$19 MILLION AVAILABLE TO QUEENSLAND COMMUNITIES TO INCREASE RESILIENCE AND REDUCE DISASTER RISK

Published Tuesday, 23 November, 2021 at 04:50 PM

Deputy Premier, Minister for State Development, Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning and Minister Assisting the Premier on Olympics Infrastructure
The Honourable Dr Steven Miles

Queensland communities can now apply for a share of more than $19 million in resilience and risk reduction funding to help them better prepare for future disasters.

Minister for Emergency Management and National Recovery and Resilience, Senator the Hon Bridget McKenzie said Queensland was accustomed to recovering and rebuilding from natural disasters but it is important to increase resilience and reduce risk.

“Queenslanders have experienced significant natural disasters in the past but have built back stronger and focused on resilience and preparedness for future disasters,” Minister McKenzie said.

“The Australian Government is proud to partner with the Queensland Government to make
$19.1 million available in 2021–22 through the Queensland Resilience and Risk Reduction Fund (QRRRF), just as we did last year.

“Of this, $6 million is exclusively available for the 14 local government areas hardest hit by the
2019 North Queensland monsoon trough, under the Managing Disaster Risk grants program, to support the region’s long-term recovery from this devastating event.”

The funding also includes round three of the National Partnership Agreement on Disaster Risk Reduction, which seeks to actively reduce disaster risk in order to minimise the loss and suffering caused by such events.

Queensland Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning Steven Miles urged Queensland communities to submit their expressions of interest for funding to help reduce, mitigate and manage the risks of disasters. 

“We will always stand by Queenslanders as they recover from these events but our history clearly shows that better prepared communities and those that invest in resilient infrastructure and initiatives are able to recovery more quickly from disaster events,” Mr Miles said.

“Funding is available for infrastructure and non-infrastructure initiatives and has previously included a wide variety of programs including flood warning infrastructure, mental health programs, flood studies and infrastructure upgrades.”

Eligible applicants include local governments, Queensland Government departments and agencies, and incorporated not-for-profit-organisations.

A total of $19.1 million is available in this round of the fund, comprising $8.3 million from the Queensland Government and $10.8 million from the Australian Government.

Expressions of interest close on 18 February 2022. Shortlisted applicants will then be asked to provide a detailed application with successful applicants notified by 30 June 2022 and projects expected to commence from July 2022. Successful applicants will have until 30 June 2024 to deliver their projects.

The 14 local government areas eligible for $6 million under the Managing Disaster Risk grants are Burdekin, Burke, Carpentaria, Charters Towers, Cloncurry, Douglas, Etheridge, Flinders, Hinchinbrook, McKinlay, Richmond, Townsville, Whitsunday and Winton.

The QRRRF is administered by the Queensland Reconstruction Authority on behalf of the Australian and Queensland Governments.

For more information on how to apply, go to www.qra.qld.gov.au/QRRRF.

Media contacts:

Minister McKenzie: Kathy Heidrich 0428 051 736

Deputy Premier’s Office: Katharine Wright 0428 957 903