What is QCoast2100?

Queensland’s coastal communities are already experiencing the effects of a changing climate being exposed to hazards such as sea-level rise, coastal erosion and storm tide inundation. These risks are expected to increase in frequency and severity and with over 70% of the population living along the coast, it is vital to ensure these areas are resilient, safe, and sustainable now and into the future.

To enable councils to address these changes, it was identified that there was a clear need for: 

• Consistent guidance 
• Long-term, strategic planning tools 
• Access to funding; and 
• Expert support 

The QCoast2100 program was developed to help Queensland’s coastal communities prepare for and adapt to the increasing risks posed by coastal hazards. The program is designed to be accessible to coastal local governments irrespective of their current level of planning, capability and resourcing. 

The purpose of the QCoast2100 program is to: 

• Support local governments to understand, plan for, and respond to current and future coastal hazard risks. 
• Facilitate the development of locally tailored Coastal Hazard Adaptation Strategies (CHAS) that balance environmental, social, cultural, and economic considerations. 
• Provide consistent, best-practice guidance and tools to improve decision-making and planning outcomes across Queensland’s coastal regions. 
• Strengthen community awareness and engagement in coastal adaptation planning. 

Under the QCoast2100 program, high-quality information has been developed to enable defensible, timely and effective decision-making across key areas of planning and operations such as: 

Land use planning and development assessment; 

• Infrastructure planning and management including roads, stormwater and foreshores; 
• Asset management and planning including nature conservation, recreation, cultural heritage values and other public amenities; 
• Community planning; and 
• Emergency management. 

Evolving for the Future

Building on the success of the development of CHAS, the QCoast2100 program has progressed to the next phase in coastal resilience planning. It continues to offer funding, technical support, and collaborative learning opportunities for councils, while placing a stronger emphasis on implementation and mainstreaming adaptation actions into local government operations, planning schemes, and investment decisions. 

In addition to its practical outcomes, the program is designed to strengthen knowledge, build professional capability, and foster connections between the private sector, research community, and all levels of government—creating a lasting foundation for ongoing, on-ground action to protect Queensland’s iconic coastline 

A Coordinated Statewide Approach

Recognising the challenges, the Queensland Government partnered with the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) to create QCoast2100. The program was established to ensure that all coastal councils, regardless of size or resources, had access to the support needed to: 

• Understand their current and future exposure to coastal hazards 
• Develop locally appropriate Coastal Hazard Adaptation Strategies (CHAS) 
• Embed adaptation into planning, policy, and investment decisions 
• Engage communities and stakeholders in building resilient coastal futures 

By taking a proactive, science-based, and collaborative approach, QCoast2100 aims to safeguard the environmental, economic, cultural, and social values of Queensland’s iconic coastline for generations to come.