Councils across North East Victoria and Southern NSW are still waiting for funding for recovery works following 2016 flooding that caused widespread damage.
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Ten local government areas in the region were declared disaster-affected during Spring floods and deemed eligible for the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements – though the process to access funding is still ongoing for many.
An Albury Council spokesman said the city was successful in receiving $500,000 for storm damage repairs, with many works already completed.
“The works are varied across the city, including culvert damage, unsealed road deterioration, open drain maintenance, sealed road repairs and open space infrastructure damage,” he said.
“Some preliminary, more urgent, tasks have been completed, but works will continue during 2018/19.
“It is not expected that further claims will be required.”
Wodonga Council chief executive Patience Harrington said Wodonga's claim of $143,000 – mainly for fencing repairs, roadworks and clean-up – was still pending.
Wangaratta has contracted out $645,884 worth of works and the claim has been accepted by the NDRRA but not yet finalised.
A spokesman for the Attorney General’s Department said funding might not be reimbursed for claims until next year.
“States have two years following the financial year in which a disaster occurred to incur expenditure under the NDRRA,” he said.
“This means that recovery costs for the 2016 floods may be spread over a number of financial years and their full extent will not be known until at least 2019-20.”
In the latest flood update for Greater Hume Council, engineering director Greg Blackie wrote council was hesitant to undertake any further of works totalling $2.2 million until the funding was approved.
“The process to obtain approval is still ongoing many months after the event, which is very frustrating, and with the construction window closing due to the coming winter, most works are unlikely be undertaken until the end of this year at the earliest,” he said.
The North East Catchment Management Authority is handling the claims of North East landholders – 56 have been approved. With more than half of those sites in the Ovens Valley catchment, damage is expected to total in the millions.