A $200 million investment from round one of the federal Disaster Ready Fund will be used for an early warning detection system for flooding in Launceston.
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The federal government and the Launceston City Council say they will join forces to ensure the city is better protected and prepared for future natural disasters.
The Disaster Ready Fund will invest up to $1 billion in Commonwealth funding over five years to build over 187 critical projects that will reduce disaster risk.
Tasmanian Labor senator Helen Polley said the $200,500 commitment for an early warning detection system would keep Launceston safer from the threat of floods.
"Launceston is a low-lying city which has experienced more than 40 significant floods since record-keeping began," she said.
"So we have to be ready as a community, which means using the most up-to-date technology, ensuring the community is informed, and ensuring emergency service personnel have the best tools to combat such a natural disaster is fundamental to protecting our beautiful city, its people, and their property."
The Launceston City Council and the Launceston Flood Authority will match the investment, which will see the development of an improved flood detection system comprising of new smart river gauges, upgrades to existing gauges, instillation of new monitoring cameras, educational flood markers, and an online interface accessible to the public.
"This funding will allow for the use of the most advanced technology to address gaps identified during the last flood event last year. Ultimately, once complete, it could save lives and property when we experience future flooding events," Ms Polley said.
Launceston acting mayor Matthew Garwood highlighted the importance of an early warning system for the city.
"An early warning detection system is not going to stop the flooding, but it will be able to help us look at preventive measures like closing flood levees and evacuation plans, ensuring the safety of the community," he said.
City of Launceston water team leader Erica Deegan said the investment would improve the functionality of existing sensor systems while also installing new ones.
"It will be a significant improvement to our current system, so we can make sure we provide as much information and data to our residents," she said.
"During the recent 2022 floods, we realised that we needed to improve our detection systems in some areas, so this funding will allow us to do that."
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