Appeal to Labor MPs in Brisbane as flood alert funding refused
Brisbane ratepayers could be forced to fork out about half-a-million dollars for a potentially life-saving flood alert system after Canberra rejected another request for funding, a frustrated lord mayor says.
The Bureau of Meteorology’s Enviromon service – which provides real-time safety alerts and data on creek levels during severe weather – will end in mid-2026, when councils will then be required to pay for their own technology.
“They’ve been consistent in saying it’s not our problem,” a visibly agitated Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner announced during a Brisbane City Council meeting.
Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner says he will appeal to federal Labor members in Brisbane.Credit: Catherine Strohfeldt
“This is just blatant cost-shifting from a federal government agency onto local councils.”
Schrinner said the council could continue to rely on a free service through the BOM website, but emergency alerts would move from every five minutes to every 15 minutes – a timeframe he believed was not good enough for a city such as Brisbane.
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“That difference is significant,” Schrinner said.
“We’re simply saying the BOM should provide a like-for-like service.”
After a request was rejected in 2024, the council again applied for federal funding for its own system through the Disaster Ready Fund in April. It was rejected last week.
