Victorian Government State Emergency Animal Disease Response Plan

The Victorian Government State Emergency Animal Disease Response Plan (‘the Plan’) provides an overview of the arrangements for the management of a major EAD emergency in Victoria and contains information on mitigation, preparedness, response and relief.

The purpose of the Plan is to provide clarity on the approach the Victorian Government will use to manage an EAD emergency, agency roles and responsibilities and support preparedness in advance of an outbreak including to:

• establish the outcome the Victorian Government will work to achieve should an EAD emergency occur
• set out the strategic level co-ordination and decision-making arrangements that will be used to manage an EAD emergency
• provide important context about the major EADs
• set out each relevant agency’s role in the event of an EAD incursion
• inform EAD readiness activities for response and relief to ensure that this Plan can be successfully activated and implemented, if required.

The Plan was updated in May 2024, following its first version being published in November 2022 due to increased risks of emergency animal disease outbreaks in Australia.

Download the plan

• Victorian Government State Emergency Animal Disease Response Plan (PDF - 3.8 MB)
• Victorian Government State Emergency Animal Disease Response Plan (accessible) (WORD - 3.4 MB)

The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) has developed this Plan consistent with national and state arrangements for biosecurity emergencies and with input from a range of other emergency management agencies.

The Plan refers to a range of existing plans and documents but does not duplicate the information contained in these, instead providing directions to websites or other sources where the reader can obtain further information if required. The Plan is a subordinate plan to the Animal, Plant, Marine and Environmental Biosecurity Sub-Plan (the Biosecurity Sub-Plan) of the State Emergency Management Plan (SEMP). The SEMP identifies DEECA as the Control Agency in Victoria for biosecurity incidents including EADs.

Led by DEECA, preparation for, and response to, an EAD emergency is a shared responsibility and requires a partnership between national, state and local government agencies, industry bodies and the community. In the event of an EAD emergency, DEECA, support agencies and organisations will collaborate to provide an integrated, effective and efficient emergency management response for the benefit of the community.

This plan will inform Victorian Government departments and relevant agencies in their planning to address the risk and preparedness activities associated with statutory obligations and the consequences of an EAD emergency on their organisation and service delivery obligations, and to fulfil their responsibilities as described in the SEMP.

More information

For further information regarding the Plan, or to discuss the biosecurity response framework, please contact the DEECA State Agency Commander for Agriculture at sccvic.scmdr.ag@scc.vic.gov.au