Understanding the economic, social, and environmental benefits of investing in resilience in Queensland

Abstract

To make Queensland the most disaster resilient state in Australia, concerted efforts are required to be adaptable and to invest in disaster risk reduction and mitigation to increase our resilience. Resilient infrastructure plays a critical role in supporting communities to withstand, respond to, and recover from natural disasters. The Queensland Reconstruction Authority (QRA) has demonstrated the value of building back infrastructure to a more resilient standard through the Queensland Betterment Fund which aims to increase the resilience of essential public assets by comparing the betterment investment with restoration costs and avoided costs from extreme events that have impacted the infrastructure since being rebuilt. Currently, the avoided cost figure is based on estimated reconstruction costs only and does not include the main intangible benefits associated with having more resilient infrastructure – such as continuity and connectedness of disaster affected communities. QRA has invested in two key projects to enhance economic assessments to assist in valuing resilient infrastructure and to help improve decision-making around investment in flood risk management in Queensland. These two projects include: • The Sustainable Asset Valuation initiative (SAVi) Pilot Project • The Economic Assessment Framework of Flood Risk Management Projects QRA partnered with the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) to understand the broader economic, social and environmental benefits through the development of the SAVi tool to expand on traditional cost-benefit-analyses. The SAVi tool considers a wide range of indirect benefits using 15 indicators that include road disruption, mental health, access to services, pollution and market access for crops, fruit and livestock. This holistic approach has been applied retrospectively to a sample of road infrastructure projects funded by the Queensland Betterment program to understand the full benefits that investments in resilient road infrastructure can generate. It is intended that the outputs from the analysis can help to inform future decisions around investments in resilient road infrastructure to achieve the best outcomes for Queensland communities. In relation to investments in flood risk management, QRA recognises the importance of being able to quantify all types of damages resulting from floods, and fairly compare a wide range of possible options to ensure targeted investment provides the greatest return. The Economic Assessment Framework of Flood Risk Management Projects (the Framework) was developed in 2021 to support Queensland’s flood risk practitioners, state and local governments to help improve the robustness and consistency of economic assessments supporting decision-making and investment in flood risk management and intervention throughout Queensland. The Framework describes a five-stage process for undertaking economic assessment for flood risk management, and outlines methodologies that are underpinned by guiding principles. To support the Frameworks adoption, QRA is developing a web-based tool to guide users through the framework, empower decision makers to effectively invest in flood risk mitigation. QRA are excited to share our reflections, insights and lessons learned from these projects, and continue to work with relevant stakeholders to develop the Framework related tools and build on the SAVi tool to refine over time.