In 2017, Hansen’s strategic planning team completed a comprehensive project setting out a path for managing the coastal hazards that are already beginning to affect municipalities fronting Port Phillip Bay, Melbourne. Commissioned by the Municipal Association of Victoria, supported by the Association of Bayside Municipalities, DELWP and Melbourne Water, the project established a consistent approach to both understanding the hazards and managing these through the planning system.

The project included a Discussion Paper which set down key principles and established what a meaningful response to existing policy around coastal hazards would look like if implemented. An accompanying ‘how to’ guide provided support for Council in looking at how they might consider impacts in differing parts of their municipalities, for example in coastal Activity Centres, heritage areas or those subject to large scale precinct planning exercises. The project also worked with each of the councils, undertaking workshops and site visits to identify specific and key areas at risk under both 0.8m and 1.1m SLR as well as from erosion and other coastal hazards. It sought to provide clear guidance by way of decision-making pathways and aligned planning responses relating on where to ‘avoid’ and where to ‘adapt’ to nationally consistent flood hazard classes.

While long delays in the completion and public release of the coastal hazard assessment for Port Phillip Bay have meant the project has not yet been fully actioned, it remains a valuable resource for many bayside councils.