IAG says Australian communities and systems are nearing a “tipping point” where the capacity for community resilience may be diminished by increasing natural disaster risk, as it calls for state and federal entities to give more consideration to land planning decisions.  

The insurer delivered its “Addressing Resilience in Land Use Planning” report, which identifies six significant challenges facing Australia’s land planning system that it says does not adequately consider future climate dangers.   

The identified risks include a lack of consistent integration of natural hazard information into land use planning, outdated planning decisions and building codes, fractured cross-government coordination, and limitations on local governments’ capacity to consider future risks.  

IAG Executive Manager Natural Perils Mark Leplastrier says more attention should be directed at land planning to help limit community exposure to natural hazards.  

“As climate change exacerbates the frequency and severity of disaster events, land use planning systems must evolve to preserve the coping capacity of individuals, communities, organisations and assets,” Mr Leplastrier said.  

“We need to rethink how natural hazards and climate risk are addressed in land planning decisions. Our planning system needs reform, to protect communities in the future and keep insurance affordable.”  

The report offers more than 10 recommendations for governments to address the identified issues, including establishing guidelines on natural hazard risk tolerance for land use planning.  

IAG also calls on state governments to develop legislation to accelerate approvals for planned relocations and re-zoning following a disaster event and the creation of a natural disaster database.   

The publication marks one of three research reports released by IAG in the past 18 months on reducing disaster risks and echoes recommendations made by Insurance Council of Australia CEO Andrew Hall in his recent submission to the NSW Planning and Environment Committee.  

Click here to access the full report.