Annual Report 2024: Objective 4 - Implement practical policy and regulatory reform

Resort stakeholder consultative commitees

Under the Alpine Resorts (Management) Act 1997, ARV is required to establish Stakeholder Consultative Committees (SCCs) for each resort. The SCCs are a valuable mechanism for engagement with resort stakeholders, enabling them to have input into decisions that impact them.

The role of each SCC is to be a conduit for information between ARV and resort stakeholders regarding the promotion, operation, management, development and use of the resort. SCCs also provide a resort perspective on strategic priorities for/of ARV.

The first 2-year tenure of SCCs concluded in November 2024. Two months prior to this, ARV called for nominations for SCC membership for the 2025–26 period, with new and returning members appointed in December 2024.

A full list of SCC members can be found alpineresorts.vic.gov.au. SCCs continue to play a vital role in partnering with ARV to shape the future of the state’s alpine sector.

Medical services tender

In winter, medical centres have traditionally operated at Mt Buller, Mt Hotham and Falls Creek. These centres provide critical medical support for trauma cases, either resolving incidents in-resort or stabilising patients so they can be transported to an off-mountain hospital by Ambulance Victoria.

While ARV is not legislatively required to provide medical centre services in the resorts, it understands the importance of these operations in support of winter activities. Within this context, in 2024 ARV commissioned a service review to seek options to improve the commercial viability of these services.

Following a number of recommendations of this work, ARV went to market seeking an operator who could provide these services in all three resorts from winter 2025 onwards.

This market-sounding process enabled ARV to identify service gaps that existed at some of the resorts and to explore opportunities for improved coordination and efficiencies in service delivery.

The outcome of this process will be announced in 2025.

Consolidated emergency management framework

ARV has significantly reformed the way it delivers on its obligations under the Emergency Management Act 2013 (the Act).

Following consultation with lead agencies, staff, community and councils, a new ARV emergency management model was endorsed by the Board for ARV. ARV has since implemented this comprehensive model, which aligns at regional and municipal levels.

This involved:

• The formation of an ARV Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee (MEMPC), which focusses on strategic planning and guidance, and preparation and administration of the ARV Municipal Emergency Management Plan (MEMP)².
• Implementation of five Resort Emergency Management Operational Planning Committees (Resort EMOPCs), which are responsible for the operational response at each resort through the development and implementation of the Resort Emergency Management Operational Guidelines (Resort EMOGs).

The Resort EMOGs and Resort EMOPCs are connected to the MEMPC and MEMP for collaboration, problemsolving and issue resolution. The model sits under ARV’s Emergency Management Policy and Framework, which provide structure, support and governance.

ARV also recruited an Emergency Management and Business Continuity Supervisor and appointed staff to statutory emergency management roles within each resort.

These include a Municipal Emergency Management Officer (MEMO) and Municipal Recovery Manager (MRM). They will work with the resort General Managers to oversee emergency management activities in each resort.

Over the next 12 months, ARV will continue to embed the model, policy and frameworks through continual improvement, training, exercising and ongoing collaboration with agencies, partners, stakeholders and community.

Key performance indicators

² Emergency Management Act 2013

Page last updated: 21/04/26