Post-Disaster Local Infrastructure Reconstruction Finance: A Comparative Analysis of Policy Intervention in the Japanese Earthquake and Queensland Flood Disasters

Abstract

While local infrastructure damage represents only one dimension of the catastrophic effects of natural disasters, given the critical role of local infrastructure - such as local roads, power supplies and water provision - in sustaining human life and enabling recovery, postdisaster infrastructure reconstruction constitutes a capstone in any disaster planning regime. This paper considers local infrastructure reconstruction efforts in the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake on 11 March 2011 and the massive floods which struck Queensland over the summer of 2010/11 in order to identify common problems facing policymakers concerned with post-disaster reconstruction. It is argued that given the critical need to rapidly gather information on post-disaster damage, coordinate intergovernmental cooperation in reconstruction, and have in place the requisite administrative capacity to legitimately and speedily authorize intergovernmental transfers, an ongoing administrative structure should be established which can fulfil these key functions in the event of any natural disaster.