You are invited to participate in our Flood Plain Risk Management survey. It will take approximately 30 minutes to complete the questionnaire.
This questionnaire is being carried out to contribute towards the research projects being undertaken by Steve Frost and Nilmini De Silva as part of the requirements for the Graduate Diploma in Local Government Management at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS).
The results of this survey will be used to counterpoint anecdotal evidence that there is a need for reform in Flood Plain Risk Management (FRM) around Australia.
The two themes to be explored will be:
1. The future strategic direction of (FRM); and 2. The skills shortages, succession planning and development of a competency profile for the flood risk manager of the future.
Even as we strive to mitigate flood damages and the risk to human life, factors such as climate change may impact on the way we manage our floodplains in the future. If we don’t plan for change, we may compromise the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
The information obtained from this questionnaire will hopefully provide a more a comprehensive overview of the future of FRM and provide a profile of what our future flood risk managers may look like.
The results of this survey will also be presented at the 2009 Flooplain Management Authorities Conference in Albury, NSW.
Your participation in this study is completely voluntary. There are no foreseeable risks associated with this project. However, if you feel uncomfortable answering any questions, you can withdraw from the survey at any point. It is very important for us to learn your opinions.
Your survey responses will be strictly confidential and data from this research will be reported only in the aggregate. Your information will be coded and will remain confidential. If you have questions at any time about the survey or the procedures, you may contact Steve Frost on (02) 9725 0239 or Nilmini De Silva on (02) 9725 0881.
Thank you very much for your time and support. Please start the survey now by clicking on the Continue button below.
QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR ORGANISATION
1. Would you please provide details of your organisation
1.1 Organisation Name (optional)
1.2 Your Name (optional)
1.3 Position Title
1.4 Field of expertise (eg, flood modellor, land use planner)
1.5 Organisation Type
QUESTIONS ABOUT YOU
2. What is your occupation?
3. What age group do you belong to?
4. How many years have you worked in FRM?
5. On average, how many hours a week do you work (including overtime both paid and unpaid)?
6. What is your gender?
THE FUTURE STRATEGIC DIRECTION OF FLOOD RISK MANAGEMENT (FRM)
In this section, we wish to get your opinion on issues such: as the future legislative framework; the sources of available funding; sharing of information; resourcing; and who should be responsible for administering flood risk management.
We want to find answers to big questions such as “do we need a more regional approach to managing our floodplains?”
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITY
This section seeks to explore where the roles and responsibilities for FRM should rest. You may also wish to consider options such as the need for a National FRM Agency.
7. Please answer the following questions in the context of the next 10 years. Check all that apply.
7.1 Who should be developing FRM Policy?
7.2 Reason (Why?)
7.3 Who should be administering FRM Policy?
7.4 Reason (Why?)
7.5 Who should be regulating development in the floodplain?
7.6 Reason (Why?)
7.7 Who should develop FRM plans?
7.8 Reason (Why?)
7.9 Who should fund flood mitigation studies and works?
7.10 Reason (Why?)
7.11 Who should prioritise flood mitigation works?
7.12 Reason (Why?)
7.13 Who should be responsible for flood awareness?
7.14 Reason (Why?)
FLOOD MAPPING
Flood mapping is an essential component of FRM. We are seeking your opinions about the need for a consistent approach and at what spatial scale this should operate.
8. What FRM categories should be mapped?
9. In your opinion, which of the following approaches to flood mapping is required?
FUTURE DRIVERS AND BARRIERS TO FRM
We have to be careful about linking our future to only one alternative scenario. Understanding the future drivers and barriers will help in mapping alternative futures of what might happen.
10. In the next 10 years FRM will be driven by?
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
Actual flood event
Asset management
Climate change
Commitment to ESD principles (eg, natural design vs hard engineering)
Funding
Human distress and health damage
Increase in value of assets in the floodplain
Influential and well informed community action groups
Integrated water management
Legislation
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
Political champions
Proximity to recent flood events
Public awareness
Public expectations and demands
Regional/catchment based alliances
Research
Skills shortage
Technological developments
10.1 Do you have any other strongly held views on the drivers of FRM in the next 10 years?
11. The future barriers to FRM will be?
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
'Black Box' approach to flood models
A disconnect between FRM researchers and FRM practitioners
Failure to pass on knowledge to future generations
Ingnoring the cumulative impact of development
Inapropriate flood mitigation works
Inapropriate land use
Inconsistent terminology
Lack of an integrated approach between agencies
Lack of expertise and skills in FRM
Lack of flood awareness
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
Lack of funding
Lack of political support
Long periods of drought
Over-reliance on flood mitigation works (resulting in false sense of security)
Population growth pressure
Reluctance to depart from the strategic approach to FRM
Shortage of future Flood Risk Managers
Technical limitations of flood models
Unwillingness to share knowledge and information about flood risk
11.1 Do you have any other strongly held views on the barriers for FRM in the next 10 years?
LEVEL OF ACCEPTABLE RISK
We will not be able to eliminate floods, however, there is a trend in society that expects increasing standards of safety and risk reduction. Nevertherless, the challenge will be to find an approriate level of risk that balances environmental, social, economic and governance issues
12. The purpose of this question is to draw out your views on whether: a. We should accept the increasing levels of flood risk with its inevitable increases in flood damages and risk to human life; b. Maintain flood risk at current levels despite increasing community expectations and demands; or c. Seek to reduce the risk of future flooding where considerable investment would be required.
Agree?
Accept increasing levels of flood risk
Maintain risks at current levels
Reduce risk of future flooding
12.1 Do you have suggestions for other options?
13. Please choose your top 5 strategies in the following list for reducing flood risk in the next 10 years.
Addressing skills shortages and succession planning
Adopting an Integrated Water Cycle Management (IWCM) approach to FRM
Better regional cooperation
Catchment based alliances
Developing policies for catchment imperviousness
Development controls in low flood risk area
Emergency management
Engaging the community
Engaging the development industry
Flood modification (eg, levees, detention basins)
Involvement of strategic and land use planning
Property modification (eg, voluntary purchase, voluntary house raising)
Raising awareness
Reconnecting rivers to their floodplains
Sterilising development in high flood risk areas
13.1 Do you have suggestions for other options?
KNOWLEDGE GAPS
Identifying knowledge gaps is the first step to filling them. The better we are at recognising them the more effective our future planning will be.
14. What are the gaps in the current knowledge base in FRM?
15. Should flood insurance be more widely available?
15.1 Why?
16. What are the implications for FRM if flood insurance were more widely available?
17. In your opinion, what is worth keeping in the current approach to FRM?
18. In your opinion, what needs to be changed in the current approach to FRM?
THE FUTURE FLOODPLAIN RISK MANAGER
So far the issue of succession planning and skills shortages in the Floodplain Risk Management (FRM) industry has been on the agenda of the NSW Floodplain Management Authorities (FMA) and the Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC). They have identified a need to build the level of knowledge, skills and experience in the FRM industry to provide the necessary advice to decision-makers and the industry.
In this section we wish to get your opinion on issues such as skills shortages, succession planning, and what competencies would be needed of a future Floodplain Risk Manager, which will assist in developing a competency profile.
SKILLS SHORTAGES
Anecdotal evidence suggest that FRM is not immune from the national skills shortages experienced in many professions. This section will seek your views on this issue to hopefully establish its impact on the FRM industry.
19. How many permanent full-time male staff does your organisation currently employ in FRM?
19.1 How many permanent full-time female staff does your organisation currently employ in FRM?
20. How many permanent part-time male staff does your organisation currently employ in FRM?
20.1 How many permanent part-time female staff does your organisation currently employ in FRM?
21. How many casual male staff does your organisation currently employ in FRM?
21.1 How many casual female staff does your organisation currently employ in FRM?
22. What is the average age of all your employees? (years)
23. Are you having problems recruiting qualified FRM staff?
24. On average, how long does it take to fill a vacancy in the area of FRM?
25. What is the longest period of time you have taken to fill a vacancy in the area of FRM?
26. Please indicate your strength of agreement as to extent of the skills shortages in each of the following FRM industry sectors. Strongly Agree if you think the skills shortages are critical. Stongly Disagree if you think that it is not an issue:
Public Sector
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
Federal Government FRM Professionals
Federal Government FRM Political Representatives
Local Government FRM Professionals
Local Government Political Representatives
State Government FRM Professionals
State Government Political Representatives
Private Sector
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
Consultant in the FRM Industry
Contractor
Industry (eg, Manufacturers)
Education Sector
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
Academia
Research
Secondary teachers (especially in Science, Engineering and Technology)
26.1 Do you have any other strongly held views on skills shortages in other sectors of the FRM industry?
27. Please indicate your strength of agreement with each of the following statements. The lack of skills and experience in the FRM Industry is due to:
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
‘Baby boomers’ transitioning to retirement
A high turnover of FRM professionals in Local Government
A lack of appropriate levels of remuneration in the private sector
A lack of appropriate levels of remuneration in the public sector
A lack of attention paid to career development
A lack of attention to succession planning
A lack of effective engagement of strategic planners in the FRM process
A lack of major flood events during one of the worst droughts in history
A lack of secondary school emphasis on science and technology
A lack of training and development of FRM professionals at the tertiary level
Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
A reduction in the NSW State Government’s ability to provide a high degree of technical support to FRM
Loss of skills overseas
Loss of many Local Government Councillors as political champions
27.1 Do you have any other strongly held views on the reasons for the lack of skills and experience in the FRM Industry?
SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES
In any future scenario it is critical to have the right people in key positions with the approriate skills and competencies to effectively implement FRM.
28. Please choose 10 skills from the following list that you would consider essential for a competent Flood Risk Manager
28.1 Do you have suggestions for other important skills and capabilities required for FRM?
29. The skills and competencies required of a Future Floodplain Risk Manager are broad. In your opinion, which of the options below would be the best model to capture all of those skills and competencies?
30. If (Option 1) What academic discipline or field of study would you suggest?
30.1 If (Option 2) From which of the existing academic disciplines of fields of study would you suggest to draw on?
30.2 If (Option 3) At what level of academic study should this be placed?
SUCCESSION PLANNING
Succession planning is a process that ensures organisations not only have the right people in the right positions, but are also able to identify and develop people to fill key positions. Leading organisations are focussed on the development of people, not just the replacement of skills.
31. Who are the current custodians of FRM knowledge?
32. Who should be the custodians of FRM information?
33. Who would be best placed to transfer/share FRM knowledge?
34. Does your organisation have a career path development program for FR Managers?
35. How does this work in your organisation?
36. In your opinion, what are the 3 most important issues that need to be addressed in the FRM Industry? Priority 1
Priority 2
Priority 3
If you have any additional comments please provide your comments in the space below
Once again, thank you very much for your time. You have made an important contribution to the body of knowledge in FRM.
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