Case Study Reflection Five: Coping with disasters - Victorian Bush Fires 2009

When disasters strike, they strike hard & unexpectedly and the ramifications can be cataclysmic. It is imperative that urban planners seek disaster risk reduction strategies to ensure that their is a recognition of the deep connections between human settlements and risk profiles relating to disasters. These risk profiles can include defective infrastructure, the inter-relationships between larger cities and their surrounds and the impacts of cities themselves upon the surrounding environment. During the 2009 Victorian Bushfires, otherwise known as Black Saturday, an event deeply embedded as one of Australia's most devastating natural disasters, 173 people lost their lives whilst over 3,000 building were destroyed. Why did this happen? How did so many lives ended up being lost?

The events on the 7th February 2009 coincided with one of the hottest periods in Victoria's history with the mercury pounding to over 46 degrees in Melbourne whilst wind speeds didn't ease Mother Nature’s wrath with a staggering 115km/h in areas of utter dryness. This is a recipe for disaster in the context of bushfire risks however this disaster tells us more than what it is. So what went wrong? Well firstly residents that lived in the risk zones didn’t have a strategy in placed, rather more of a wait and see policy. Infrastructure wise, accessibility was at a minimum, electrical aging assets increased fire risks, and roads were narrow whilst buildings such as homes, schools and businesses were completely exposed to the fires. Location was also another reason for why these fires were so rampant. Dense bushlands surrounding poor infrastructure, especially old and faulty electrical towers should be seen as one of the primary reasons for the fires. The complete entrenchment of these communities in the bush accelerated the risk of collateral damage. As planners we must understand how to adjust communities to ensure they are less likely to suffer the full severity of natural disasters. Despite the Royal Commission’s recommendations to improve standards in buildings with local conditions in mind, I believe there are better alternatives to prepare communities for the worst from a planning point of view. These include forward strategic planning, design of settlements to ensure that there is a safe distance from hazardous infrastructure such as electric lines, development control to ensure that standards are strictly kept accordingly, improved building controls, improved warning and response systems so that residence are notified of any likely fires, community education, forestry management, and rules for reconstruction. Back burning on open plains will significantly reduce the risks of fire travelling from one patch to another with the assistance of the wind.

In the context of natural disasters, we as urban planners must create strategies and plans to ensure that disaster impact is kept at a minimal, in terms of human costs and infrastructure damage. The Victorian Bushfires gives us an understanding on the implications of poor planning and what the ramifications are when disaster strikes.

References

ABC (2010) Black Saturday, Available at:http://www.abc.net.au/innovation/blacksaturday/#/stories/mosaic (Accessed: 13th May 2014).

Case Study Reflection Four: Gunghalin Town Centre

Gunghalin town centre is one of the newest urban developments in Canberra. The town centre has a population of over 47,000 and offers a unique form of urbanity to the Canberra urban fabric. The Town Centre, despite offering a distinct neighborhood feeling to it, is confronted with many issues. These problems include transport infrastructure, employment opportunities, and population density.

Located on the north side of Canberra, Gunghalin district offers a set of adjoining residential and industrial suburbs that reverberates around the Gunghalin town centre (Mitchell being the main industrial zone). The main town centre precinct was developed in a grid-shaped pattern to allow commercial activity as well as mixed use zoning. The town centre offers a range of surrounding low/medium-density housing which allows families to move into the precinct. With rapid population growth, the town centre does not have the infrastructure to meet the demands of this growth. The first problem attributes to the lack of public transport. The Action bus service lacks service numbers whilst having longer running time and long distances to cover. This affects those who live within or around the centre and commute to the city via public transportation. The solution to this is to broaden the bus network through the BRT (Bus Rapid Transport) by running more bus times and increasing weekend services and also through the development of a tram network (which is being processed by Capital Metro) linking the town centre with the city. It will ease the strain put on bus services by providing a sustainable transport which will increase the viability of the town centre. Another issue is employment. The town centre lacks in employment opportunities which is the result of inaccessibility and residents preferring to commute to the city as main destination of employment. I believe that for employment levels in the district to grow an emphasis on medium-high density commercial infrastructure needs to be highly considered in the long term. This should also apply to residential development. These recommendations will increase the commercial and residential density of the town centre, bringing in more employment and further increasing the need of transport infrastructure. The main street of the town centre (Hibberson Street) lacks a beautiful frontage therefore deterring business opportunities resulting increasing the strain on the viability of the town centre (and of course unemployment). This is due to the heavy traffic that runs both directions of the street. I believe that if a tram was to run along this street it will create a strong vibe that will attract restaurants and cafes (Melbourne has demonstrated this very well).

Overall, the group that presented this topic believed that Gunghalin town centre was planned well. Well, in my final analysis, time will tell considering that the development is still in 'progress' until around 2020. In the mean time, the population will provide the answer to whether this town centre was indeed planned accordingly.


Gunghalin town centre along Hibberson St. Image source: canberrayourfuture.com.au/

References

ACT Government (2010) Gunghalin Town Centre Planning Report, Canberra: ACT Planning and Land Authority.

Sky Chan, Billy Brown, Joseph Sutton and Jason Dayaratne (2014) Gunghalin Planning, Available at: http://skychan.wix.com/gungahlintownplan (Accessed: 10 May 2014).

Case Study Reflection Three: Batemans Bay and its Future

Batemans Bay is a coastal town located on the south coast of New South Wales. Batemans Bay provides a unique representation of an ordinary Australian coastal town. Governed within the jurisdiction of the Eurobodalla Shire Council, the town faces many serious issues in the long term pertaining to economic, social and climatic factors. I was in Batemans Bay last year when I noticed many planning problems in terms of all three factors. An example was the insufficient infrastructure needed to accommodate the needs of the strong aging population (which stands at around 22% of 65 and over). Also, being located on the coast, the planning strategy posed a serious risk in an event of any natural disasters.

Tourism provides the backbone to the Bateman Bay economy. Without it the economic repercussions are significant. Batemans Bay is seen rather more of seasonal tourism destination where summer is considered the desirable time of year for holiday flocking. This is because their is rarely any facilities in Batemans Bay for tourism in the colder months meaning infrastructure is required to accommodate an all-year round tourism industry which will provide a kick to the economy. Eurobodalla Shire council has put in place a strategy to ensure economic longevity whilst maintaining high levels of infrastructure and facilities for Batemans Bay. Through the Greater Batemans Bay Structure Plan, economic, social and environmental considerations have been taken by the council. These include of facilitating mixed-land use especially at Surf Beach which will likely create a new wave of employment through the growth of local businesses and new communities. This will have a positive impact on the economy. Another initiative is to develop the North Moruya Business Park. This development will stimulate the local economy through further employment whilst at the same time offer services and a centralized industry.
In the social context, the council has strived to ensure the social complex of Batemans Bay does not lag with the rest of the nation in terms of aged care facilities, health facilities etc. Through the structure plan the council has suggested a range of social housing to meet the demands in the short and long term run. However, the council has put an emphasis on the aging population with the implementation of the Aging-in-Place Strategy which is designed to ensure facilities and services remain consistent with the increases in the aging population.
The state of Batemans Bay's environment plays a vital role in the well being of the local area. With climate change causing sea rise and off shore natural disasters the council has put in place measures to ensure that future disasters are dealt well and accordingly. The Strategic Environmental Assessment is designed to investigate lands and zoned areas to ensure environmental problems such as as erosion, run-offs, sedimentation, pollution of waterways etc are at a minimal.

Batemans Bay offers an exemplar of an ordinary Australian beach town however its central issues is the aging population, tourism, climate change and infrastructure. The council has put forward many recommendations to ensure the future is much more sustainable for the beach town. The final analysis, the town possesses high economic potentials and through better road infrastructure, encourage business activities and further residential zoning Batemans Bay will be a thriving beach town.

References

Eurobodalla Council. 2014. Moruya Structure Plan. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.esc.nsw.gov.au/development-and-planning/tools/eurobodalla-settlement-strategy-and-structure-plans/moruya-structure-plan. [Accessed 10 May 2014

NSW Department of Planning. 2014. South Coast Regional Strategy. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/StrategicPlanning/Regionalstrategies/SouthCoast/tabid/197/language/en-AU/Default.aspx. [Accessed 10 May 14].

Eurobodalla Council. 2014. Greater Batemans Bay Structure Plan. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.esc.nsw.gov.au/development-and-planning/tools/eurobodalla-settlement-strategy-and-structure-plans/greater-batemans-bay-structure-plan. [Accessed 10 May 14].

Case Study Reflection Two: Melbourne Docklands

I never new much about Melbourne's Docklands. The only think that came into mind was that it was a deserted shipyard turned into a residential and commercial zone. I pretty much guessed that based on its name 'Docklands'. However, after seeing the presentation and doing a little bit of research I didn't expect to find out so much about it. It is considered to be the largest urban renewal project in the country and judging by its size who can argue?. Located 2km west from Melbourne's CBD, along the banks of the Yarra River it currently houses over 8,300 residents, corporate head offices such as ANZ, NAB, Channel 9 and Channel 7 etc, over 100 retailers, Etihad Stadium and over 100 commercial hubs. The Docklands suffered severe degradation over the years and had become a wasteland however the Victorian government had plans to revitalize it and sow it into the main CBD. The early stages of the urban renewal project at Docklands began in the early 1990's with task forces commissioned to devise an infrastructure strategy that will enable development to proceed. Public consultation took place during these early years. The colossal project began in 1997, with the project now past its mid-way point many can recognize the Docklands as an integral part of the main CBD of Melbourne. Despite not yet near completion (Likely to be finished by 2025) this formerly derelict wasteland has now become a residential and commercial waterfront that has improved access and mobility with transport networks successfully integrated with the overall system of the CBD. These developments are imperative due to the fact that the Docklands is likely to have substantial growth over the next couple of years as Melbourne continues to rise in population growth. The Docklands Community and Place Plan outlines the potential needs for Docklands as it has past its halfway mark in construction. The document includes a diversity of housing options that will able to facilitate low to moderate income earners, promote local businesses and enterprises. deliver sustainable landscapes that are adaptable to the climates, maintaining high levels of environmentally sustainable commercial buildings and other public realms and improving the water quality around the harbour to allow recreational activities to take place such as swimming. My overall opinion of Docklands is that it has succeeded thus far in maintaining a residential and commercial hub that is sown into the CBD however future growth and climatic changes means more challenges ahead for the project. 

References:

City of Melbourne. 2013. Docklands Community and Place Plan.Online. Available at: https://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/AboutMelbourne/PrecinctsandSuburbs/Docklands/Pages/DocklandsCommunityPlacePlan.aspx. [Accessed 06 May 14]

Docklands. 2013. Docklands Future.Online. Available at: http://www.docklands.com/cs/Satellite?c=VPage&cid=1363252821358&pagename=Docklands2%2FVPage%2FDLPage. [Accessed 06 May 14]