The new flood risk mapping released by the Northern Rivers Reconstruction Corporation (NRRC) earlier this week provides little hope for residents across the Richmond and Clarence valleys seeking to access support for home buybacks, raisings and retrofits, according to Clarence Nationals MP, Richie Williamson.
Mr Williamson said while it gives some homeowners in the Northern Rivers community hope, many will miss out.
“Residents who applied for support through the Resilient Homes Program have every right to feel disappointed and let down,” Mr Williamson said.
“The program was supposed to support thousands of homeowners across the Northern Rivers re-establish their lives after the devastating floods by getting them out of harms’ way.
“The support being offered does not match the scale of the flooding disaster and its impact on all communities across the Northern Rivers.
“Residents have been hopeful and patient waiting some 16 months for answers and have now been left blindsided and more confused than ever about their future.”
Mr Williamson said more needs to be done to find solutions for flood-impacted residents in his patch, which includes the Richmond and Clarence valley local government areas.
“The maps lack detail leaving more questions than answers, with some flood prone areas not even on the mapping,” Mr Williamson said.
“I can understand why people are upset and frustrated they are not in a priority zone even though their homes were extensively damaged during the floods, and I share their disappointment.
“We need to get this right and be fair dinkum about delivering the promised support through the Resilient Homes Program to help all communities across the Northern Rivers recover and rebuild stronger.
“I will be working with my parliamentary colleagues on a bipartisan basis to advocate for this.”
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