Queensland Councils Slam BoM's Axing of Free Flood Forecasting Tool

In a move that has alarmed natural disaster-prone councils in south-east Queensland, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) has announced plans to phase out its free real-time flood forecasting tool Enviromon by July 2025. The BoM cites the tool's failure to meet "basic cybersecurity, stability and resilience standards" as the reason for the change.

For nearly 30 years, Enviromon has provided local governments, emergency services and water managers across Australia with free access to a tool used to inform emergency alert systems. The software collects, displays and analyzes data from rainfall and river level gauges to enable flood forecasting. However, the BoM will now replace Enviromon with a US-developed program called OneRain, which cannot be sublicensed and therefore cannot be offered free to councils and other public bodies.

Brisbane City Council, which serves a population of over 1.3 million, has deemed the 10-minute lag in data updates from the new system unacceptable in flash flood situations. The council estimates it could cost $500,000 to set up its own replacement software, not including ongoing subscriptions. Other affected councils, such as the Gold Coast, have also voiced concerns about the financial burden and potential risks to public safety.

The BoM has stated that flood warning data will continue to be published on its website for free, but councils argue this does not replace the real-time access and analysis capabilities of Enviromon. With weather events becoming more frequent and severe, local governments are calling on the federal government to intervene and ensure an equivalent replacement service is provided to protect communities.