Lismore Businesses Back $3M Flood Protection Plan

The town of Lismore, Australia, is fighting back against floods with science on its side.

Business leaders representing 6,000 members threw their support behind a groundbreaking plan to protect their northern New South Wales community from the kind of catastrophic flooding that nearly destroyed it in 2022. The devastating twin floods that year caused close to $1 billion in damage and left the region's economic future hanging in the balance.

A new study from Australia's national science agency CSIRO found that strategically placed water retention basins could dramatically reduce flood heights. Under the same conditions as the record-breaking February 2022 flood, these engineering measures would lower water levels by 2.07 meters in Lismore's central business district.

That difference could be life-changing for communities still recovering from trauma. Water reached a staggering 14.37 meters during the 2022 disaster, overtopping protective levees and forcing businesses to shut down for months.

Simon Stahl, chair of the Lismore Alliance and head of the Casino Food Co-op, put it plainly at a press conference Thursday. "This could be the difference between a region with an economic future and one without," he said.

The plan involves building up to 10 detention basins and creating a secondary outlet for the Richmond River to flow to the sea. The largest basin would hold an impressive 94 gigalitres of water during flood events.

For business owner Felicity Hyde, the proposal offers something precious: hope. She had to close her ice cream shop for three months after the 2022 floods and lay off four employees. "So many businesses have rebuilt, trusting that the government wasn't planning to relocate the entire CBD," she said.

John Williams, former CEO of Summerland Bank, watched his institution rack up $4 million in flood repair costs, only partially covered by insurance. The bank can no longer get coverage for its Lismore branch. "Reducing flood heights by 2 meters would help businesses get insurance again," Williams explained. "It will encourage investment back into Lismore."

The Ripple Effect

The benefits extend far beyond individual businesses. Bringing insurers back to the market would stabilize property values and give families peace of mind. Reducing flood risk opens the door for new investment, job creation, and population growth in a region that's been hemorrhaging confidence.

The Australian and New South Wales governments have already committed $3 million to assess whether the engineering solutions are technically, environmentally, economically, and socially feasible. Researchers will examine how the detention basins would affect upstream farming communities and ensure fair compensation for any landholders whose properties might be impacted.

Community meetings drew over a thousand residents eager to understand the science and voice concerns. While discussions grew heated at times, the overwhelming message was clear: people want solutions, not more studies gathering dust.

The National Emergency Management Agency plans to release detailed maps in early August showing exactly which properties would be affected, giving farmers and residents the concrete information they've been demanding.

After years of uncertainty, Lismore is choosing hope backed by hard science.