Tuesday, 2 August 2022

 Ms BURNETT-WAKE (Eastern Victoria) (19:51): (2025) My adjournment matter is directed to the Minister for Planning. The action that I seek is for the minister to intervene and amend what is considered a moderate risk under the erosion management overlay in the state planning scheme. I recently visited Natalie and Lee Guest at their block of land in Kalorama. Their home was destroyed in the 9 June storm last year, and they are now facing the very real prospect that they may not be able to rebuild on their own property. This is due to the state erosion management overlay. Because their Kalorama property falls within the erosion management overlay, Natalie and Lee were required to get a geotechnical assessment before applying for a planning permit. This geotechnical report concludes that the risk to the property has been assessed as moderate based on the rare one-in-100 000-year probability that the house will be destroyed by a landslide. Yes, you heard that correctly: a one-in-100 000-year probability of a landslide is being considered a moderate risk preventing a rebuild from occurring. The dormant volcano underneath Mount Dandenong has a higher risk of erupting. Yarra Ranges council has advised Natalie and Lee their planning permit is unlikely to be approved as this moderate risk does not comply with the current Victorian planning scheme. I have seen the geotechnical report, and it states:

… there is no greater risk associated with the developments onsite than were present prior to the storm damage …

This means that there is no greater risk to a new build than there was to the previous home before it was destroyed. There were 76 homes destroyed in the Dandenongs during the 9 June storm, and many others suffered significant damage. If action is not taken, this erosion management overlay has the ability to prevent all of these home owners from rebuilding on their own land. I know there are at least 28 homes waiting to be rebuilt. This is another case of the bureaucracy making lives harder than they need to be. The fact that a one-in-100 000-year risk would be considered moderate is just completely nonsensical.

It should also be noted that back in November 2021 the Yarra Ranges council provided the Andrews government with a business case for storm recovery. Council predicted the influx of building permit applications and the required geotechnical reports. Council requested funds to undertake geotechnical assessments of all properties within the overlay that had homes lost in the storm. This was not agreed to by the state government. If council had been provided with the funds, residents of the Dandenongs would have known about this planning issue a long time ago. Instead they are finding out just now that their homes cannot be rebuilt.

The Minister for Planning has the power to expedite an amendment to the planning scheme to update the existing erosion management overlay to resolve this issue and amend what is considered a moderate risk. The minister can also call in a planning permit yet to be decided. I am calling on the minister to intervene to assist Natalie and Lee’s case and to amend what is considered a moderate risk under the erosion management overlay before other residents are also prevented from rebuilding on their land.