State Government Advocacy on a Queensland Pilot to Regulate Data Centres - Location, Energy Use and Treated Wastewater Cooling - and State Funding for Council-Delivered Lifeguard Services to Reduce Coastal Drownings · 2026-09-17 Notice of Motion - Cr Lorentson - QLD Pilot to Regulate Data Centres & State Funding for Council Delivered Lifeguard Services

MOTION 2 – IN FULL
Title of motion: Direct State Funding for Local Government-Delivered Lifeguard Services to
Address Rising Coastal Drowning Deaths
Motion: That the LGAQ calls on the Queensland Government to establish dedicated, ongoing
funding for local governments that directly fund and deliver professional lifeguard services on public
beaches, in recognition that local governments currently meet the substantial majority of the year-
round cost of beach lifeguard patrols beyond the state-supported volunteer surf lifesaving season;
and that this funding be reviewed regularly against rising visitor numbers, coastal population growth
and the state's rising drowning toll, so that public safety on Queensland's beaches does not depend
solely on the capacity of individual councils and their ratepayers to pay.
This motion is urgent because the consequences of inaction are measured in lives, not policy delay.
On 7 August 2026, a 74-year-old man drowned at Bokarina Beach on a weekday morning, outside
patrol hours. Every coastal council is currently finalising this season's patrol coverage, which means
decisions taken in the coming weeks will directly determine how many hours of the day Queensland's
beaches are protected.
Beach safety is not a discretionary amenity. Queensland's coastline is one of the state's most heavily
used public assets, and patrolled hours are the single most effective control against drowning. Yet
the statistics show that control is under strain: Queensland recorded 90 drowning deaths last
financial year, a 36% increase on the ten-year average, and almost all coastal deaths occurred
outside patrolled times and flags. As patrol hours are stretched thinner against rising visitor numbers,
that gap in coverage will only widen.
As land managers and trustees of public beach reserves, councils carry the practical and, in many
respects, the moral responsibility for public safety on our beaches. That responsibility is not matched
by commensurate funding. The State currently funds only the volunteer surf lifesaving season, which
operates on weekends and public holidays. The far greater cost, professional lifeguards patrolling
daily and often year-round, falls almost entirely to local government. Sunshine Coast Council alone
spends $7 million a year on lifeguards, more than half of what the State provides to Surf Life Saving
Queensland to support the entire state's volunteer movement. Noosa spends $1.69 million a year
across four beaches, for the September to May season alone.
This funding must stretch further each year. Visitor numbers continue to rise, and with them the risk
of drowning, yet Noosa's comparatively small ratepayer base limits how far Council can responsibly
extend this expenditure, regardless of how much the underlying risk grows. Councils should not be
forced to choose between patrol hours and other essential services simply because of the size of
their rate base.
This motion asks the Queensland Government to establish dedicated, ongoing funding for council-
delivered lifeguard services, so that the adequacy of patrol coverage is determined by public safety
need rather than by the funding capacity of individual councils, and reviewed regularly against rising
visitor numbers, population growth and drowning figures.
Missing the LGAQ submission deadline does not lessen the urgency of either matter. Council intends
to pursue both through the LGAQ Policy Executive referral and direct advocacy with the State
Government.