Broome is well known for its picturesque and dramatic coastline including the iconic white sands of 22 kilometre long Cable Beach. The town centre is surrounded by coastal environment and following completion of a Broome townsite Coastal Vulnerability Study, strategic guidance on coordinated, integrated and sustainable management was required to ensure a documented response was in place to manage identified hazards within a 100 year planning timeframe.

Working with coastal engineers Baird and the Shire of Broome, we were responsible for delivering a stakeholder engagement program and supporting planning requirements to shape the development of a Coastal Hazard Risk Management and Adaptation Plan (CHRMAP), based on the Western Australian Planning Commission CHRMAP guideline document.

The broad range of stakeholders potentially affected by identified hazards required a stakeholder engagement program that distilled complex technical information into a format that could be easily received and understood by all groups, from community and cultural service providers through to residential property owners. Transparency of information was essential as was respecting the regional community’s strong cultural and heritage connection to the coastline. Our program included comprehensive communications materials such as FAQs and visual cues. A series of workshops encouraged a broad community cross section to participate.