25 March 2026
Mount Alexander Shire Council in Victoria has unanimously passed a motion calling on the Federal Government to establish a National Climate Compensation Fund, funded through a levy on major coal, oil and gas corporations, to cover the soaring costs of worsening climate disasters being borne by local councils and communities across Australia.
Councillor Lucas Maddock, who moved the motion, said "It was only the luck of a wind change that meant the recent Ravenswood fire didn't reach our family home in Barkers Creek - we hear it was about five minutes off. Our insurance has gone up around 20% this year alone, and I know neighbours who have already let theirs lapse. Everyone in this community is paying the high cost of climate change. The big polluting corporations are causing this damage and must pay their fair share."
Nationally, fires, floods and cyclones cost Australia $38 billion per year, equivalent to $3,800 per household; with 434 of Australia's 537 councils impacted by climate-fuelled disasters between 2019 and 2023.
“If we don’t get the big polluters to pay for the damage they are doing it will be our residents, business and farmers left paying for it through increased levies and rates, cut services, or further diversion of our taxes - which should be funding our kinders, schools, health services and roads. A National Climate Compensation Fund, paid for by the corporations whose pollution is driving this crisis, is not just fair, it is essential” said Lucas.
The motion calls on the Federal Government to establish a Parliamentary Inquiry into the adequacy of the 2025 National Adaptation Plan, create a dedicated funding stream for local governments, and introduce a Climate Pollution Levy on coal, gas and oil corporations.
Anna Hedigan, a Mount Alexander community member whose partner fought in the Harcourt fires, said "This community has lived through back-to-back fires, floods and drought. My partner put himself on the frontline fighting fires that threatened the homes of our neighbours. People here are not talking about climate change as a future problem - it is already reshaping our lives and our finances. It is only fair that the corporations whose pollution is driving this crisis contribute to fixing it."
“Every time, it is local ratepayers and council budgets that carry the costs of recovery and repair. Big polluters are making billions in profit while communities like ours are left to clean up the mess. That is not fair, and it has to change." said Anna.
The motion makes Mount Alexander one of the first councils in Australia to formally back the Communities for Climate Compensation campaign, which is calling on the Federal Government to make big polluters contribute to fixing the harm their pollution causes, rather than leaving councils, ratepayers and households to foot the bill.
Dr Susie Burke, Psychologist specialising in climate change and community wellbeing, said “The mental health toll of repeated climate disasters on communities like Mount Alexander is profound and cumulative. When people live through fires, floods and drought in quick succession - and face rising insurance costs, damaged infrastructure and ongoing uncertainty - the psychological burden compounds. What this community is calling for is not just financially fair, it is essential for their long-term wellbeing."
“People in this community know intimately what it’s like to be smashed by increasingly frequent and intense extreme weather events caused by climate pollution. In the last five years they have lived through fires, drought and floods, and watched their town, their homes and their families bear the cost. They didn't cause this, but they are the ones cleaning it up. It's time the corporations that made billions creating the pollution which is driving these disasters contribute something back to the communities they've harmed."
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MEDIA CONTACT: Sean Kennedy, Senior Media Advisor, Climate Media Centre - 0447 121 378 - [email protected]
BACKGROUND
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Mount Alexander Shire Council passed Notice of Motion 006/2026 - Rising Costs and Impacts of Climate Change - unanimously at its Meeting of Council on 17 March 2026.
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The Communities for Climate Compensation campaign is calling on the Federal Government to establish a National Climate Compensation Fund, financed through a levy on major coal, oil and gas corporations, to fund disaster recovery, infrastructure repair and community resilience.
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Fires, floods and cyclones currently cost Australia $38 billion per year - equivalent to $3,800 per household - rising to $73 billion projected by 2060.
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434 of Australia's 537 councils were impacted by climate-fuelled disasters between 2019 and 2023.
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Federal and state governments provide approximately $14.9 billion annually in fossil fuel subsidies - more than 14 times the nation's $4.75 billion disaster response fund (Australia Institute, 2025).
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Santos reported ten consecutive years of zero corporate tax payments to 2024–25, despite $47 billion in sales.
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Coal, oil and gas corporations are responsible for three quarters of Australia's climate pollution.
Contact details:
Sean Kennedy, Senior Media Advisor, Climate Media Centre - 0447 121 378 - [email protected]
