Dam operators caused 2010 floods in Australia

   
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/investigation-into-australias-deadly-floods-finds-dam-operator-breached-protocols/2012/03/15/gIQAhPXUFS_story.html

Investigation into Australia's deadly floods finds dam operator breached protocols

By Associated Press, Published: March 16

SYDNEY: A review of the emergency response to last year's deadly floods in
Australia concluded Friday that the operator of a major dam that controlled
the release of water from a swollen river breached its own protocols during
the height of the disaster.

The floods that swept across Queensland state in late 2010 and early 2011
killed 35 people, damaged or destroyed 30,000 homes and businesses and left
Brisbane, Australia's third-largest city, under water for days.

The Queensland Floods Commission of Inquiry was formed to investigate the
way officials dealt with the crisis. Much of the criticism following the
disaster fell on the actions of Seqwater, the state government-run water
authority in charge of operating the Wivenhoe Dam, which controls the
release of water from the Brisbane River. Critics questioned whether
Seqwater's engineers improperly managed the flow of water from the dam,
thereby worsening the inundation of Brisbane and the nearby city of Ipswich.

The investigation found that Seqwater did indeed breach the protocols
listed in the dam's operating manual, and used the wrong water release
strategy in the lead-up to the flooding in Brisbane. But Queensland Supreme
Court of Appeal Judge Catherine Holmes, the inquiry‚s commissioner,
acknowledged that the manual itself was "ambiguous, unclear and difficult
to use, and was not based on the best, most current research and
information."

The commission could not say whether the dam operator‚s actions made the
flooding worse, though Holmes wrote in the 700-page report that had
Seqwater followed protocols, "the possibility exists of at least some
improvement in the flooding outcome for Brisbane and Ipswich."

The commission also recommended the state crime commission investigate
three Seqwater engineers in charge of determining the water release
strategy for the dam. The report questioned whether the engineers were
truthful in their testimony to the commission about their actions during
the disaster.

Seqwater officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The finding opens up the possibility of a class action lawsuit against
Seqwater, but Queensland Premier Anna Bligh cautioned against a rush to
judge the water authority.

"This does open the potential for legal action against Seqwater, but it
does not of itself establish liability," Bligh told reporters in Brisbane.

Attorney Rod Hodgson, whose law firm has held public meetings with flood
victims to rally support for a class action, said he and his fellow lawyers
will now work to determine exactly what impact Seqwater‚s improper
management of the dam had on flood levels.

"It's crystal clear that the report lays blame at the feet of Seqwater for
its operation of the dam," Hodgson said.

The commission made 177 recommendations, including revisions to the dam
operating manual, improved floodplain management plans and better public
access to flood information. Bligh said the government would adopt all the
recommendations.

Overall, however, the inquiry found that the government response to the
disaster was good.

"As to how the floods were managed, there is no doubt that they took a
state more accustomed to drought by surprise," the commission‚s report
said. "Generally, though, Queenslanders can be relieved that governments at
all levels were able to provide a prompt, if not perfect, response, which
compares favorably with the apparent paralysis of government agencies and
breakdown in order apparent on the Gulf coast after Hurricane Katrina
struck New Orleans."

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may
not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

--

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/evidence-qld-dam-engineers-colluded-20120316-1v95d.html

Evidence Qld dam engineers 'colluded'

March 16, 2012

Three Wivenhoe dam engineers could face criminal or misconduct charges in
the wake of damning findings by the inquiry into Queensland's flood
disaster.

Commissioner Catherine Holmes found there was evidence the engineers had
colluded to pen a misleading report about how they managed water releases
from the dam before Brisbane and Ipswich flooded last year.

Flood victims have long claimed the water releases were botched and the
flooding was compounded as a direct result.

 Justice Holmes said Queensland's corruption watchdog should investigate the
men to determine if they deliberately misled her inquiry.

The Crime and Misconduct Commission must assess whether the actions of John
Tibaldi, Robert Ayre and Terry Malone warranted criminal or official
misconduct charges, she said.

Justice Holmes said it was not for the commission to say whether an offence
had occurred.

But there was evidence the men had colluded to write a misleading March
report - primarily written by Mr Tibaldi for dam operator Seqwater, with
input from Mr Ayre and Mr Malone - about when they escalated water releases.

Justice Holmes also found the engineers breached the dam's operating manual
before the two cities and their surrounds flooded last January.

Lawyers say the findings have strengthened the case for a class action, on
behalf of thousands of flood victims, against the government-owned Seqwater.

The inquiry reconvened hearings in dramatic circumstances earlier this
year, after media reports said it had failed to identify discrepancies in
documents about the way water releases from the dam were handled.

In a damning assessment, Justice Holmes said: "The conclusion has been
reached that Mr Tibaldi and Mr Ayre knew - and that Mr Malone had a basis
for suspecting - that the March flood event report was misleading," Justice
Holmes found.

She said none of the men had pointed out discrepancies between earlier
flood documents and the final March report, despite them having every
opportunity to do so at the inquiry's initial hearings.

Critically, the engineers did not mention an early document Mr Malone
wrote, which said the dam transitioned to a higher water release later than
was claimed in the March report.

Commissioner Holmes spoke of a "striking, unanimous and collective lapse of
memory" about documents that painted a different picture from the March
report.

"The inference was open that the concealment of the true nature of the
March flood event report was a joint effort to which each was a party," she
found.

In their testimony to the reconvened hearings, the engineers denied
colluding to create a fictitious report and said they did their best to
protect urban areas.

Justice Holmes said flooding in Brisbane and Ipswich could have been
reduced to some degree, if capacity in the dam had been freed up before the
December deluge.

But she said it simply wasn't possible to have forecast what was to come.

"... to appreciate what the magnitude of the rain would be and that it
would fall in the dam area would have required a more than human capacity
of prediction," she found.

However, she said she was concerned about "the apparent inertia" of
government when the possibility of drawing down the dam was raised.

Labor's water minister at the time, Stephen Robertson, told the inquiry
that he had raised the idea of pre-emptive dam releases months before the
floods, but by the time he got a formal response the deluge had already
begun.

In other findings, Justice Holmes said there was room for improvement in
emergency response planning.

But she noted the flood crisis was unprecedented and so widespread that no
government could be expected to have the capacity to respond seamlessly,
immediately and comprehensively.

She found Queensland's land-use planning regarding flood risk had been ad
hoc, and flood risk assessment systems were lacking.

Premier Anna Bligh and Liberal National Party leader Campbell Newman have
both vowed to implement the inquiry's recommendations in full should they
win the March 24 poll.

The report contained no adverse findings against the Bligh government, nor
Mr Newman during his tenure as Brisbane lord mayor.

But the threat of a massive class action against a government-owned
authority could hurt Labor at the ballot box.

Ms Bligh said Seqwater was insured, but its liability was yet to be
established.

Seqwater said it would not be commenting on the inquiry's report until it
had properly considered it.

© 2012 AAP

--

http://www.sunherald.com/2012/03/15/3821562/australian-flood-inquiry-faults.html

Australian flood inquiry faults dam operator

By KRISTEN GELINEAU - Associated Press

SYDNEY -- A review of the emergency response to last year's deadly floods
in Australia concluded Friday that the operator of a major dam that
controlled the release of water from a swollen river breached its own
protocols during the height of the disaster.

The floods that swept across Queensland state in late 2010 and early 2011
killed 35 people, damaged or destroyed 30,000 homes and businesses and left
Brisbane, Australia's third-largest city, under water for days.

The Queensland Floods Commission of Inquiry was formed to investigate the
way officials dealt with the crisis. Much of the criticism following the
disaster fell on the actions of Seqwater, the state government-run water
authority in charge of operating the Wivenhoe Dam, which controls the
release of water from the Brisbane River. Critics questioned whether
Seqwater's engineers improperly managed the flow of water from the dam,
thereby worsening the inundation of Brisbane and the nearby city of Ipswich.

The investigation found that Seqwater did indeed breach the protocols
listed in the dam's operating manual, and used the wrong water release
strategy in the lead-up to the flooding in Brisbane. But Queensland Supreme
Court of Appeal Judge Catherine Holmes, the inquiry's commissioner,
acknowledged that the manual itself was "ambiguous, unclear and difficult
to use, and was not based on the best, most current research and
information."

The commission could not say whether the dam operator's actions made the
flooding worse, though Holmes wrote in the 700-page report that had
Seqwater followed protocols, "the possibility exists of at least some
improvement in the flooding outcome for Brisbane and Ipswich."

The commission also recommended the state crime commission investigate
three Seqwater engineers in charge of determining the water release
strategy for the dam. The report questioned whether the engineers were
truthful in their testimony to the commission about their actions during
the disaster.

Seqwater officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The finding opens up the possibility of a class action lawsuit against
Seqwater, but Queensland Premier Anna Bligh cautioned against a rush to
judge the water authority.

"This does open the potential for legal action against Seqwater, but it
does not of itself establish liability," Bligh told reporters in Brisbane.

The commission made 177 recommendations, including revisions to the dam
operating manual, improved floodplain management plans and better public
access to flood information. Bligh said the government would adopt all the
recommendations.

Overall, however, the inquiry found that the government response to the
disaster was good.

"As to how the floods were managed, there is no doubt that they took a
state more accustomed to drought by surprise," the commission's report
said. "Generally, though, Queenslanders can be relieved that governments at
all levels were able to provide a prompt, if not perfect, response, which
compares favorably with the apparent paralysis of government agencies and
breakdown in order apparent on the Gulf coast after Hurricane Katrina
struck New Orleans."

--

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-03-16/flood-report-paves-the-way-for-compensation/3895130?section=qld

Flood report paves way for compensation

By Annie Guest and staff

Updated March 17, 2012 00:13:41

The Queensland Floods Commission has released findings which could pave the
way for legal action by the victims of last year's disaster.

Its long-awaited report includes more than six million pages of evidence,
345 witnesses and 170 recommendations ranging from flood mapping to
emergency responses and, of course, dam management.

Some of the most serious findings in the report relate to Brisbane's
Wivenhoe Dam.

It says the dam's manual was not properly followed on the weekend leading
up to Brisbane's flood peak.

That means the dam's operator SEQ Water and its owner - the State
Government - may now be liable for compensation.

But the commissioner notes the manual was ambiguous, unclear and difficult
to use - factors which should not be overlooked.

The report also says the Crime and Misconduct Commission (CMC) should
investigate the actions of three dam engineers over misleading reports and
testimony about the flood event.

There is also a suggestion of collusion between two of the men.

Premier Anna Bligh says the matter was referred to the CMC this morning.

The finding that the dam's operating manual was breached will be the most
welcome news to flood victims, insurers and class action lawyers.

Rod Hodgson from Maurice Blackburn Lawyers says the report shows at least
some of the disaster was man-made.

"This report provides support for a potential class action," he said.

"That potential class action is on behalf of householders, business owners
and community grounds living downstream of Wivenhoe."

Mr Hodgson says the report confirms victims' suspicions.

"Too much water was allowed to accumulate in Wivenhoe Dam and the strategy
for water releases was botched," he said.

"This extraordinary report says that beyond any doubt that dam was not
operated the way it should have been."

About 2,000 flood victims have signalled their interest in a potential
class action against the dam's operators.

Dennis Ward from the Fernvale Community Action Group says it has been a
difficult time.

We'd love to see someone come out and apologise for causing this damage and
grief to everyone.

Dennis Ward - Fernvale Community Action Group

"It'd be great to see an apology for what happened," he said.

"I mean there is some acknowledgment there that it could've been managed
better and we'd love to see someone come out and apologise for causing this
damage and grief to everyone."

But Mr Hodgson says there is much work to do before launching a lawsuit.

"The investigations need to include how much difference to the flood level
the proper operation of the dam would have made," he said.

"We sense that it would have made a significant difference, but we need to
conduct independent hydrodynamic modelling."

The inquiry did examine the question of how much less flooding there might
have been if the manual was followed.

But on this it is inconclusive. It says it is possible there would have
been less flooding in Brisbane and Ipswich.

It pointed to a report by an independent engineer that found an optimised
water release scenario might have reduced flooding between 40 centimetres
and 90 centimetres in the suburbs of Brisbane.

However, the inquiry noted it involved taking risks by embracing weather
forecasts.
 --
Posted by Himanshu Thakkar

South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers & People,
c/o 86-D, AD block, Shalimar Bagh,
Delhi 110088, India

himanshuthakkar@iitbombay.org <mailto:himanshuthakkar%40iitbombay.org> , ht.sandrp@gmail.com <mailto:ht.sandrp%40gmail.com>
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