Abstract for presentation at Spatial Sciences Institute International Biennial Conference

Using the townscape of Lakes Entrance (Victoria, Australia) as a case study, it is shown how, via adoption of a suitable digital spatial data handling process path, a high-resolution bare earth terrain model suitable for flood and storm surge/storm tide inundation modelling of low-lying coastal townscapes can be derived photogrammetrically. Model applications refer mostly to urban area planning and include: a) possible future inundation extent estimation/prediction with individual land parcel resolution; b) current and future land-use planning; c) integration into local emergency services information systems and contingency planning; d) provision of rapid stakeholder 'mental map' stabilisation; e) promotion of public and private stakeholder consensus-building, and f) for immediate assessment (including land parcel attribute documentation and geographical partitioning) of the relative inundation risk implications for insurance purposes. The exemplification presented here indicates the emergence of new incentives for corporate spatial database building and integration in local government and other tertiary-level public-service agencies that are tasked with supporting integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) initiatives in Victoria.