NEMA partnered with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) to deliver the Northern Rivers Resilience Initiative (NRRI).
The $11.4 million initiative focuses on understanding climate, catchment and hydrological drivers in the Northern Rivers area of NSW. It also sought evidence-based ways to reduce flooding in the Richmond River catchment.
CSIRO undertook research and community consultations that fed into 2 reports. The first report was the Rapid Prioritisation for Flood Resilience. The results informed which projects received funding under the Australian Government’s $150 million Northern Rivers Recovery and Resilience Program.
Phase two involved the development of a hydrodynamic model to show how water moves and pools across the Richmond River catchment during a flood event.
This phase is now complete, a summary of phase 2 activities is shown below:
| June 2024 | CSIRO released LiDAR and river bathymetry data on GeoScience Australia’s Elvis website. This mapping data provided essential inputs for the detailed hydrodynamic model. |
| June 2025 | CSIRO finalised the hydrodynamic model for the Richmond River catchment and released a technical report (PDF 17.5MB) outlining how the model was the developed and validated. |
| July–August 2025 | NEMA and CSIRO consulted the community on possible flood mitigation measures (PDF 5.47MB) for the Richmond River catchment. |
| September 2025 | Findings (PDF 578KB) from the consultation process were shared back with the community together with the 2 bundles of flood mitigation measures (PDF 2.59MB) to test under the 2008, 2017 and 2022 climatic conditions using the hydrodynamic model developed by CSIRO. |
| October 2025 | The Minister for Emergency Management approved the final scenarios for modelling (PDF 2.2MB). The bundles were then shared with the NSW Minister for Recovery, with the Minister providing written support for the bundles in November 2025. |
| November 2025–April 2026 | CSIRO modelled the approved scenarios. |
| June 2026 | A final report has been released. The report details CSIRO's findings from the modelling process and includes recommendations on future flood mitigation options for the Richmond River catchment. |
A major milestone for flood resilience in the Richmond River catchment has been reached with the release of the final report.
The report brings together scientific modelling, technical expertise and community input. Its findings will help inform the NSW Government, local councils and other stakeholders as they plan for long-term flood risk reduction.
The final report is available to download in full (PDF 13.16MB) or download in a condensed text-only version for ease of access.
The report is the final milestone for NRRI, but it makes clear further work is required to better understand the feasibility of the recommended measures.
To support this, the Australian and NSW governments have committed $3 million in combined funding to progress the NRRI findings and deliver a feasibility study.
The study will assess the technical, environmental, economic and social feasibility of potential interventions and help inform future investment decisions.
Richmond Valley, Kyogle, Ballina and Lismore councils will play a key role through formal governance arrangements overseeing the study, helping ensure local knowledge and community priorities are reflected throughout the process.
The feasibility study will directly inform the Northern Rivers Disaster Adaptation Plan, led by the NSW Reconstruction Authority.
It will ensure flood mitigation options are considered alongside a broader suite of measures to reduce disaster risk and build long-term community resilience across the region.
| NRRI announcement June 2022 |
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| Community consultation on priority flood resilience projects October – November 2022 |
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| Two reports published; characterisation of the 2022 floods and rapid prioritisation of flood resilience projects 30 November 2022 |
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| Due diligence checks undertaken on projects recommended by CSIRO in its rapid prioritisation report December 2022 – January 2023 |
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| Tranche 1 projects announced under the Northern Rivers Recovery and Resilience Program (informed by CSIRO’s rapid prioritisation report) February 2023 |
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| Tranche 2 projects announced under the Northern Rivers Recovery and Resilience Program (informed by CSIRO’s rapid prioritisation report) June 2023 |
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| Data collection activities underway for phase two June 2023 – June 2024 |
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| Public release of LiDAR and bathymetry data June 2024 |
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| Development of the hydrodynamic model for the Richmond River catchment July 2024 – June 2025 |
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| Finalisation of the hydrodynamic model and release of the associated technical report June 2025 |
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| Community consultation on flood mitigation interventions for the Richmond River catchment July – August 2025 |
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| Approval of 6 flood mitigation scenarios for CSIRO to model September – October 2025 |
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| Testing of the flood mitigation scenarios through the hydrodynamic model is underway November 2025 |
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| Release of final report and recommendations on future flood mitigation options for the Richmond River catchment June 2026 |