2026 Conference Program

South Australia (SA) has experienced the nation's most significant harmful algal bloom (HAB) with devastating impacts on the marine ecosystem, industry, and coastal communities, and a footprint approximately 80 times the size of Sydney Harbour.

Management of SA's HAB has challenged our traditional emergency management model that is well equipped and practised at managing sudden-onset events such as floods and fires. In contrast, slow-onset events such as HABs are unpredictable in their duration, severity, spatial extent, and end points, often unfolding gradually over long periods of time.

This case study will explore how the management of SA's HAB led to a shift in the mindset of emergency managers through recognising that the traditional, agency led, linear phased approach required adjusting to a systemic and collaborative, multi-sectoral model integrating emergency management, environmental science, academia, industry, First Nations and community representation.

Rather than treating the bloom as a discrete incident to be ‘responded to,' leadership applied a more organic and adaptive approach. Blurring the lines between prevention, preparedness, response and recovery, recovery efforts were identified and delivered in parallel to responding to active outbreaks and preparing and building resilience for future HABs or outbreaks, allowing multiple phases of action to occur at once.

As climate change accelerates, we will continue to experience devastating ecological disasters such as HABs with systemic impacts that are felt most acutely in our natural systems, rather than human life or built infrastructure. This SA experience highlights the need for emergency management systems and governance to be proactive rather than reactive, and collaborative and systemic rather than siloed. Building resilience to future ecological disasters will depend on our ability to embrace uncertainty, and act early, even when the end state is unclear.