Agenda of Byron Shire Floodplain Risk Management Committee Meeting

CONFLICT OF INTERESTS

What is a “Conflict of Interests” - A conflict of interests can be of two types:

Pecuniary - an interest that a person has in a matter because of a reasonable likelihood or expectation of appreciable financial gain or loss to the person or another person with whom the person is associated.

Non-pecuniary – a private or personal interest that a Council official has that does not amount to a pecuniary interest as defined in the Local Government Act (eg. A friendship, membership of an association, society or trade union or involvement or interest in an activity and may include an interest of a financial nature).

Remoteness – a person does not have a pecuniary interest in a matter if the interest is so remote or insignificant that it could not reasonably be regarded as likely to influence any decision the person might make in relation to a matter or if the interest is of a kind specified in Section 448 of the Local Government Act.

Who has a Pecuniary Interest? - a person has a pecuniary interest in a matter if the pecuniary interest is the interest of the person, or another person with whom the person is associated (see below).

Relatives, Partners - a person is taken to have a pecuniary interest in a matter if:

§ The person’s spouse or de facto partner or a relative of the person has a pecuniary interest in the matter, or

§ The person, or a nominee, partners or employer of the person, is a member of a company or other body that has a pecuniary interest in the matter.

N.B. “Relative”, in relation to a person means any of the following:

(a) the parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, lineal descends or adopted child of the person or of the person’s spouse;

(b) the spouse or de facto partners of the person or of a person referred to in paragraph (a)

No Interest in the Matter - however, a person is not taken to have a pecuniary interest in a matter:

§ If the person is unaware of the relevant pecuniary interest of the spouse, de facto partner, relative or company or other body, or

§ Just because the person is a member of, or is employed by, the Council.

§ Just because the person is a member of, or a delegate of the Council to, a company or other body that has a pecuniary interest in the matter provided that the person has no beneficial interest in any shares of the company or body.

Disclosure and participation in meetings

§ A Councillor or a member of a Council Committee who has a pecuniary interest in any matter with which the Council is concerned and who is present at a meeting of the Council or Committee at which the matter is being considered must disclose the nature of the interest to the meeting as soon as practicable.

§ The Councillor or member must not be present at, or in sight of, the meeting of the Council or Committee:

(a) at any time during which the matter is being considered or discussed by the Council or Committee, or

(b) at any time during which the Council or Committee is voting on any question in relation to the matter.

No Knowledge - a person does not breach this Clause if the person did not know and could not reasonably be expected to have known that the matter under consideration at the meeting was a matter in which he or she had a pecuniary interest.

Participation in Meetings Despite Pecuniary Interest (S 452 Act)

A Councillor is not prevented from taking part in the consideration or discussion of, or from voting on, any of the matters/questions detailed in Section 452 of the Local Government Act.

Non-pecuniary Interests - Must be disclosed in meetings.

There are a broad range of options available for managing conflicts & the option chosen will depend on an assessment of the circumstances of the matter, the nature of the interest and the significance of the issue being dealt with. Non-pecuniary conflicts of interests must be dealt with in at least one of the following ways:

§ It may be appropriate that no action be taken where the potential for conflict is minimal. However, Councillors should consider providing an explanation of why they consider a conflict does not exist.

§ Limit involvement if practical (eg. Participate in discussion but not in decision making or vice-versa). Care needs to be taken when exercising this option.

§ Remove the source of the conflict (eg. Relinquishing or divesting the personal interest that creates the conflict)

§ Have no involvement by absenting yourself from and not taking part in any debate or voting on the issue as if the provisions in S451 of the Local Government Act apply (particularly if you have a significant non-pecuniary interest)

RECORDING OF VOTING ON PLANNING MATTERS

Clause 375A of the Local Government Act 1993 – Recording of voting on planning matters

(1) In this section, planning decision means a decision made in the exercise of a function of a council under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979:

(a) including a decision relating to a development application, an environmental planning instrument, a development control plan or a development contribution plan under that Act, but

(b) not including the making of an order under Division 2A of Part 6 of that Act.

(2) The general manager is required to keep a register containing, for each planning decision made at a meeting of the council or a council committee, the names of the councillors who supported the decision and the names of any councillors who opposed (or are taken to have opposed) the decision.

(3) For the purpose of maintaining the register, a division is required to be called whenever a motion for a planning decision is put at a meeting of the council or a council committee.

(4) Each decision recorded in the register is to be described in the register or identified in a manner that enables the description to be obtained from another publicly available document, and is to include the information required by the regulations.

(5) This section extends to a meeting that is closed to the public.

BYRON SHIRE COUNCIL

Staff Reports - Infrastructure Services 4.1

Staff Reports - Infrastructure Services

Report No. 4.1 North Byron Floodplain Risk Management Study and Plan

Directorate: Infrastructure Services

Report Author: James Flockton, Drain and Flood Engineer

File No: I2018/1443

Theme: Infrastructure Services

Emergency Services and Flood Management

Summary:

Consultants WRM Water has been continuing to progress the North Byron Floodplain Risk Management Study project.

All model updates have been completed.

The March 2017 flood event has now been modelled and used to verify the model.

Additionally the community survey is complete and has been assessed and the floor level survey is 95% complete.

RECOMMENDATION:

1. That Council approve the calibration results for the March 2017 flood event and that the North Byron Flood Model is fit for the Draft Floodplain Risk Management Study tasks.

2. That the Byron Shire Floodplain Management Committee note the results of the community survey and look forward to seeing these results guide the various parts of the Draft Floodplain Risk Management Study document.

Attachments:

1 North Byron FRMS&P - WMA water Draft Community Survey Results Memo, E2018/71747 , page 8⇩

2 North Byron FRMS&P - WMA water Draft Community Survey Results Memo Appendix, E2018/71749 , page 12⇩

3 North Byron FRMS&P - Calibration Update 4 September 2018 WMA Water, E2018/73997 , page 12⇩

Report

Consultants WRM Water have been continuing to progress the North Byron Floodplain Risk Management Study project. Works are progressing well and staff are happy with progress to date.

Model Updates

All model updates and changes, as per the previous committee meeting, are now complete and the model is being used to progress the project.

March 2017 Flood Event

WMA Water are currently finalising the results and mapping of the March 2017 flood event. This includes verification and calibration of the model changes previously reported and approved by the committee.

Staff have been advised by WMA Water that the results are currently looking good but cannot be finalised until all model runs have been completed. Unfortunately this work will run past Council’s reporting deadlines, however, it is proposed that the results will be provided directly to the committee via a separate email in the week before the meeting. To ensure committee members have some time to digest the results before the meeting.

A decision on which Australian Rainfall and Runoff figures to use moving forward will also be required. - ARR1987 and ARR2016

Design Event mapping

The proposed design event mapping has not been started to date.

Staff and WMA Water’s preference is to present the March 2017 calibration results to the committee prior to running all design events.

The intention is to begin this work immediately after the committee meeting, if the committee approve the March 2017 calibration results.

Flood Mitigation Options Assessment

The proposed flood mitigation options assessment has not started to date, however, the intention is to begin this work immediately after the committee meeting, if the committee approve the March 2017 calibration results.

Community Survey Results

The community survey is now complete and the results have been assessed and documented. These results can be viewed in attachments 1 and 2.

The results will also be presented to the committee at the meeting and time allowed for further discussion of the results.

The survey results will help mould the direction of recommended mitigation options. For example there was strong support for increased drainage maintenance; therefore, this can be forwarded as a recommended action within the Floodplain Risk Management Study and if supported by the committee as action in the Floodplain Management Plan.

WMA Water will present the results of the survey at the committee meeting.

This presentation will include recommended actions to include in the Floodplain Risk Management Study as a result of the survey comments.

Floor Level Survey

The floor level survey of properties within the 500 year flood inundation area is 90% complete. Staff understand the on ground works are now complete and post processing of collected data is the remaining task.

The floor levels will be used in the flood mitigation options assessment because the aim is to avoid above floor flooding, where possible up to the 100 year event. This data is also used to prepare a flood consequence analysis, which shows the consequences of certain flood events on the community and their properties.

The flood consequence analysis will also advise which properties would be eligible for Voluntary House Raising and Voluntary House Purchase programs.

Data collected includes; floor level, number of stories, building type, building materials, approx. size and a photo of each house. This data will also be added to Council existing database which already covers Byron Bay and Suffolk Park, obtained during previous studies.

Where to next?

Over the coming months the Draft Floodplain Risk Management Study document will be prepared and reported to the committee as it progresses. This will include documenting the above works, design flood event mapping, flood hazard and risk mapping, flood levy failure assessment, flood mitigation option assessments and cost benefit analysis of preferred mitigation options.

Drainage Strategies for Mullumbimby and Brunswick Heads, land use planning assessment and cumulative development impacts assessment. Emergency Management tasks include Education material, Evacuation Plans and Evacuation Centre Reviews and Flood emergency response classifications.

The Draft Floodplain Risk Management Plan will be prepared once the draft study document has been finalised and received support from the committee.

Financial Implications

There are no financial implications to this report.

Statutory and Policy Compliance Implications

NSW Councils are expected to prepare Floodplain Risk Management Studies and Plans for flood prone catchments within their local government areas. These documents must be prepared in accordance with State Government Policy.

The NSW Floodplain Development Manual 2005 is the current policy used by State Government for the preparation of such documents.

This project is following the methods prescribed in the NSW Floodplain Development Manual for completing Floodplain Risk Management Studies and Plans.