The impact of climate change on coastal infrastructure across the Northern Beaches will be addressed in an Australia-first initiative, with Northern Beaches Council receiving a grant of $80,000 from Local Government NSW to ensure that public infrastructure is resilient and adaptable.

Experts are predicting an increase in the impact of climate change on coastal communities, including rising sea levels, heat and more extreme weather events like the April 2015 and June 2016 storms.

Council Administrator Dick Persson said the funding will help produce options for making infrastructure last longer, with two pilot projects to be tested.

“We want to ensure that when we spend rate-payers money on public infrastructure we are doing it in a responsible and sustainable way by ensuring that it’s built to withstand the test of time.

“Northern Beaches Council is partnering with the Institute of Public Works Engineering Australasia (IPWEA), which will author a Climate Change Impacts on Assets update to their Useful Life of Infrastructure Assets Practice Note. 

“That Practice Note will be developed in conjunction with Northern Beaches Council so its useability is tested. The final Practice Note will feature Northern Beaches Council case studies and form part of national industry guidance.

“It will propose alternative designs in response to sea level rise and increased extreme weather events for things like community facilities, wharves, roads and stormwater outlets to make them last longer and therefore provide greater community and financial benefit.

“Northern Beaches Council is almost unique in Australia as it is a peninsula that is three-quarters surrounded by water and dominated by bushland. That has very obvious impacts on our environment.

“In Manly and its surrounding suburbs alone, the risk exposure just to roads would impact more than 500 sections of roads, and storms would produce four times as many annual road closures,” Mr Persson said

It is also important that stormwater infrastructure on the Northern Beaches is resilient to climate change impacts such as increased extreme rainfall events and sea level rise.

The Northern Beaches has 21 surf life saving cubs, the most of any local government area in Australia. With many of those club buildings ageing, it is important that any renovations or rebuilds are done sustainably so they are resilient to sea level rise and storm events.

“We are proud to have been chosen to receive this grant to help Northern Beaches Council lead the development of national industry guidance in infrastructure climate adaptation,” Mr Persson said.