Pyrenees Shire Council: Beaufort Flood Mitigation Works
Posted under: Upgraded drainage culverts under the Ballarat-Ararat railway line in Beaufort, a small town located within the Pyrenees Shire, has mitigated the impact and severity of future flooding events, enhanced community confidence, resilience and wellbeing and secured an environment conducive to business development and population growth. The impacts of flooding on the social well being of individuals cannot be underestimated and the Beaufort Culvert Project (Project), completed in January 2013, has provided the foundation for people to confidently live, work and invest in their home town. Co-funded by the Department of Transport, Regional Development Victoria and the Pyrenees Shire Council, the Project was a high priority infrastructure project for the Pyrenees Shire Council and cost $3,000,000.
2. Description of project
Since 1884 there have been an estimated 18 flood events in Beaufort, five of which have been in the period 2001 to 2011. This equates to an average of one event every two years.
The most recent flood events of September 2010 and January 2011 inundated residential and industrial properties with detrimental effects on an economic, social and community basis. In 2011, the Western Highway was closed for around seven hours and 124 families and/or individuals visited the Municipal Recovery Centre to seek refuge, and 49 residences in the town experienced flooding above floor level.
Prior to these events, Council commissioned the Beaufort Flood Study Report 2008 which included an analysis of a variety of structural measures designed to help mitigate flooding. As a result the Beaufort Culvert Project was borne.
This Project has alleviated both mental and physical health risks as a result of house flooding and the potential for flood waters to compromise the towns’ sewerage system and improved community confidence in their town.
2.1 Project objectives
The key objectives of the Project include;
Economic Objectives
• To create confidence in business to increase the number of new jobs at the industrial estate
• To secure new and existing business investments
• To secure investment and jobs of the five businesses along the Western Highway and Willoby St that suffered flooding during January 2011.
• To increase the capacity of local business to drive development by protecting their existing investments and employment, and allowing them to pursue their aspirations for growth
• To secure the safe passage of traffic along the Western Highway national freight route at Beaufort
• To secure passenger travel by rail to and from Beaufort for those who commute to neighbouring cities such as Ballarat and Ararat for employment, education, health and social purposes.
Environmental Objectives
• Provides better environmental outcomes, mitigating the impact on the town’s sewerage pumping system.
Social/Community Objectives
• Facilitate community resilience by investing in a project that will protect over 150 properties that are currently subject to inundation for a one in one hundred year event.
• Improve confidence amongst local businesses in the industrial zone that was previously impacted severely by flooding events.
• Invest in an initiative that supports the development of new industries and jobs at Beaufort, and build a stronger community with an improved lifestyle.
2.2 Project outcomes
The Project has helped mitigate the risk of future flooding in the Beaufort area. It has enhanced the protection of important state assets such as the Western Highway and the Ararat-Ballarat rail line and created opportunities for industrial and commercial uses of the land.
2.3 Innovative features of the project
There are a number of noteworthy features of this Project right through from the feasibility stage through to construction including;
Flood information model
– The hydraulic model used to develop flood information including maps and electronic data sets to describe potential flooding in Beaufort was invaluable in providing compelling evidence for importance of the Project. The model included flood extent, flood depth and velocity; and has been utilised to assist in future land use planning in Beaufort.
Railway Culvert Structure
– The Project uses a series of four new improved hydraulic railway culvert structures that will reduce water levels during floods resulting in a 73% reduction in the number of properties subject to flooding Beaufort for a one in one hundred year event.
Stakeholder Management
– A unique feature of the Project was the number of stakeholders and funding partners, each of which required close management by Council’s team. Each partner had its own interests in the project from the design stage through to the construction stage.
2.4 Distinguishing features of the project or service highlighting best practice engineering principles and technologies
The series of four new railway culverts has lowered the water levels of a one in one hundred year event by 0.4 metre, thereby reducing the number of properties (industrial, commercial and residential) that are subject to flooding from 214 to 58.
2.5 Benefit to the community of the project or service
The benefits of this Project to the community are varied and include economic and employment benefits. Positive results have already been recognised, with the Project reported locally as having creating confidence in business investments and employment opportunities in and around the Beaufort township.
Benefits include;
– Strengthening the economic base and creating new employment in Beaufort. This Project has enabled Council to undertake a review of planning controls and overlays making industrial development more cost effective and appealing. As result of this Project, the areas subject to flood inundation have changed and been removed from a number of previously impacted blocks. This has encouraged confidence in development and has directly created an estimated 29 new jobs, 21 indirect jobs and grown output by $18.3M and wages by $3.3M.
– Supports existing businesses to retain long-term staff tenure. Undertaking this flood mitigation work has provided confidence to neighbouring businesses (who previously experienced inundation) in their investments, thereby securing existing employment and giving them confidence to continue to pursue growth and create new jobs.
– Population growth, community resilience and sustainability. This Project was considered an integral component of town infrastructure which has enabled Council to capitalise on its economic development initiatives, while simultaneously building community resilience and wellbeing.
– Environmental Benefits. Flooding presents potential compromise of the towns’ sewerage system and has serious consequences to community health and the environment which have been mitigated through
completion of this Project.
2.6 Program and project management
This Project was a funded collaboration between three major stakeholders; Pyrenees Shire Council, the Department of Transport and Regional Development of Victoria. The project contractor was rail and infrastructure specialist Coleman Rail. The Project was managed by VicTrack on behalf of the Pyrenees Shire Council. While managing the expectations of funding partners, project stakeholders and the local community, a number of complexities arose that were successfully overcome by Council. In order for Council to gain funding from the Department of Transport, numerous meetings were required for Council to provide evidence that the rail embankment was causing the flooding impact to the Beaufort township. Fortunately, Council’s foresight, resulting in a comprehensive flood and mitigation study being completed prior to the flood events of 2010, 2011 and 2012, provided compelling evidence that helped Council seek the funding required for the Project. Without this report and funding, this Project would not have occurred. Another barrier was the need for the train line to shut down for a period of time while works were completed. This presented an unprecedented problem and did not occur easily. Significant consultation and discussion with V/Line and train users was required to ensure that V/Line would not incur penalties. Council sought special approval, which was granted by the Director of Public Transport. Furthermore, the Project required substantial review and approvals from Victrack, as the owner of the rail infrastructure, resulting in designs needing to be approved by an additional stakeholder; Victrack’s engineering consultant. This approval process took around 8 months and required numerous amendments and consultation between Council, Victrack and Aurecon. This added to the already complex stakeholder engagement plan.
2.7 Costs/Benefits associated with the Project
A cost benefit analysis was conducted during the Project feasibility stage. It indicates that the elevated flood levels culminating from the inadequate railway culverts have caused total
economic costs of $3.941M. Floods have also impacted significantly on community wellbeing.
Remplan modelling was employed to assess the flow on benefits of the $3m project during the construction phase as outlined in the following table;
Impact Summary Direct Effect Industrial Effect Consumption Effect Total Effect Type 1 Multiplier Type 2 Multiplier
Output ($M) $3.000 $1.476 $0.350 $4.826 1.492 1.609
Employment (Jobs) 9 6 1 16 1.667 1.778
Wages and Salaries ($M) $0.490 $0.339 $0.068 $0.897 1.693 1.832
Value-added ($M) $0.965 $0.597 $0.213 $1.776 1.619 1.840
On a lifetime cost basis, (non inflation adjusted) over an assumed lifespan of 50 years, the Cost Benefit Ratio of constructing the culverts is 3.36.
4. Any general comments
Nominators are welcome to attached photos, plans, reports etc that demonstrate particular features of the project.
The following documents have been attached to this application as they were vital in informing the direction and outcome of this project.
– Pyrenees Shire Council Beaufort Flood Study (2008)
– Beaufort Floodplain Management Plan completed by Water Technology in May 2011