State, regional and municipal emergency management plans are required by Part 6A of the Emergency Management Act 2013 (External link) (EM Act 2013). Each emergency management plan provides an integrated, coordinated, and comprehensive approach to emergency management. It covers all relevant emergencies, and is tailored to the risks and needs of each planning level and its geographic footprint.
State Emergency Management Plan (SEMP)
The State Emergency Management Plan (SEMP) and its sub-plans are prepared by the Emergency Commissioner (EMC), or the relevant control agency on behalf of the EMC and approved by the State Crisis and Resilience Council (SCRC).
The SEMP is not an aggregation of the Regional Emergency Management Plans. It outlines the state-level arrangements for emergency management in Victoria including the roles and responsibilities of agencies. The SEMP outlines emergency management arrangements for Victoria, across state levels, and informs other levels of planning.
The aim of the SEMP and its sub-plans, is to detail provisions providing for the mitigation of, response to (including relief), and recovery from emergencies, as well as specifying roles and responsibilities of agencies in relation to emergency management.
The SEMP includes:
- an interactive and functional PDF (optimised for Adobe Acrobat Reader)
- detailed Roles and Responsibilities information
- State Emergency Management Plan Sub-Plans.
The Emergency Management Act 2013 (External link) requires preparation and publication of the SEMP, which first came into effect on 30 September 2020. The SEMP replaced the now-discontinued Emergency Management Manual Victoria (EMMV).
Emergency Management Manual Victoria discontinuation
The SEMP came into effect on 30 September 2020 and replaced the following parts of the EMMV:
- Part 3: State Emergency Response Plan
- Part 4: State Emergency Relief and Recovery Plan
- Part 7: Emergency Management Agency Roles
- Part 8: Appendices and Glossary.
On 1 December 2020, remaining EMMV chapters and appendices were discontinued.
They were published elsewhere or superseded by the:
- regional and municipal level reforms in the Emergency Management Legislation Amendment Act 2018 (External link)
- Guidelines for Preparing State, Regional and Municipal Emergency Management Plans
- existing doctrine, policy and procedures.
A table summarising the current location of equivalent information from the discontinued EMMV is available within the Future of the EMMV publication.
Regional Emergency Management Plan
Regional Emergency Management Plans (REMPs) and their sub-plans are:
- prepared by the relevant Regional Emergency Management Planning Committee
- approved by the Emergency Management Commissioner.
A REMP contextualises the State Emergency Management Plan for its region. It considers Municipal Emergency Management Plans within its region and any region-specific issues and opportunities.
Municipal Emergency Management Plan
Municipal Emergency Management Plans (MEMPs) and their sub-plans are:
- prepared by the relevant Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee
- approved by the relevant Regional Emergency Management Planning Committee.
A MEMP contextualises its Regional Emergency Management Plan and is informed by local and municipal risks. It considers any community emergency management plans that may be in place.
Community emergency management plan
Community emergency management plans (CEMPs) are recognised in Victoria’s emergency management planning framework. CEMPs are optional plans that communities may choose to prepare. Where a CEMP exists, the Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee is obliged to consider the CEMP in the development of its Municipal Emergency Management Plan.
The State Emergency Management Plan (SEMP), Regional Emergency Management Plans (REMPs) and Municipal Emergency Management Plans (MEMPs), in conjunction with any Community Emergency Management Plans, form a holistic planning landscape to mitigate, plan and prepare for, respond to, and recover from emergencies and could be conceptualised as an interconnected, extensive emergency management plan.
As displayed in Figure 5, all levels of emergency management plans can conceptually be thought of as a single, extensive emergency management plan, including a MEMP, the relevant REMP, and the SEMP.
Figure 5: all levels of emergency management plans
All emergency management plans, including sub-plans, are subject to the same:
- consultation
- assurance
- approval
- publication
- review requirements.
Emergency management plans will continue to evolve as planning matures at the state, regional and municipal levels.
Emergency management plans, including their sub-plans are prepared within the context of the objectives of the EM Act 2013 and for the relevant planning footprint to:
- foster a sustainable and efficient emergency management system that minimises the likelihood, effect, and consequences of emergencies
- establish efficient governance arrangements that
- clarify the roles and responsibilities of agencies
- facilitate cooperation between agencies
- ensure the coordination of emergency management reform within the emergency management sector
- implement an “all communities— all emergencies” approach to emergency management
- promote community resilience
- establish integrated arrangements for emergency management planning in Victoria.
Emergency management plans must:
- be prepared collaboratively, efficiently, and effectively
- be consistent with other existing in force emergency management plans and where possible not duplicate or conflict with those plans
- adopt an integrated, coordinated, and comprehensive approach to emergency management
- contain provisions providing for the mitigation of, response to, and recovery from emergencies, as well as specifying the roles and responsibilities of agencies in relation to emergency management
- be assured, approved, and published every 3 years, or more frequently if required.
The department acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the Traditional Custodians of the land and acknowledges and pays respect to their Elders, past and present.