Alpine Emergency Management in Victoria: From Fragmentation to a Unified System
Tracks
Southport Room 2
| Tuesday, July 28, 2026 |
| 11:20 AM - 11:50 AM |
| Southport Room 2 |
Overview
Nathan Small, Alpine Resorts Victoria &
Mark Owens, Country Fire Authority
Details
Three Key Learnings
1. Strategic consolidation improves effectiveness: replacing 4 separate municipal plans with a single ARV-wide MEMP reduced duplication, strengthened legislative compliance, and enabled clearer tactical delivery through resort-specific Emergency Management Operational Guides (EMOGs).
2. Relationships are critical: meaningful reform depended on sustained collaboration with agencies, particularly the Country Fire Authority and Victoria Police, alongside strong executive leadership within ARV.
3. Simplicity enhances operational outcomes: lean, action-focused EMOGs proved more usable and adaptable than lengthy compliance-driven plans, ensuring emergency management remains practical, scalable, and responsive within Victoria’s complex alpine risk environment.
Speaker
Mr Mark Owens
Commander Alpine
Country Fire Authority
Alpine Emergency Management in Victoria: From Fragmentation to a Unified System
Abstract
Alpine Emergency Management in Victoria: Designing a Unified Strategic–Tactical Model for High-Risk Environments
Victoria’s alpine resorts operate in one of Australia’s most complex emergency management environments—geographically isolated, seasonally populated, hazard-exposed, and legislatively designated as municipalities under the Emergency Management Act 2013. Historically, each resort maintained its own Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee (MEMPC) and plan. While functional, this decentralised model led to duplication, inconsistency, and administrative strain, particularly in a resource-constrained environment.
Following the Victorian Government’s 2021 alpine sector reforms and the establishment of Alpine Resorts Victoria (ARV) as a single governing entity for six resorts, a significant opportunity emerged to modernise emergency management governance. This paper outlines the consultation, design, and implementation of a new operating model that consolidates multiple municipal structures into a single strategic Municipal Emergency Management Plan (MEMP) and centralised MEMPC. Tactical capability is delivered through five resort-specific Emergency Management Operational Guides (EMOGs), supported by local Emergency Management Operational Planning Committees.
Informed by consultation with more than 100 stakeholders—including the Country Fire Authority and Victoria Police—the reform evaluated three structural options before selecting a unified model. The resulting framework separates governance from operations: the MEMP provides legislative compliance, risk oversight, and executive accountability, while EMOGs are lean, action-oriented documents tailored to each resort’s unique geography, infrastructure, and hazard profile.
The paper examines key challenges, including cross-regional coordination, agency fatigue at municipal planning levels, and change management risks. It identifies critical enablers of success: executive leadership ownership, sustained inter-agency relationships, and a deliberate shift toward practical, operational usability.
As climate-driven hazards intensify in alpine environments, this reform demonstrates how ARV has moved from fragmented planning to an integrated, scalable, and resilient emergency management system. The model offers transferable insights for similarly dispersed, high-risk jurisdictions across Australia.
Victoria’s alpine resorts operate in one of Australia’s most complex emergency management environments—geographically isolated, seasonally populated, hazard-exposed, and legislatively designated as municipalities under the Emergency Management Act 2013. Historically, each resort maintained its own Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee (MEMPC) and plan. While functional, this decentralised model led to duplication, inconsistency, and administrative strain, particularly in a resource-constrained environment.
Following the Victorian Government’s 2021 alpine sector reforms and the establishment of Alpine Resorts Victoria (ARV) as a single governing entity for six resorts, a significant opportunity emerged to modernise emergency management governance. This paper outlines the consultation, design, and implementation of a new operating model that consolidates multiple municipal structures into a single strategic Municipal Emergency Management Plan (MEMP) and centralised MEMPC. Tactical capability is delivered through five resort-specific Emergency Management Operational Guides (EMOGs), supported by local Emergency Management Operational Planning Committees.
Informed by consultation with more than 100 stakeholders—including the Country Fire Authority and Victoria Police—the reform evaluated three structural options before selecting a unified model. The resulting framework separates governance from operations: the MEMP provides legislative compliance, risk oversight, and executive accountability, while EMOGs are lean, action-oriented documents tailored to each resort’s unique geography, infrastructure, and hazard profile.
The paper examines key challenges, including cross-regional coordination, agency fatigue at municipal planning levels, and change management risks. It identifies critical enablers of success: executive leadership ownership, sustained inter-agency relationships, and a deliberate shift toward practical, operational usability.
As climate-driven hazards intensify in alpine environments, this reform demonstrates how ARV has moved from fragmented planning to an integrated, scalable, and resilient emergency management system. The model offers transferable insights for similarly dispersed, high-risk jurisdictions across Australia.
Biography
Mark joined the Country Fire Authority (CFA) as a Commander in 2007. Before joining CFA staff, Mark was a Regional Officer with the Victoria State Emergency Service from 2001 to 2007. Since being with the CFA, Mark has been stationed at various locations across Victoria, also acting as the Assistant Chief Fire Officer in varying Districts during his career. Since fire service reform in July 2020, Mark has been employed by Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) but seconded back to the CFA. Mark is currently Commander Alpine (Mark has held this inaugural position since its inception in May 2020). The Commander Alpine position leads the Alpine Service Delivery Team to deliver the CFA’s Alpine Service Delivery Strategic Plan and to support the three CFA Alpine Fire Brigades.
Mark holds a master’s degree in Emergency Management from Charles Sturt University, Advanced Diploma of Emergency Management, Diploma of Frontline Management, Diploma of Government and Certificate IV in Training and Assessment. Mark has presented at the 2023 DEMC with Dr Kamarah Pooley on the NHRA Wi-Fi Portal Project and Disaster Challenge.
Mr Nathan Small
Governance And Risk Advisor
Alpine Resorts Victoria
Alpine Emergency Management in Victoria: From Fragmentation to a Unified System
Abstract
Alpine Emergency Management in Victoria: Designing a Unified Strategic–Tactical Model for High-Risk Environments
Victoria’s alpine resorts operate in one of Australia’s most complex emergency management environments—geographically isolated, seasonally populated, hazard-exposed, and legislatively designated as municipalities under the Emergency Management Act 2013. Historically, each resort maintained its own Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee (MEMPC) and plan. While functional, this decentralised model led to duplication, inconsistency, and administrative strain, particularly in a resource-constrained environment.
Following the Victorian Government’s 2021 alpine sector reforms and the establishment of Alpine Resorts Victoria (ARV) as a single governing entity for six resorts, a significant opportunity emerged to modernise emergency management governance. This paper outlines the consultation, design, and implementation of a new operating model that consolidates multiple municipal structures into a single strategic Municipal Emergency Management Plan (MEMP) and centralised MEMPC. Tactical capability is delivered through five resort-specific Emergency Management Operational Guides (EMOGs), supported by local Emergency Management Operational Planning Committees.
Informed by consultation with more than 100 stakeholders—including the Country Fire Authority and Victoria Police—the reform evaluated three structural options before selecting a unified model. The resulting framework separates governance from operations: the MEMP provides legislative compliance, risk oversight, and executive accountability, while EMOGs are lean, action-oriented documents tailored to each resort’s unique geography, infrastructure, and hazard profile.
The paper examines key challenges, including cross-regional coordination, agency fatigue at municipal planning levels, and change management risks. It identifies critical enablers of success: executive leadership ownership, sustained inter-agency relationships, and a deliberate shift toward practical, operational usability.
As climate-driven hazards intensify in alpine environments, this reform demonstrates how ARV has moved from fragmented planning to an integrated, scalable, and resilient emergency management system. The model offers transferable insights for similarly dispersed, high-risk jurisdictions across Australia.
Victoria’s alpine resorts operate in one of Australia’s most complex emergency management environments—geographically isolated, seasonally populated, hazard-exposed, and legislatively designated as municipalities under the Emergency Management Act 2013. Historically, each resort maintained its own Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee (MEMPC) and plan. While functional, this decentralised model led to duplication, inconsistency, and administrative strain, particularly in a resource-constrained environment.
Following the Victorian Government’s 2021 alpine sector reforms and the establishment of Alpine Resorts Victoria (ARV) as a single governing entity for six resorts, a significant opportunity emerged to modernise emergency management governance. This paper outlines the consultation, design, and implementation of a new operating model that consolidates multiple municipal structures into a single strategic Municipal Emergency Management Plan (MEMP) and centralised MEMPC. Tactical capability is delivered through five resort-specific Emergency Management Operational Guides (EMOGs), supported by local Emergency Management Operational Planning Committees.
Informed by consultation with more than 100 stakeholders—including the Country Fire Authority and Victoria Police—the reform evaluated three structural options before selecting a unified model. The resulting framework separates governance from operations: the MEMP provides legislative compliance, risk oversight, and executive accountability, while EMOGs are lean, action-oriented documents tailored to each resort’s unique geography, infrastructure, and hazard profile.
The paper examines key challenges, including cross-regional coordination, agency fatigue at municipal planning levels, and change management risks. It identifies critical enablers of success: executive leadership ownership, sustained inter-agency relationships, and a deliberate shift toward practical, operational usability.
As climate-driven hazards intensify in alpine environments, this reform demonstrates how ARV has moved from fragmented planning to an integrated, scalable, and resilient emergency management system. The model offers transferable insights for similarly dispersed, high-risk jurisdictions across Australia.
Biography
Nathan has been with ARV since 2024. Before that he served as Artillery Officer with the Australian Army for over 14 years, reaching the rank of Major. Nathan holds a Bachelor of Business from UNE and, after receiving a Wandering Warriors Scholarship, is currently studying an MBA with UQ. Nathan currently lives in Theodore in QLD where his partner is working a s a Rural, Remote GP, but will be returning to Victoria with his wife and two children next year.
