Question Time

Bordertown Community Early Flood Warning System

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Leader of the Opposition) (14:35): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Environment, and possibly the Minister for Police and Minister for Emergency Services, a question about the Bordertown Community Early Flood Warning Monitoring System.

Leave granted.

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: I did note with interest in the Border Chronicle, the local newspaper there, a lovely photograph of the two ministers and some community representatives at the opening of the Bordertown Community Early Flood Warning System. This article states:

This system was officially opened this afternoon by the water minister, Ian Hunter, and emergency services minister, Peter Malinauskas. It will monitor levels in the Bordertown to Tatiara Creek and surrounds, where some low-lying areas are susceptible to flooding.

It goes on to say:

Water minister, Ian Hunter, said, 'This is an important project for the Bordertown community, who previously had no system in place to provide an early warning in the event of a flood.

The new monitoring stations will provide close to real-time data that will greatly assist with the planning and response to flood management and help reduce their impact on the community.'

Not to be outdone, the emergency services minister, Mr Malinauskas, said:

Early warning is vital to help our emergency services plan how to best protect people, homes, infrastructure and industry from the risk of flood.

The new monitoring system will provide intelligence on flood risk that will inform the response of our emergency services.

My questions, firstly, to minister Hunter, and also minister Malinauskas might like to answer them, are:

1. What was the total cost of this particular early warning flood project?

2. Can they tell me how often Tatiara Creek flows to the township of Bordertown?

3. When was the last time Tatiara Creek inundated and flooded the Bordertown township?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Climate Change) (14:38): I thank the honourable member for his most important question and for the zeal with which he follows our press releases as we move around country South Australia, meeting with the community and talking about what they need from government. We are very happy to work cooperatively with local government, as you well know. Indeed, the Minister for Emergency Services and I were at Bordertown to officially open the flood warning system.

There has been a flood monitor in the creek in Bordertown for some time, of course, but that was it. I am advised that was the sole station and, in fact, that only reflected water that was in the town at the time, it did not give any warning, in fact, to the town, as I understand it. There will be several hours warning for Bordertown with the series of stations further upstream. I understand a few of them will be over the border in Victoria as well, in the catchment. As I said in my shared media statement, that the recordings will be—

The PRESIDENT: Minister, just one sec: it is the height of rudeness for the leader of the government to be talking while one of his fellow ministers is on his feet trying to answer a question.

An honourable member interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: It is also the height of rudeness to interrupt while I am speaking. The honourable minister, continue please.

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: Thank you, Mr President, for your protection. I certainly need it from time to time. The rowdiness in this chamber is legend, and the Hon. David Ridgway leads in the rowdy stakes.

The Hon. D.W. Ridgway interjecting:

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: I am pleased to hear it; I am very pleased to hear that he is not going to be rowdy today. In terms of the recordings which used to be done by hand, manually, they are now automated and linked, almost in real time, I am told, to the Department of Environment and Water and Natural Resources website, where you can look up the various scale readings on the various systems. It is a very attractive system indeed, in terms of giving information and early advice to those who might require it. I understand there are protocols programmed into the system so that, should certain limits be reached, SMSs are sent out to the council-designated officer or certainly to the SES as well and also to DEWNR officers.

It is a big improvement and, as I understand it, on the very day that we were there the creek was up and flowing quite well because, of course, as we all understand, we've had a recent rain event across the state which has been very much welcomed by our farmers, and to see the smile on their faces when there is water in the system is certainly great to see.

The Hon. J.M.A. Lensink interjecting:

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: The Hon. Mr Ridgway is not going to be rowdy today but the Hon. Michelle Lensink hasn't given that promise, Mr President. In terms of the expenditure on the stations, I will take that on notice. If the honourable member wants a historical flood mapping survey done, I'll go back and look over the last decade or so and try to provide that information for him as well. I understand from the Mayor, of course, who was there on the day, they used to say that, in fact, the streets used to be flooded on a regular basis, because the creek goes right through the centre of the town and alongside the main street. I will get that historical data for the honourable member over the last 10 years or so for his interest and bring it back.