During the last major flood warning, there were a lot of queries arising about which river and rainfall gauges were accurately working and which were not.

Everyone concerned, including the community and Emergency Services, understand the warnings were not good enough and continue to work towards a more accurate, earlier-warning system through a historical hybrid approach (notification from higher catchment gauges and residents) as well as newer gauges and technology, including a new warning system issued by the SES.

With storm season fast approaching. the Lismore App approached the Bureau of Meteorology (The Bureau) to ask whether or not they could confirm just which gauges were working and who owns which. A Bureau spokesperson said, "The Bureau of Meteorology is working closely with the New South Wales Government to improve the flood warning infrastructure in the Lismore area".

"In the Wilsons River catchment, the Bureau owns and maintains 3 rain gauges (the Dunoon, Cawongla and Lillian Rock gauges). All 3 are operational."

River-level gauges in the catchment are owned and managed by the Lismore City Council (LCC). They currently operate 15 stream gauges and 14 rain gauges.

A funding application for seven new river gauges was submitted to the NSW Government Floodplain Management Program in May this year, after Council was unsuccessful with an earlier application.

The application was for new river gauges across the Richmond River and Leycester Creek catchments, and upstream of the Lismore CBD. The locations were identified in consultation with The Bureau and NSW SES.

The locations were Robert White Bridge, North Lismore; Green Bridge, Keerrong; Loftville Bridge, Loftville; Gungas Rd Bridge, Nimbin; Friday Hut Road, Binna Burra; Gasworks Creek Pump Station and Lower Hollingworth Pump Station. 

The funding application also included the installation of cameras at Browns Creek, Gasworks Creek and Lower Hollingworth pump stations.

The total funding request was for $212,333.00 with a total project cost of $318,500.00. Unfortunately, the application was not approved.

This is the second time that the funding request has been denied, with the first rejection coming just days before the February 2022 natural disaster.

Lismore City Council General Manager John Walker said “The rejection of these applications is very disappointing. This is an important project for the safety of the city and our community. We have a complex river system and this real-time information is critical in emergency planning, not only for Council but also for NSW SES and the community as a whole”.

The Bureau owns and manages 885 of the more than 1,500 flood infrastructure assets, with the remainder owned and managed by local councils, state government and non-government agencies."

 For further information, the full list of flood forecasting and warning services for New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory see the: Service Level Specification.