The Crisis Coordination Centre (EMA) is responsible for providing whole-of-government situational awareness to inform national decision-making during a crisis. The centre:
- Centralises and coordinates information across the Australian Government, states and territories during a crisis in Australia
- Coordinates Australian Government physical and financial assistance for disaster relief - it is responsible for managing national disaster recovery payments and ensuring states and territory governments, individuals, businesses and primary producers impacted by disasters are well supported through the Commonwealths relief and recovery programs
- Supports the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade during major emergencies and events overseas
- Maintains Australian Government response plans and arrangements for responding to domestic and international incidents
Baseline data will be used to understand the exposure and vulnerability of a community or region impacted or at risk of a disaster. Such data will be used to more to more consistently and objectively determine the scope of disaster impacts to communities, and make fairer and more equitable recovery funding decisions.
If disaster footprints are available, they can use this information to further constrain the activation criteria for events, and ensure that the assistance goes to those who need it (and reduce the risk of fraudulent claims).
Used to determine whether the impacts are of a significant enough nature to warrant additional assistance to that provided under standard arrangements; compare and contrast impacts between hazards and across regions. i.e. threshold between Major/Severe vs Severe/Catastrophic.
Long-term significant investments by governments must be supported by current, comprehensive and authoritative information.
- AGD need an evidence base to support program management and policy analysis on the costs of disasters, government expenditures, benefit of risk assessment and mitigation measures, and post disaster information -to inform the generation of new or enhanced criteria or methods for activation for example;
- EMA need a national disaster assessment capability that can speedily provide critical information on the scope of a disaster, the needs of affected communities (and problems associated with mounting a response) - rapid disaster assessment in support of State capabilities, to scope the extent of catastrophic disaster, post impact as a priority strategy for enhanced preparedness.
- More systematic use of GIS and remote sensing products for more effective mitigation, response, and recovery functions and decision making - geodata services that support warnings and disaster management - to increase objectivity and evidence base in disaster funding (mitigation or recovery)
Baseline data - geographic datasets to support situational awareness and analysis for response and recovery.
- NEXIS data - for an EMA Exposure Report Product – This is a profile of what is in the footprint of an event (footprint could be hazard or LGA) which calls upon useful "baseline data" as social and economic indicators. This product would be fed into EMA's "National Impact Assessment Model (NIAM)" that needs baseline data to make an assessment of an event’s severity.
- "Footprints" of a disaster event (observed for flood and bushfire or modelled if observed isn't available) - from states/territories or satellite, or modelled. This would be used to refine the application of the NIAM (benefits in constraining assistance to area impacted than LGA impacted).
- They need to make an impact and damage assessment for NDRRA – to estimate the impact of an event’s overall initial cost and then assess the level of govt financial assistance (based on infrastructure damage and community impact, or benchmark cost)
- To know that mitigation efforts and spending are infact reducing the recovery costs (narrow the nexus between mitigation and recovery). Need to determine the cost benefit analysis of mitigation measures and hotspots for mitigation efforts.