 24, p. 2.

[116]   EMA, Attorney-General’s Department, Submission 56, p. 3.

[117]   EMA, Submission 56, p. 1.

[118]   Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 7.

[119]   SLSA, Submission 57, p. 5.

[120]   SLSA, Submission 57, p. 11.

[121]   SLSA, Submission 57, p. 3.

[122]   Mr Farmer, SLSA, Transcript of Evidence, 19 August 2009, p. 19.

[123]   SLSA, Submission 57, p. 11.

[124]   Mr Farmer, SLSA, Transcript of Evidence, 19 August 2009, p. 19.

[125]   SLSA, Submission 57, p. 11.

[126]   This encompasses commercial and domestic buildings, as well as energy (gas, electricity, oil and coal), transport (road, rail, airports, sea ports), water and telecommunication structures.

[127]   Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, Assessing the Impacts of Climate Change on Australia’s Physical Infrastructure, 2008, p. i. See also Engineers Australia, Guidelines for Responding to the Effects of Climate Change in Coastal and Ocean Engineering: 2004 Update, National Committee on Coastal and Ocean Engineering (NCCOE), 2004—Exhibit 100; and Engineers Australia, Coastal Engineering Guidelines for Working with the Australian Coast in an Ecologically Sustainable Way, NCCOE, 2004—Exhibit 99.

[128]   DCC website accessed 7 August 2009 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/impacts/settlements.html>

[129]   NCCARF website accessed 7 August 2009 <http://www.nccarf.edu.au/adaptation-research-network-settlements-infrastructure>

[130]   Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 6.

[131]   Australian Rainfall and Runoff, Engineers Australia, 4th edition.

[132]   Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 6.

[133]   Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Submission 94, p. 2.

[134]   FaHCSIA, Submission 99, Appendix A.

[135]   COAG National Climate Change Adaptation Framework, p. 8.

[136]   NCCARF website accessed 18 August 2009 <http://www.nccarf.edu.au/adaptation-research-network-social-economic-institutional-dimensions>

[137]   Media release by Senator the Hon Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change and Water, ‘New climate change study for northern Indigenous communities’, 8 September 2008.

[138]   Media release by Senator the Hon Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change and Water, ‘New climate change study for northern Indigenous communities’, 8 September 2008.

[139]   Dr Greg Picker, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 September 2008, pp. 9-10.

[140]   TSRA, Submission 7b, p. 1.

[141]   TSRA, Submission 7b, p. 2.

[142]   Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council (PMSEIC), Independent Working Group, Climate Change in Australia: Regional Impacts and Adaptation—Managing the Risk for Australia, 2007, p. 28.

[143]   RRRC, Submission 30, p. 10.

[144]   RRRC, Submission 30, p. 14.

[145]   TSRA, Submission 7, p. 5.

[146]   Dr Greg Picker, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 September 2008, p. 10.

[147]   TSRA, Submission 7a, p. 19.

[148]   TSRA, Submission 7, p. 2.

[149]   Dr Wilson, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 18 June 2009, p. 10.

[150]   Dr Wilson, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 18 June 2009, p. 10.

[151]   The Committee notes that this issue was brought to the attention of relevant departmental representatives prior to the report being tabled, due to its urgency. See Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 18 June 2009, p. 10.

[152]   TSRA, Submission 7, p. 3.

Chapter 4 Key emerging issues: insurance, planning and legal matters relating to the coastal zone

[1]       Mr Smith, NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 9.

[2]       Sydney Coastal Councils Group, Submission 77, p. 3.

[3]       Department of Climate Change (DCC) fact sheet, ‘Climate change: potential impacts and costs’, DCC website accessed 28 September 2009 <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/impacts/publications/pubs/fs-national.pdf>

[4]       Insurance Council of Australia (ICA), ‘Improving community resilience to extreme weather events’, April 2008, p. 4—attachment to ICA, Submission 12.

[5]       The ICA is the representative body of the general insurance industry in Australia. The ICA notes that its members represent ‘more than 90 percent of total premium income written by private sector general insurers’, Submission 12, p. 1.

[6]       ICA, Submission 12, p. 1.

[7]       ICA, Submission 12, p. 1.

[8]       DCC, ‘Climate change—potential impacts and costs: fact sheet’, p. 2; DCC website accessed 7 August 2009

<http://www.climatechange.gov.au/impacts/publications/pubs/fs-national.pdf>

[9]       Mr Stokes, National Sea Change Taskforce, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 12.

[10]     Queensland Government, Submission 91, p. 13.

[11]     A further complication here is that, if a person cannot get insurance for their property, they may not be successful in an application for a bank loan for that property. As Mr Sullivan, from the ICA, commented, ‘[l]ending practices in Australia do require generally a person seeking to borrow money to purchase insurance to cover the lender’s interest in that property or that asset ... If the person cannot get insurance for the risk that the lender requires then the lending will probably not occur’, Transcript of Evidence, 4 June 2009, p. 5.

[12]     ICA, Submission 12a, p. 1.

[13]     Mr Sullivan, ICA, Transcript of Evidence, 4 June 2009, p. 3.

[14]     Mr Sullivan, ICA, Transcript of Evidence, 4 June 2009, p. 3.

[15]     ICA, Submission 12a, p. 1.

[16]     Mr Sullivan, ICA, Transcript of Evidence, 4 June 2009, p. 4.

[17]     Mr Craig Thomson MP, Submission 5a, pp. 2-3.

[18]     Mr Sullivan, ICA, Transcript of Evidence, 4 June 2009, pp. 8-9.

[19]     Mr Sullivan, ICA, Transcript of Evidence, 4 June 2009, p. 4.

[20]     ICA, Submission 12a, p. 1. ICA further noted that insurers ‘licensed to operate in Australia are required by ASIC regulation ... to provide product disclosure information to customers as a condition of their license’, Submission 12b, p. 1.

[21]     ICA, Submission 12b, p. 1. ICA further noted that this position ‘was reinforced in 2008 when the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) ruled against the industry’s application for use of a common definition for flooding, the ACCC noting that it was “not likely to result in a public benefit that would outweigh the detriment to the public constituted by any lessening of competition arising from the arrangements”. Definitions in insurance policies across the industry are only similar to the extent that they rely upon common plain language terms’, Submission 12b, p. 1.

[22]     ICA, Submission 12a, p. 1.

[23]     ICA, Submission 12b, pp. 1-2.

[24]     Insurance Australia Group, Submission 19, p. 2.

[25]     Mr Keys, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 64.

[26]     IAG is the ‘leading general insurance group in Australia and New Zealand’, Submission 19, p. 1.

[27]     IAG, Submission 19, p. 4.

[28]     IAG, Submission 19, p. 2.

[29]     IAG, Submission 19, p. 6.

[30]     IAG, Submission 19, p. 23.

[31]     ICA, Submission 12, p. 1.

[32]     ANEDO, Submission 73, p. 15.

[33]     NSCT, Submission 79, p. 23.

[34]     Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 3.

[35]     ACE CRC, Submission 46, p. 4.

[36]     Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Submission 94, p. 1.

[37]     NSW Government, Submission 55, p. 2.

[38]     Sydney Coastal Councils Group, Submission 77, p. 12.

[39]     Local Government Association Tasmania, Submission 86, p. 10.

[40]     Mr Beresford-Wylie, ALGA, Transcript of Evidence, 16 October 2009, pp. 3-4.

[41]     Planning Institute of Australia, Submission 51, p. 10.

[42]     Mr Beresford-Wylie, ALGA, Transcript of Evidence, 16 October 2009, p. 4.

[43]     PIA, Submission 51, p. 2.

[44]     Queensland Government, Submission 91, p. 9.

[45]     NSW Government, Submission 55, p. 4.

[46]     Mr Stokes, NSCT, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 4.

[47]     Victorian Government, Submission 90, p. 6.

[48]     Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 104-105.

[49]     Dr Townsend, Engineers Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 12 March 2009, p. 4.

[50]     At the time of report drafting, the Queensland Government released its draft Queensland Coastal Plan, which provides for a benchmark of 0.3m by 2050 and 0.8m by 2100—see Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management website accessed 9 August 2009 <http://www.derm.qld.gov.au/coastalplan/index.html>

[51]     Dr Hunter, ACE CRC, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 14.

[52]     Dr Ash, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 4.

[53]     Professor Woodroffe, Submission 24, p. 3.

[54]     Dr Church, CSIRO, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 7, p. 13.

[55]     Dr Hunter, ACE CRC, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 4, p. 8, p. 13.

[56]     Professor Steffen, Transcript of Evidence, 23 October 2008, pp. 4-5.

[57]     This is sometimes used to refer to an exceedance event which, on average, happens once every 100 years (ie the height above mean sea level that might be exceeded on average by extreme sea levels only once in 100 years) and sometimes used to refer to an event that has a 1 in 100 chance of occurring in any one year (ie 1% annual exceedance probability). Exceedance statistics are commonly used in planning to define a level of acceptable risk, where the likelihood of occurrence is balanced against the costs of mitigating the risk.

[58]     Dr Hunter, ACE CRC, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 8, pp. 3-4.

[59]     DCC website accessed 13 August 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/minister/wong/2008/pubs/mr20080613.pdf>

[60]     Dr Hunter, ACE CRC, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 4.

[61]     ACE CRC website <http://www.acecrc.org.au>

[62]     See, for example, Coastal Hazards in Tasmania: General Information Paper, Department of Primary Industries and Water, Tasmania, 2008—Exhibit 91; Sea-Level Extremes in Tasmania: Summary and Practical Guide for Planners and Managers, Department of Primary Industries and Water, Tasmania, 2008—Exhibit 92; and Background Report: Coastal Flooding—Review of the Use of Exceedance Statistics in Tasmania, Department of Primary Industries and Water, Tasmania, 2008—Exhibit 94.

[63]     At the time of printing the report, the policy was yet to be finalised. Aspects of the policy discussed here may therefore be revised in the final policy.

[64]      ‘Draft sea level rise policy statement’, NSW Government, 2009, p. 3—Exhibit 124. NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water website accessed 13 August 2009 <http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/climateChange/sealevel.htm>

[65]     Mr Smith, ANEDO, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 30.

[66]     ‘Draft sea level rise policy statement’, NSW Government, 2009, p. 4, p. 5—Exhibit 124.

[67]     Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 109.

[68]     Department of Climate Change, Submission 85, p. 6.

[69]     Manly Council, Submission 72, p. 8.

[70]     Professor Stevens, Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, Transcript of Evidence, 21 May 2009, p. 23.

[71]     Mr Smith, NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 9.

[72]     ICA, ‘Improving community resilience to extreme weather events’ (April 2008), p. 14, p. 12—see attachment to ICA, Submission 12.

[73]     Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 102.

[74]     Ms Mears, Victorian Coastal Council, Transcript of Evidence, 20 May 2009, p. 15.

[75]     Byron Shire Council, Submission 43, p. 6.

[76]     Victorian Government, Submission 90, p. 7.

[77]     SGS Economics and Planning Pty Ltd, Submission 105, p. 5, p. 6, p. 7.

[78]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 18.

[79]     WA Department of Planning and Infrastructure, Submission 89, p. 2.

[80]     Ms Norman, Submission 20, p. 8.

[81]     See Wellington Shire Council, Submission 98, p. 5 and Wellington Shire Council website accessed 1 September 2009 <http://www.wellington.vic.gov.au/Files/Climate_change_response_plan_guidelines.pdf>

[82]     Professor Woodroffe, Submission 24, p. 8.

[83]     LGPMC, Communique: eighth meeting—Sydney, 8 May 2009, LGPMC website accessed 17 August 2009 <http://www.lgpmcouncil.gov.au/communique/20090508.aspx>

[84]     NSW Government, Submission 55, p. 1.

[85]     Ms Norman, Submission 20, p. 3.

[86]     J Peel, ‘Climate change law: the emergence of a new legal discipline’, Melbourne University Law Review, 32(3), 2008, p. 924.

[87]     Mr Stokes, NSCT, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 11.

[88]     Sydney Coastal Councils Group, Submission 77, p. 3.

[89]     Mr Smith, NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 9.

[90]     Manly Council, Submission 72, p. 9.

[91]     Mr Stokes, NSCT, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 11.

[92]     Ms Norman, Transcript of Evidence, 20 May 2009, p. 38.

[93]     Mr Stokes, NSCT, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 7.

[94]     Professor Woodroffe, Submission 24, p. 8.

[95]     Mr Carruthers, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 18 June 2009, pp. 7-8.

[96]     Mr Pearson, NSW Department of Planning, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 5.

[97]     Mr Robinson, Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 97.

[98]     Dr Wilson, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 18 June 2009, p. 8.

[99]     Byron Shire Council, Submission 43, p. 9.

[100]   Mr Christensen, Sunshine Coast Environment Council, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 67.

[101]   Gippsland Coastal Board, Submission 38, p. 2.

[102]   Byron Shire Council, Submission 43, p. 10.

[103]   Pittwater Council, Submission 10, p. 8.

[104]   Mr Wong, Manly Council, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 74.

[105]   See J McDonald, ‘The adaptation imperative: managing the legal risks of climate change impacts’, Climate Law in Australia, eds T Bonyhady and P Christoff, Sydney, Federation Press, 2007—Exhibit 28; and J McDonald, ‘A risky climate for decision-making: the liability of development authorities for climate change impacts’, Environment and Planning Law Journal, 24, 2007—Exhibit 27.

[106]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, pp. 99-100, pp. 108-109.

[107]   ANEDO, Submission 73, p. 25.

[108]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 100, p. 108.

[109]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 107-108.

[110]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 100.

[111]   Local Government Association Tasmania, Submission 86, p. 11.

[112]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 100.

[113]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 100.

[114]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 101.

[115]   Byron Shire Council, Submission 43, p. 9.

[116]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 100.

[117]   A nuisance action is an unlawful interference with a person’s use or enjoyment of land.

[118]   Three essential elements must be established in liability for negligence: duty of care, breach of that duty and damage as a result of that breach. Unlike claims in nuisance, in order to incur liability in negligence a duty of care must be found to exist.

[119]   P England, ‘Heating up: climate change law and evolving responsibilities’, Local Government Law Journal, 13(3), 2008, p. 222.

[120]   Coastal Councils and Planning for Climate Change: an Assessment of Australian and NSW Legislation and Government Policy Provisions relating to Climate Change relevant to Regional and Metropolitan Coastal Councils, p. 24—Exhibit 106.

[121]   As England comments, ‘[w]ith respect to civil liability claims, local governments seem less at risk of litigation. However, the applicable statutory defence is a relative one: as our state of knowledge on climate change issues grows, so too will the responsibility of local governments to take into account climate change considerations’, ‘Heating up: climate change law and evolving responsibilities’, p. 219.

[122]   England, ‘Heating up: climate change law and evolving responsibilities’, p. 218.

[123]   Coastal Councils and Planning for Climate Change: an Assessment of Australian and NSW Legislation and Government Policy Provisions relating to Climate Change relevant to Regional and Metropolitan Coastal Councils, p. 21—Exhibit 106.

[124]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 109.

[125]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 102, p. 104.

[126]   ICA, ‘Improving community resilience to extreme weather events’ (April 2008), pp. 7-18—see attachment to ICA, Submission 12.

[127]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 104.

[128]   [2008] VCAT 1545.

[129]   England, ‘Heating up: climate change law and the evolving responsibilities of local government’, p. 210.

[130]   See also Aldous v Greater Taree City Council [2009] NSWLEC 17 and Charles & Howard Pty Ltd v Redlands Shire Council [2007] QCA 200 (2007) 159 LGERA 349.

[131]   Peel, ‘Climate change law: the emergence of a new legal discipline’, pp. 954-955.

[132]   Coastal Councils and Planning for Climate Change: an Assessment of Australian and NSW Legislation and Government Policy Provisions relating to Climate Change relevant to Regional and Metropolitan Coastal Councils, pp. 19-20—Exhibit 106. (This decision was appealed by the Department of Planning—see Minister v Walker [2008] NSWCA 224.)

[133]   P England, ‘Doing the groundwork: state, local and judicial contributions to climate change law in Australia’, Environmental Planning and Law Journal, 25, 2008, p. 372.

[134]   R Ghanem et cetera al, ‘Are our laws responding to the challenges posed to our coasts by climate change?’, University of NSW Law Journal, 31(3), 2008, p. 904.

[135]   Mr Christensen, Sunshine Coast Environment Council, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 65.

[136]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 106.

[137]   Mr Craig Thomson MP, Submission 5, p. 2.

[138]   Mr Pearson, NSW Department of Planning, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 14.

[139]   SGS Economics and Planning Pty Ltd, Submission 105, p. 5.

[140]   SGS Economics and Planning Pty Ltd, Submission 105, p. 6.

[141]   SGS Economics and Planning Pty Ltd, Submission 105, p. 7.

[142]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 107.

[143]   Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 107.

[144]   Mr Carruthers, Department of Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 18 June 2009, p. 7.

[145]   Professor Stevens, ATSE, Transcript of Evidence, 21 May 2009, p. 22.

Chapter 5 Sustainable coastal communities and environmental impacts on the coastal zone

[1]       Mr Stokes, National Sea Change Taskforce, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 2.

[2]       Independent Review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999: Interim Report, Commonwealth of Australia, 2009, p. 8.

[3]       Independent Review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999: Interim Report, p. 9.

[4]       Independent Review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999: Interim Report, p. 8.

[5]       IGAE, 1 May 1992 (para 2.2.1), Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA) website <http://www.environment.gov.au/esd/national/igae/index.html>

[6]       Heads of Agreement on Commonwealth and State Roles and Responsibilities for the Environment, COAG, November 1997, DEWHA website <http://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/publications/coag-agreement/attachment-1.html>

[7]       World Commission on Environment and Development, Our Common Future, World Commission on Environment and Development, 1988, p. 43.

[8]       National Strategy for Ecologically Sustainable Development, Ecologically Sustainable Development Steering Committee, COAG, 1992, DEWHA website <http://www.environment.gov.au/esd/national/nsesd/strategy/intro.html#WIESD>

[9]       Western Coastal Board, Submission 34, pp. 1-2.

[10]     Professor McIlgorm, Submission 47, p. 2.

[11]     Professor Tomlinson and Mr Lazarow, Submission 58, pp. 5-6.

[12]     Professor Thom, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 58.

[13]     Accounting for Nature: A Model for Building the National Environmental Accounts of Australia, Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists, May 2008, p. 1, Wentworth Group website <http://www.wentworthgroup.org/docs/Accounting_For_Nature.pdf>

[14]     Accounting for Nature: A Model for Building the National Environmental Accounts of Australia, p. 1, Wentworth Group website <http://www.wentworthgroup.org/docs/Accounting_For_Nature.pdf>

[15]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 21.

[16]     <http://www.healthywaterways.org/EcosystemHealthMonitoringProgram/ ProductsandPublications/AnnualReportCards.aspx>

[17]     Healthy Waterways Partnership website <http://www.healthywaterways.org/home1.aspx>

[18]     Dr Reichelt, GBRMPA, Transcript of Evidence, 29 April 2009, p. 7.

[19]     Accounting for Nature: A Model for Building the National Environmental Accounts of Australia, p. 6, Wentworth Group website <http://www.wentworthgroup.org/docs/Accounting_For_Nature.pdf>

[20]     NT Government, Submission 106, pp. 20-21.

[21]     Caring for our Country: Outcomes, 2008-2013, p. 39—Exhibit 80.

[22]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 22.

[23]     Caring for our Country: Outcomes, 2008-2013, p. 44 and p. 21—Exhibit 80.

[24]     This concept describes migration away from metropolitan areas and larger regional cities to attractive, high amenity coastal locations. Internationally, the movement of people to such destinations is often described as ‘amenity migration’.

[25]     National Sea Change Taskforce, Submission 79, pp. 7-8.

[26]     NSCT media release, ‘Population boom set to hit coastal areas’, 28 September 2009.

[27]     NSCT, Submission 79, pp. 15-16.

[28]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 12.

[29]     Mr Stokes, NSCT, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 5.

[30]     Mr Proctor, Broome Chamber of Commerce, Transcript of Evidence, 26 August 2009, p. 13.

[31]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 12.

[32]     Mr Stokes, NSCT, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 5.

[33]     NRMMC, National Cooperative Approach to Integrated Coastal Zone Management: Framework and Implementation Plan, Commonwealth of Australia, 2006, pp. 6-7—Exhibit 79.

[34]     National Cooperative Approach to Integrated Coastal Zone Management: Framework and Implementation Plan, p. 10—Exhibit 79.

[35]     Media release by the Hon Peter Garrett, Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts and the Hon Tony Burke, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, ‘Caring for our Country: better land management, less red tape’, 14 March 2008.

[36]     Caring for our Country: Outcomes, 2008-2013, p. 17—Exhibit 80. See also Caring for our Country Business Plan: 2009-10, Commonwealth of Australia, 2008.

[37]     DEWHA website accessed 28 September 2009 <http://www.nrm.gov.au/funding/cag.html>

[38]     Ms Rankin, DEWHA, Transcript of Evidence, 18 June 2009, p. 16. See also Caring for our Country Business Plan: 2009-10, ‘From now, financial support for community organisations will be available through the processes in the annual Caring for our Country business plan and there will not be a separate process for Community Coastcare’, p. 74.

[39]     DEWHA website accessed 24 August 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/nrs/science/ibra.html>

[40]     Caring for our Country: Outcomes, 2008-2013, p. 5—Exhibit 80.

[41]     DEWHA website accessed 24 August 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/nrs/about/protected-areas/climate-change.html>  See also M Dunlop and P Brown, Implications of Climate Change for Australia’s National Reserve System: A Preliminary Assessment, CSIRO, 2008; and DEWHA, Australia’s Strategy for the National Reserve System: 2009–2030, Commonwealth of Australia, 2009.

[42]     Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Submission 49, p. 8.

[43]     Conservation Council of SA, Submission 71, p. 4.

[44]     Lake Wollumboola Protection Association, Submission 84, p. 8.

[45]     Professor Short, Submission 4, p. 2.

[46]     In addition, the act confers jurisdiction over actions that have a significant environmental impact on Commonwealth land or a Commonwealth marine area or that are carried out by a Commonwealth agency or if the action proposed is a nuclear action.

[47]     Australian State of the Environment Committee, Australia State of the Environment 2001, Independent Report to the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Commonwealth of Australia, 2001, p. 6.

[48]     Australian State of the Environment Committee, Australia State of the Environment 2006, Independent Report to the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Commonwealth of Australia, 2006, p. 49.

[49]     Australia State of the Environment 2006 (emphasis added), p. 58.

[50]     Section 522A of the EPBC Act requires it to be reviewed every 10 years from its commencement. The review is being undertaken by Dr Allan Hawke, supported by a panel of experts.

[51]     Mr Dudley, North East Bioregional Network, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 30.

[52]     Lake Wollumboola Protection Association, Submission 84, p. 17, p. 18.

[53]     Ms Warneminde, Coolum District Coast Care, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 66.

[54]     Dr Reichelt, GBRMPA, Transcript of Evidence, 29 April 2009, p. 4.

[55]     Mr Smyth, Australian Conservation Foundation, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 51.

[56]     Dr Crossland, Coolum District Coast Care, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 66.

[57]     Mr Dudley, North East Bioregional Network, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 36.

[58]     Sunshine Coast Environment Council, Submission 27, p. 3.

[59]     Dr Reichelt, GBRMPA, Transcript of Evidence, 29 April 2009, p. 4.

[60]     DEWHA, Submission 103, p. 4.

[61]     Mr Smyth, ACF, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 45.

[62]     Mr Smyth, ACF, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 45.

[63]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 20.

[64]     Ms Faehrmann, Nature Conservation Council of NSW, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 65.

[65]     Independent Review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999: Interim Report, p. 77.

[66]     Australian National University (ANU), Implications of Climate Change for Australia’s World Heritage Properties: A Preliminary Assessment, p. 46, p. 55.

[67]     Reef and Rainforest Research Centre, Submission 30, p. 8.

[68]     Maintaining a Healthy and Resilient Great Barrier Reef: The Commonwealth and Queensland Governments’ Interim Response to the Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report 2009, Australian Government and Queensland Government, 2009, p. 1.

[69]     J Johnson and P Marshall (eds), Climate Change and the Great Barrier Reef: A Vulnerability Assessment, GBRMPA, 2007.

[70]     Great Barrier Reef Climate Change Action Plan 2007-2011, GBRMPA, 2007.

[71]     GBRMPA, Submission 81, pp. 1-16.

[72]     The outlook report is a new legislative requirement established by recent amendments to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975. Under the act, reports must be prepared by GBRMPA every five years, be independently peer reviewed and tabled in Parliament.

[73]     Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report 2009, GBRMPA, 2009, pp. i-ii.

[74]     Maintaining a Healthy and Resilient Great Barrier Reef: The Commonwealth and Queensland Governments’ Interim Response to the Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report 2009, Australian Government and Queensland Government, 2009, p. 3.

[75]     See Reef Water Quality Protection Plan 2009: For the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area and Adjacent Catchments, Australian Government and Queensland Government, 2009.

[76]     Caring for our Country Business Plan: 2009-10, p. 63.

[77]     See background on Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Amendment Act 2007 and Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2008 at <http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/gbr/review/index.html>

[78]     Great Barrier Reef Intergovernmental Agreement, an agreement between the Commonwealth of Australia and the State of Queensland, June 2009, DEWHA website accessed 3 September 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/gbr/publications/pubs/gbr-agreement-2009.pdf>

[79]     ‘Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report 2009: Information Sheet—overview’, GBRMPA website accessed 3 September 2009 <http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/40763/Overview.pdf>

[80]     Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report 2009: In Brief, GBRMPA, 2009, p. 14.

[81]     GBRMPA, Submission 81, p. 5.

[82]     GBRMPA, Submission 81, p. 6, p. 7, p. 11.

[83]     Northern Territory Government, Submission 106, p. 14.

[84]     ANU, Implications of Climate Change for Australia’s World Heritage Properties: A Preliminary Assessment, Commonwealth of Australia, 2009, p. 53.

[85]     Kakadu National Park Management Plan 2007-2014, Director of National Parks, 2007, p. 61, p. 62.

[86]     DEWHA website accessed 26 August 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/water/topics/wetlands/database/diwa.html>

[87]     DEWHA website accessed 26 August 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/water/topics/wetlands/database/diwa.html>

[88]     Reef and Rainforest Research Centre, Submission 30, p. 10.

[89]     Mr Anderson, Cairns Local Marine Advisory Committee, Transcript of Evidence, 29 April 2009, p. 27.

[90]     Lake Wollumboola Protection Association, Submission 84, p. 8, p. 17.

[91]     Mr Fuller, Global Warming Group Queenscliffe, Transcript of Evidence, 21 May 2009, p. 4.

[92]     Coastwatchers Association, Submission 33, p. 5.

[93]     Reef and Rainforest Research Centre, Submission 30, p. 11.

[94]     Professor Short, Transcript of Evidence, 26 February 2009, p. 9.

[95]     Victorian Coastal Council, Submission 83, p. 10.

[96]     Ms Williams, Environs Kimberley, Transcript of Evidence, 27 August 2009, p. 1.

[97]     Ms Curran, Roebuck Bay Working Group, Transcript of Evidence, 27 August 2009, p. 37.

[98]     Ramsar Snapshot Study: Final Report, BMT WBM Pty Ltd, prepared for the Commonwealth Department of the Environment and Water Resources, 2007, p. 5-1, 5-2.

[99]     Independent Review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999: Interim Report, p. 148, p. 155.

[100]   Independent Review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999: Interim Report, p. 155.

[101]   Mr Forbes, DEWHA, Transcript of Evidence, 18 June 2009, p. 18.

[102]   DEWHA website accessed 26 August 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/water/topics/wetlands/ramsar-convention/australian-guidelines.html>

[103]   Conservation Council of SA, Submission 71, p. 4.

[104]   DEWHA website accessed 26 August 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/water/policy-programs/index.html>

[105]   Dr Woehler, Birds Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 18 August 2009, p. 2.

[106]   J Oldland et al, Shorebird Conservation in Australia, Birds Australia Conservation Statement, No. 14, 2009, p. 2.

[107]   Dr Woehler, Birds Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 18 August 2009, p. 6.

[108]   Dr Woehler, Birds Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 18 August 2009, p. 2.

[109]   Birds Australia, Submission 61, p. 2, p. 3.

[110]   Birds Australia, Submission 61, p. 3.

[111]   Dr Woehler, Birds Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 18 August 2009, p. 13.

[112]   Dr Woehler, Birds Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 18 August 2009, p. 4.

[113]   Dr Woehler, Birds Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 18 August 2009, p. 4, p. 7.

[114]   Dr Woehler, Birds Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 18 August 2009, p. 3.

[115]   See especially Mr Pritchard, Ms Williams and Ms Lowe, Environs Kimberley, Transcript of Evidence, 27 August 2009, pp. 2-5.

[116]   Ms Spencer, Broome Bird Observatory, Transcript of Evidence, 27 August 2009, p. 37.

[117]   Wetlands Australia: National Wetlands Update 2009, Issue No. 17, DEWHA, 2009, p. 4. See also The State of Australia’s Birds 2008, P Olsen, Birds Australia, 2008.

[118]   Wildlife Conservation Plan for Migratory Shorebirds, Department of the Environment and Heritage, February 2006.

[119]   See the Partnership for the Conservation of Migratory Waterbirds and the Sustainable Use of their Habitats in the East Asian—Australasian Flyway, DEWHA website accessed 26 August 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/migratory/waterbirds/flyway-partnership/index.html>

[120]   Shorebirds 2020 website accessed 26 August 2009 <http://www.shorebirds.org.au> The project is supported by Birds Australia and the Australasian Wader Studies Group, through funding from the Australian Government’s Caring for our Country and World Wildlife Fund Australia.

[121]   Birds Australia, Submission 61, p. 13.

[122]   Birds Australia, Submission 61, p. 12.

[123]   Dr Woehler, Birds Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 18 August 2008, p. 11.

[124]   Birds Australia, Submission 61, p. 13.

[125]   The National Cooperative Approach to Integrated Coastal Zone Management: Framework and Implementation Plan identifies seven areas for national collaboration: integration across the catchment-coast-ocean continuum, land and marine based sources of pollution, climate change, introduced pest plants and animals, planning for population change, capacity building, and monitoring and evaluation. (Some of these matters represent environmental pressures and others relate more broadly to governance issues.)

[126]   N Gurran et al, Meeting the Sea Change Challenge: Best Practice Models of Local and Regional Planning for Sea Change Communities (Report No. 2 for the NSCT), University of Sydney Planning Research Centre, 2006, p. 2—Exhibit 20.

[127]   Ms Pettett, Conservation Council of SA, Transcript of Evidence, 8 October 2008, p. 30.

[128]   North East Bioregional Network, Submission 70, p. 1.

[129]   Lake Wollumboola Protection Association, Submission 84, p. 4.

[130]   NSCT, Submission 79, p. 17.

[131]   Mr Butcher, Shire of Broome, Transcript of Evidence, 26 August 2009, p. 32.

[132]   State of the Environment 2001, p 38.

[133]   DEWHA quoting 2006 State of the Environment report, Submission 103, p. 2.

[134]   NSW Government, Submission 55, p. 3.

[135]   Ms Mears, Victorian Coastal Council, Transcript of Evidence, 20 May 2009, pp. 11-12.

[136]   Professor Short, Submission 4, p. 1.

[137]   Professor Tomlinson and Mr Lazarow, Submission 58, p. 5.

[138]   Conservation Council of SA, Submission 71, p. 6.

[139]   NT Government, Submission 106, p. 21.

[140]   Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 21.

[141]   Media release by Senator the Hon Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change and Water, ‘Salisbury Stormwater Project to reduce Murray River reliance’, 8 October 2008.

[142]   Australia’s Biodiversity and Climate Change: Summary for Policy Makers 2009, Summary of a report to the Natural Resource Management Ministerial Council, Department of Climate Change, Commonwealth of Australia, 2009, p. 1.

[143]   ACE CRC, Submission 46, p. 1, p. 4.

[144]   Mr Dudley, North East Bioregional Network, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 29.

[145]   Queensland Government, Submission 91, p. 9.

[146]   Mr Clarke, Great Ocean Road Coast Committee, Transcript of Evidence, 20 May 2009, p. 72.

[147]   Australia’s Biodiversity and Climate Change: Summary for Policy Makers 2009, pp. 1-2. See also Australia’s Biodiversity Conservation Strategy: 2010-2020—Consultation Draft, Natural Resource Management Ministerial Council (2009); National Biodiversity and Climate Change Action Plan: 2004-2007, Natural Resource Management Ministerial Council (2004); and AJ Hobday et al, Impacts of Climate Change on Australian Marine Life, Australian Greenhouse Office (2006).

[148]   Australia’s Biodiversity and Climate Change: Summary for Policy Makers 2009, pp. 19-20.

[149]   CSIRO website <http://www.csiro.au/resources/CAF-factsheet.html>

[150]   A Campbell, Managing Australian Landscapes in a Changing Climate: A Climate Change Primer for Regional Natural Resource Management Bodies, Department of Climate Change, Commonwealth of Australia, 2008, p. 14.

[151]   Caring for our Country Business Plan: 2009-10, p. 20.

[152]   Dr Woehler, Birds Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 18 August 2009, p. 8.

[153]   Ms Rankin, DEWHA, Transcript of Evidence, 18 June 2009, p. 14.

[154]   Professor Tomlinson, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 47.

[155]   Ms Pettett, Conservation Council SA, Transcript of Evidence, 8 October 2009, p. 44.

[156]   Mr Smyth, ACF, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 48.

[157]   Southern Rivers Catchment Management Authority, Submission 52, p. 1.

[158]   Tasmanian Government, Submission 93, p. 1.

[159]   The concept of the ‘environment’ is commonly understood to refer to the natural environment but may also take in the social and economic environment.

[160]   Tasmanian Government, Submission 93, p. 3.

[161]   Gippsland Coastal Council, Submission 38a, p. 2.

[162]   Manly Council, Submission 72, p. 9.

[163]   NSCT website accessed 26 August 2009 <http://www.seachangetaskforce.org.au/Home.html>

[164]   N Gurran et al, Planning for Climate Change: Leading Practice Principles and Models for Sea Change Communities in Coastal Australia (Report No. 3 for the NSCT), University of Sydney, 2008—Exhibit 21.

[165]   NSCT, ‘A policy framework for coastal Australia: discussion paper’, 2007, NSCT website accessed 26 August 2009 <http://www.seachangetaskforce.org.au/Publications/Draft%20Policy%20Framework-May%202007.pdf>

[166]   Coastal Management in Australia: Key Institutional and Governance Issues for Coastal Natural Resource Management and Planning, N Lazarow et al, eds, CRC for Coastal Zone, Estuary and Waterway Management, supported by the ANU and the NSCT, 2006—Exhibit 10.

[167]   N Gurran et al, Meeting the Sea Change Challenge: Best Practice Models of Local and Regional Planning for Sea Change Communities (Report No. 2 for the NSCT), University of Sydney Planning Research Centre, 2006—Exhibit 20.

[168]   N Gurran et al, Meeting the Sea Change Challenge: Sea Change Communities in Coastal Australia (Report No. 1 for the NSCT), University of Sydney Planning Research Centre, 2005—Exhibit 19.

[169]   NSCT, Managing Sea Change: The Challenge of Growth, 2004.

[170]   NSCT, Submission 79, pp. 11-12.

[171]   NSCT, Submission 79, p. 4.

[172]   NSCT, Submission 79, p. 27.

[173]   NSCT, Submission 79, p. 4.

[174]   NSCT, Submission 79, p. 21.

[175]   Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, Submission 99, p. 3.

[176]   NSCT, Submission 79, p. 25.

[177]   NSCT, Submission 79, p. 4.

[178]   NSCT, Submission 79, pp. 10-11.

[179]   See, for example, the Renewable Energy Target scheme, and National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting legislation <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/renewabletarget/index.html> and <http://www.climatechange.gov.au/reporting/index.html>

[180]   See, for example, the Water for the Future program and the LivingGreener website <http://www.environment.gov.au/water/index.html> and <http://www.livinggreener.gov.au>  See also a list of programs administered by DEWHA aimed at making Australian homes and communities more sustainable, Submission 103, p. 9, and Living Sustainably: The Australian Government’s National Action Plan for Education for Sustainability, DEWHA, 2009.

[181]   Coastwatchers Association, Submission 33, p. 6.

[182]   Infrastructure Australia website accessed 25 August 2009 <http://www.infrastructureaustralia.gov.au/mcu.aspx>

[183]   DITRDLG website accessed 25 August 2009 <http://www.innovation.gov.au/Section/Industry/Pages/BuiltEnvironmentIndustryInnovationCoucil.aspx>

[184]   CSIRO website accessed 25 August 2009 <http://www.csiro.au/resources/CAF-factsheet.html>

[185]   COAG meeting, Hobart, 30 April 2009, ‘Communique’, p. 7 <http://www.coag.gov.au/coag_meeting_outcomes/2009-04-30/docs/20090430_communique.pdf>

[186]   COAG meeting, Darwin, 2 July 2009, ‘Communique’, p. 10 <http://www.coag.gov.au/coag_meeting_outcomes/2009-07-02/docs/20090702_communique.pdf>

[187]   COAG meeting, Hobart, 30 April 2009, ‘Communique’, p. 10 <http://www.coag.gov.au/coag_meeting_outcomes/2009-04-30/docs/20090430_communique.pdf>

[188]   ACLG, ‘Session outcomes’, 18 November 2008, p. 2 <http://www.aclg.gov.au/media_centre/session_outcomes.aspx>

[189]   House of Representatives Standing Committee on Environment and Heritage, Sustainable Cities, Commonwealth of Australia, 2005.

[190]   House of Representatives Standing Committee on Environment and Heritage, Sustainable Cities, p. 31.

[191]   House of Representatives Standing Committee on Environment and Heritage, Sustainability for Survival: Creating a Climate for Change—Inquiry into a Sustainability Charter, Commonwealth of Australia, 2007.

[192]   Responding to the Australia 2020 Summit, Commonwealth of Australia, 2009, p. 77.

[193]   Victorian Coastal Council, Victorian Coastal Strategy 2008, Victorian Government, 2008—Exhibit 167.

[194]   Victorian Coastal Council, Victorian Coastal Strategy 2008, pp. 59-60—Exhibit 167.

[195]   NSCT, ‘A policy framework for coastal Australia: discussion paper’, 2007, pp. 15-16, NSCT website accessed 26 August 2009 <http://www.seachangetaskforce.org.au/Publications/Draft%20Policy%20Framework-May%202007.pdf>

Chapter 6 Governance arrangements and the coastal zone

[1]       Professor Thom, Submission 6, pp. 1-2.

[2]       DEWHA, Submission 103, p. 10.

[3]       Mr Forbes, DEWHA, Transcript of Evidence, 27 November 2008, pp. 1-2.

[4]       Heads of Agreement on Commonwealth and State Roles and Responsibilities for the Environment, COAG, November 1997, DEWHA website <http://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/publications/coag-agreement/attachment-1.html>

[5]       ALGA, Submission 14, p. 1.

[6]       NT Government, Submission 106, p. 26.

[7]       NT Government, Submission 106, p. 3.

[8]       Australian Network of Environmental Defender’s Offices, Submission 73, p. 47.

[9]       Planning Institute of Australia, Submission 51, p. 5.

[10]     Western Coastal Board, Submission 34, p. 2.

[11]     Sydney Coastal Councils Group, Submission 77, p. 12.

[12]     Lake Wollumboola Protection Association, Submission 84, pp. 10-11.

[13]     Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre, Submission 46, p. 4.

[14]     Queensland Government, Submission 91, p. 9.

[15]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 2.

[16]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 21.

[17]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 20.

[18]     Dr Wescott, Submission 60, p. 2.

[19]     DEWHA website accessed 22 August 2009 <http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/iczm/index.html>

[20]     NRMMC, National Cooperative Approach to Integrated Coastal Zone Management: Framework and Implementation Plan, 2006, p. 9. Other pressures listed are population growth and demographic shifts, industry trends and protection of the coastal resource base.

[21]     NSCT, Submission 79, p. 3.

[22]     NRMMC, National Cooperative Approach to Integrated Coastal Zone Management: Framework and Implementation Plan, 2006, p. 49.

[23]     Dr Wescott, Submission 60, p. 1.

[24]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 10.

[25]     EIANZ, Submission 95, p. 3.

[26]     G Wescott, ‘Stimulating vertical integration in coastal management in a federated nation: the case of Australian coastal policy reform’, Coastal Management, 37: 6, 2009, pp. 501-513—Exhibit 163.

[27]     Victorian Government, Submission 90, p. 9.

[28]     DEWHA, Submission 103, p. 8.

[29]     ANEDO, Submission 73, p. 19.

[30]     Dr Skull, Sunshine Coast Regional Council, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 51.

[31]     ANEDO, Submission 73, pp. 15-16.

[32]     See Catherine Hill Bay Association and Dune Care, Submission 75 and Gwandalan/Summerland Point Action Group, Submission 66.

[33]     For more information see submissions from state and NT governments.

[34]     B Norman, Planning for Coastal Climate Change: an Insight into International and National Approaches, Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment and Department of Planning and Community Development, 2009—Exhibit 176.

[35]     SA Government, Submissions 88 and 88a.

[36]     Mr Stokes, NSCT, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 9.

[37]     Victorian Coastal Council website accessed 15 September 2009 <http://www.vcc.vic.gov.au/index.htm>  Central Coastal Board website accessed 15 September 2009 <http://www.ccb.vic.gov.au/about.html>

[38]     DHI, Submission 101, p. 1.

[39]     LGAT, Submission 86, p. 9.

[40]     ALGA, Submission 14, pp. 5-6.

[41]     Queensland Government, Submission 91, p. 9.

[42]     NSCT, Submission 79, p. 8.

[43]     ALGA, Submission 14, p. 5.

[44]     NSCT, Submission 79, p. 27.

[45]     Media release, the Hon Anthony Albanese MP, Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government and The Hon Gary Gray AO MP, Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development and Northern Australia, 13 May 2008, ‘New direction for regional Australia’.

[46]     Media release, the Hon Anthony Albanese MP, Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, 24 June 2008, ‘Councils receive $441 million from the Rudd Labor Government’.

[47]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 16.

[48]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 26.

[49]     Ms Burch, SA Department of Environment and Heritage, Transcript of Evidence, 8 October 2008, p. 18.

[50]     Dr Townsend, SA Department of Environment and Heritage, Transcript of Evidence, 8 October 2008, p. 17.

[51]     WA Department of Planning and Infrastructure, Submission 89, pp. 20-21.

[52]     Mr Smith, NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change, Transcript of Evidence, 25 March 2009, p. 10.

[53]     Mr Johannes, Tasmanian Department of Premier and Cabinet, Transcript of Evidence, 28 January 2009, p. 38.

[54]     Queensland Government, Submission 91, p. 11.

[55]     Queensland Government, Submission 91, p. 9.

[56]     Ms Mears, Victorian Coastal Council, Transcript of Evidence, 20 May 2009, p. 3.

[57]     Victorian Government, Submission 90, p. 5.

[58]     Professor McDonald, Transcript of Evidence, 28 April 2009, p. 102.

[59]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 3, p. 11.

[60]     ALGA, Submission 14, p. 5.

[61]     LGAT, Submission 86, p. 8.

[62]     Pittwater Council, Submission 10, p. 5.

[63]     Mr Beresford-Wylie, ALGA, Transcript of Evidence, 16 October 2008, p. 3.

[64]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 9.

[65]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 10.

[66]     NACC, Submission 25, p. 5.

[67]     RRRC, Submission 30, p. 4.

[68]     Dr Woehler, Birds Australia, Transcript of Evidence, 18 August 2008, p. 10.

[69]     Ms Curran, Roebuck Bay Working Group, Transcript of Evidence, 27 August 2009, p. 31, p. 32.

[70]     Roebuck Bay Working Group, Interim Management Guidelines—Exhibit 178.

[71]     Gippsland Coastal Board, Submission 38, p. 2.

[72]     Lake Wollumboola Protection Association, Submission 84, pp. 10-11.

[73]     Mr Huppatz, SA Department of Environment and Heritage, Transcript of Evidence, 8 October 2008, p. 18.

[74]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 27.

[75]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, 18.

[76]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 2, p. 18.

[77]     CSIRO, Submission 49, p. 34.

[78]     Victorian Coastal Council, Victorian Coastal Strategy 2008, Victorian Government, 2008, p. 41.

[79]     NSCT, Submission 79, p. 6.

[80]     NSCT website accessed 20 August 2009 <http://www.seachangetaskforce.org.au/Conference2009/ReportCoastalCouncilsConference%202009.pdf>

[81]     NSCT website accessed 20 August 2009 <http://www.seachangetaskforce.org.au/Conference2009/ReportCoastalCouncilsConference%202009.pdf>

[82]     Dr Wescott, Submission 60, p. 2.

[83]     Dr Wescott, Submission 60, p. 3.

[84]     Dr Wescott, Submission 60, Appendix A, p. 8.

[85]     Dr Wescott, Submission 60, p. 3.

[86]     Dr Wescott, Submission 60, p. 4.

[87]     Dr Wescott, Transcript of Evidence, 20 May 2009, p. 62.

[88]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, pp. 1-2.

[89]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, pp. 19-20.

[90]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, pp. 19-20.

[91]     Professor Thom, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 52.

[92]     ANEDO, Submission 73, p. 55.

[93]     Mr Smith, ANEDO, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, pp. 29-30.

[94]     NSCT, Submission 79, p. 9.

[95]     PIA, Submission 51, p. 5.

[96]     Ms Norman, Submission 20a, p. 2.

[97]     Professor Thom, Submission 6, p. 23.

[98]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 9.

[99]     NT Government, Submission 106, p. 10.

[100]   Mr Stokes, NSCT, Transcript of Evidence, 26 March 2009, p. 2.

[101]   Queensland Government, Submission 91, pp. 3-4.

[102]   Victorian Government, Submission 90, pp. 5-6.

[103]   Ms Mears, Victorian Coastal Council, Transcript of Evidence, 20 May 2009, p. 3.

Appendix A: Inquiry process

[1]       The Australian on 2 April 2008.

[2]       Due to variations in pagination style among submissions received, footnote references in this report generally refer to the electronic page number of the submission as published on the Committee’s web site. Similarly, page references in transcripts are to the document as it appears electronically, not as it may appear in hard copy, because of variations in printer drivers.

[3]       Thanks go to Ms Adrienne Batts, Committee Office, for some of the photos from the Committee’s site inspections that have been reproduced in this report.

Appendix D: List of exhibits

[1]       The following information sets out the details of the individual or organisation that provided the exhibit and the title of the exhibit.

Appendix F: State and territory coastal governance arrangements

[1]       ANEDO, Submission 73, pp. 8-17.

[2]       The State Coastal Policy 1996 is currently subject to review.  A draft policy was released in 2006, but later withdrawn.  A new draft policy is expected to be released by the end of 2008.

[3]       St Helens Landcare and Coastcare v Break O’Day Council [2007] TASSC 15

[4]       Sharples, C., 2004. Indicative mapping of Tasmanian coastal vulnerability to climate change and sea level rise: Explanatory Report, Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment.

[5]       Trialing NRM Resource Condition Indicators in the Coastal Zone – Final Report, May 2006

[6]       Media Release From the Victorian Coastal Council, Sea level rise key in new draft coastal strategy, Friday 9 November 2007.  Available at: http://www.vcc.vic.gov.au/pdf/mediareleasedraftvcs.pdf

[7]       Australian Local Government Association website.  Available at: http://www.alga.asn.au/policy/environment/coasts/roles/

[8]       Australian Local Government Association website.  Available at: http://www.alga.asn.au/policy/environment/coasts/roles/

[9]       Department of Sustainability and Environment Victoria.  Available at: http://www.dse.vic.gov.au/DSE/nrencm.nsf/LinkView/F3C0CB8C21FD0964CA257157001B4D40C18B7E0199670F29CA256F5E0021B6C8

[10]     2005-2006 Status Report on the implementation of The Darwin Harbour Regional Plan of Management.  Available at: www.nt.gov.au/nreta/water/dhac/pdf/dhac_status_report.pdf

[11]     2005-2006 Status Report on the implementation of The Darwin Harbour Regional Plan of Management.  Available at: www.nt.gov.au/nreta/water/dhac/pdf/dhac_status_report.pdf

[12]     Integrated Natural Resource Management Plan for the Northern Territory.  Available at: http://nrmbnt.org.au/files/inrmp/INRMPlanMarch2005.pdf

[13]     Hilton L. 2007, ‘Structuring South West’s Natural Management Plan’.  Available at http://www.southwestnrm.org.au/publications/downloads/ConsultancyReport_StructuringSWNRMPlan_11-03-07.pdf

[14]     Northern Territory Parks and Conservation Masterplan, Summary Paper September 2005.  Available at www.nt.gov.au/nreta/parks/masterplan/pdf/summary_paper.pdf

[15]     Available at: http://www.nt.gov.au/nreta/environment/greenhouse/pdf/ghgemissions.pdf

[16]     For further detail please see the report prepared by the NSW EDO for the Sydney Coastal Councils Group: Coastal Councils and Planning for Climate Change: An assessment of Australian and NSW legislation and government policy provisions relating to climate change relevant to regional and metropolitan coastal councils. February 2008 and is available at: http://www.edo.org.au/edonsw/site/policy.php.

[17]     Section 3, Coastal Protection Act 1979.

[18]     Coastal Zone Management Plans must address the following three things: the protection and preservation of the beach environment and beach amenity; emergency action to be taken during periods of beach erosion; and continuing and undiminished public access to beaches and waterways.

[19]     The coastal zone is defined in the NSW Coastal Policy 1997 as 3 nautical miles seaward of the mainland and offshore islands; 1 km landward of the open coast high water mark; a distance of 1 km around all bays, estuaries, coastal lakes, lagoons and coastal rivers to the limit of mangroves or the tidal limit whichever is closer to the sea.

[20]     The coastal zone is defined in the NSW Coastal Policy 1997 as 3 nautical miles seaward of the mainland and offshore islands; 1 km landward of the open coast high water mark; a distance of 1 km around all bays, estuaries, coastal lakes, lagoons and coastal rivers to the limit of mangroves or the tidal limit whichever is closer to the sea.

[21]     Thom, B. 2003, ‘Beach Protection in NSW, New Measures to secure the environment and amenity of NSW beaches', Environmental and Planning Law Journal, vol. 20, no.5, pp 325-358.

[22]     Soft engineering approaches are discussed further below.

[23]     Thom, B. 2003, ‘Beach Protection in NSW, New Measures to secure the environment and amenity of NSW beaches', Environmental and Planning Law Journal, vol. 20, no.5, pp 325-358.

[24]     State Environmental Planning Policy No 71 – Coastal Protection, Part 2 Sec 8(j).

[25]     Full submission by the NSW EDO on this topic available at: http://www.edo.org.au/edonsw/site/policy/sepp_major_projects070525.php.

[26]     Thom, B. 2003, ‘Beach Protection in NSW, New Measures to secure the environment and amenity of NSW beaches', Environmental and Planning Law Journal, vol. 20, no.5, pp 325-358.

[27]     Thom, B. 2003, ‘Beach Protection in NSW, New Measures to secure the environment and amenity of NSW beaches', Environmental and Planning Law Journal, vol. 20, no.5, pp 325-358.

[28]     NSW Coastal Policy 1997, Available at: http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/plansforaction/pdf/CPPARTA.PDF.

[29]     NSW Coastal Policy 1997, Available at: http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/plansforaction/pdf/CPPARTA.PDF.

[30]     B Norman, Planning for Coastal Climate Change: an Insight into International and National Approaches, Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment and Department of Planning and Community Development, 2009—Exhibit 176.

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