zed ’s review of A River with a City Problem: A History of Brisbane Floods > Likes and Comments
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Great review Zed. Christchurch is only a generation away from rebuilding on land deemed redzone - where liquefaction occurs, essentially taking solid land and making it act like a liquid where houses sink (usually unevenly) and in-ground services are twisted and torn. People have short memories and convince themselves it won't be a problem. We have the great habit of filling in swamp land and then building houses on that too...
Daren wrote: "Great review Zed. Christchurch is only a generation away from rebuilding on land deemed redzone - where liquefaction occurs, essentially taking solid land and making it act like a liquid where hous..."
Thanks, Daren. I could have written a lot more such was the depth of the book. An outstanding read!
I am aware of Christchurch after watching a doco on what was happening after the quake. Having a short memory and convincing ourselves is a very human trait as most politicians know.
Where I think Christchurch may differ, and happy to be told otherwise as I am not local, is that a future quake is possible/probable so where does one go? NZ is not called the shaky isles for nothing I suppose. Brisbane on the other hand can fix it's future flood issue with better planning and no new building on the flood plains etc. We know the consequences but mouth platitudes.
zed wrote: "Where I think Christchurch may differ..."
Yes to a degree, you can't avoid the fact quakes will occur, but we can avoid the worst ground to build on - the ground that has already proven unsuitable.
Daren wrote: "zed wrote: "Where I think Christchurch may differ..."
Yes to a degree, you can't avoid the fact quakes will occur, but we can avoid the worst ground to build on - the ground that has already proven..."
I just found the wiki on what it calls Residential red zone. Interesting reading. The part titled Controversy where the government only offered buyouts to homeowners with home insurance reminded me of similar in Brisbane with a couple of schemes. There are definite parallels in my opinion. And that form of short memory (amnesia) is the notable.
zed wrote: "The part titled Controversy where the government only offered buyouts to homeowners with home insurance ..."
Yeah there was lots of debate about it... it wasn't simple as we have a layer of government insurance that covers residential property up to a certain (low) value, which is collected by the insurer as a levy. If you don't have insurance, you don't pay that and it was on the basis of that the uninsured didn't get the payout. It was fair, in my view. (By the way that levy, and the value of cover has skyrocketed since the quakes, as it have not kept pace.)
I have no connection to QLD but distinct memories of watching the premier on TV after the 2011 floods doing the state-level-patriotism thing of “we’re Queenslanders, we will rebuild, that’s what we do,” and thinking how daft it is that you’re not allowed to question the wisdom of rebuilding in the same spot.
Mitchell wrote: "I have no connection to QLD but distinct memories of watching the premier on TV after the 2011 floods doing the state-level-patriotism thing of “we’re Queenslanders, we will rebuild, that’s what we..."
We tend to like the state-level-patriotism charade in Qld. Bligh seemed to use that as an attempt to "unite" during 2011.
Newman, considering the bloke was an engineer he was not good at recalling what he had said.
January 18, 2011: As Lord Mayor, Newman defended approving developments in flood-prone areas like Tennyson, claiming the disaster was a "rare and unusual" event that "no one" could have anticipated.
February 8, 2011: Only weeks later, he admitted in a different context that "we cannot stop a flood" and should instead focus on the aftermath.
August 1, 2011: After entering state politics, he changed tone, claiming he would have personally drawn down dam levels to 75% before the rain arrived—a strategy he had not publicly advocated for during the actual crisis as Mayor.
April 11, 2011: During the Flood Inquiry, he denied that Brisbane City Council had ever pressured dam operators to reduce releases, despite reports suggesting the council had raised concerns about flow limits that may have slowed the emptying of the dam.
May 12, 2022: As a private citizen during the 2022 floods, he criticised the government for failing to build "mitigation dams" he proposed in 2014, even though his own 2011-era statements as Mayor focused on the "unpredictable" nature of such events rather than engineering failures.
One has to be short of a good book to read to listen to this bloke.
Droughts and flooding rains, as the poet said.
Nick wrote: "Droughts and flooding rains, as the poet said."
An exceptional poem.
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Daren
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Mar 03, 2026 12:45AM
Great review Zed. Christchurch is only a generation away from rebuilding on land deemed redzone - where liquefaction occurs, essentially taking solid land and making it act like a liquid where houses sink (usually unevenly) and in-ground services are twisted and torn. People have short memories and convince themselves it won't be a problem. We have the great habit of filling in swamp land and then building houses on that too...
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Daren wrote: "Great review Zed. Christchurch is only a generation away from rebuilding on land deemed redzone - where liquefaction occurs, essentially taking solid land and making it act like a liquid where hous..."Thanks, Daren. I could have written a lot more such was the depth of the book. An outstanding read!
I am aware of Christchurch after watching a doco on what was happening after the quake. Having a short memory and convincing ourselves is a very human trait as most politicians know.
Where I think Christchurch may differ, and happy to be told otherwise as I am not local, is that a future quake is possible/probable so where does one go? NZ is not called the shaky isles for nothing I suppose. Brisbane on the other hand can fix it's future flood issue with better planning and no new building on the flood plains etc. We know the consequences but mouth platitudes.
zed wrote: "Where I think Christchurch may differ..."Yes to a degree, you can't avoid the fact quakes will occur, but we can avoid the worst ground to build on - the ground that has already proven unsuitable.
Daren wrote: "zed wrote: "Where I think Christchurch may differ..."Yes to a degree, you can't avoid the fact quakes will occur, but we can avoid the worst ground to build on - the ground that has already proven..."
I just found the wiki on what it calls Residential red zone. Interesting reading. The part titled Controversy where the government only offered buyouts to homeowners with home insurance reminded me of similar in Brisbane with a couple of schemes. There are definite parallels in my opinion. And that form of short memory (amnesia) is the notable.
zed wrote: "The part titled Controversy where the government only offered buyouts to homeowners with home insurance ..."Yeah there was lots of debate about it... it wasn't simple as we have a layer of government insurance that covers residential property up to a certain (low) value, which is collected by the insurer as a levy. If you don't have insurance, you don't pay that and it was on the basis of that the uninsured didn't get the payout. It was fair, in my view. (By the way that levy, and the value of cover has skyrocketed since the quakes, as it have not kept pace.)
I have no connection to QLD but distinct memories of watching the premier on TV after the 2011 floods doing the state-level-patriotism thing of “we’re Queenslanders, we will rebuild, that’s what we do,” and thinking how daft it is that you’re not allowed to question the wisdom of rebuilding in the same spot.
Mitchell wrote: "I have no connection to QLD but distinct memories of watching the premier on TV after the 2011 floods doing the state-level-patriotism thing of “we’re Queenslanders, we will rebuild, that’s what we..."We tend to like the state-level-patriotism charade in Qld. Bligh seemed to use that as an attempt to "unite" during 2011.
Newman, considering the bloke was an engineer he was not good at recalling what he had said.
January 18, 2011: As Lord Mayor, Newman defended approving developments in flood-prone areas like Tennyson, claiming the disaster was a "rare and unusual" event that "no one" could have anticipated.
February 8, 2011: Only weeks later, he admitted in a different context that "we cannot stop a flood" and should instead focus on the aftermath.
August 1, 2011: After entering state politics, he changed tone, claiming he would have personally drawn down dam levels to 75% before the rain arrived—a strategy he had not publicly advocated for during the actual crisis as Mayor.
April 11, 2011: During the Flood Inquiry, he denied that Brisbane City Council had ever pressured dam operators to reduce releases, despite reports suggesting the council had raised concerns about flow limits that may have slowed the emptying of the dam.
May 12, 2022: As a private citizen during the 2022 floods, he criticised the government for failing to build "mitigation dams" he proposed in 2014, even though his own 2011-era statements as Mayor focused on the "unpredictable" nature of such events rather than engineering failures.
One has to be short of a good book to read to listen to this bloke.
Droughts and flooding rains, as the poet said.
Nick wrote: "Droughts and flooding rains, as the poet said."An exceptional poem.
