The role of spatial information and GIS in the management of flood emergencies

Cinque, P., Crowe, P. and Davies, B. (2003) Presented at the inaugural Spatial Sciences Institute Conference, Canberra, 2003

As the legislated combat agency for floods and storms in New South Wales (NSW), the State Emergency Service (SES) uses a range of strategies and methods to ensure that its emergency managers are prepared to respond effectively to the flood threat in their local area. Two of these strategies, the gathering and recording of flood intelligence and the development of a flood plan for the community, are based on the certainty that planning for an event before it happens gives the SES, and through them the community, the best chance of minimising the negative effects of flooding.

In complex flood arenas, such as the Hawkesbury-Nepean valley west of Sydney, it is evident that sophisticated systems are necessary to gather, store and process the enormous amount of information that can be generated during a flood emergency.

This paper discusses the information requirements of flood emergency managers and how Geographic Information System (GIS) technology and spatial information has contributed to the flood operations management system being developed within the SES as part of the Hawkesbury Nepean Floodplain Management Strategy.

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