Next steps
Find out where to from here.
There are several actions council are taking as our next steps.
Infrastructure upgrades
This year we will upgrade the seawall south of Jellicoe Street to Nelson Street. This will protect the valuable park, road and amenities block immediately next to the seawall.
Next year a backflow prevention device trial will be started near Monash Street.
Community meetings
Community meetings are being organised through the member for Caloundra’s office and we will attend when invited, along with the Queensland Government.
Responding to a flooding event
Across the region, flood mapping shows that some low-lying property owners have a chance of shallow depth inundation in large storm tide events.
At Golden Beach, this has been exacerbated by the Bribie Island breakthrough, which has effectively bought forward a sea level rise expected from climate change by 20 to 30 years.
However, if a flooding event were to occur at Golden Beach, threats from inundation to private properties could be managed with support from the SES through temporary measures such as sand bagging, as has been the case for other historical floods across the region.
We will also investigate options for other temporary protection measures along the coastal foreshore, recognising that we need to be prepared for potential events.
Preliminary investigations of a coastal barrier confirm the need to consider backflow prevention devices for the stormwater network.
The installation of temporary coastal protection measures would also need to consider factors such as logistics of installation, safety issues and potential exacerbation of erosion.
CHAPP investigations for Golden Beach and Caloundra (Bulcock Beach)
The Coastal Hazard Adaptation Strategy (CHAS, completed in 2021), recommended that Council should seek to identify options to mitigate adverse impacts associated with coastal hazards at Golden Beach.
The need for these investigations has been intensified by the Bribie Island breakthrough in January 2022, which has resulted in increased water levels in Pumicestone Passage. Our community is now experiencing the impacts of coastal hazards, including inundation.
In response, Council has commenced Coastal Hazard Adaptation Precinct Planning (CHAPP) investigations. The Golden Beach and Caloundra (Bulcock Beach) CHAPP investigation is looking at ways to reduce the risk of coastal hazards and flooding now and into the future.
Further information can be found here.
Council has been successful in obtaining funding from the National Emergency Management Agency via the Coastal and Estuarine Risk Mitigation Program 22-23 to support the Golden Beach investigations.
Storm tide study
On Thursday 24 October 2024 Council endorsed an updated storm tide study for the Sunshine Coast.
More information on the adopted storm tide study is available at Storm tide study 2024.
Planning levels
Since the introduction of the Sunshine Coast Planning Scheme in 2014, planning levels for new construction have been based on a future climate condition anticipated in the year 2100. This means that allowances have been included for sea level rise. Additionally it has been assumed that northern section of Bribie Island will be lost to natural coastal processes.