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FireScape (Fire Ecology) Project – Where Red Meets
GreenCommunity Engagement and Fire Awareness Forum.The Road to Safer Communities; Are we there yet? 3rd – 4th August, 2013Mike McStephen VMO Gippsland and Kim Stanley-Eyles, VMO Barwon South West
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• Balances risk management with fire ecology– Suited to Rural & Semi-rural communities
• Link fire agencies, NRM agencies, community• See fire as one part of land management• Encourage local fire management planning• Increase appropriate burning on private land
Introduction – Aims of the program
Fire Ecology Project
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Country Area of Victoria
• Domain of Country Fire Authority (CFA)• Seventy-eight percent of Victoria• Roadsides, rail easements, local reserves• Private land (75%) surface area
• CFA is NOT a land manager
Fire Ecology Project
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• 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission recommendations
• Four year pilot ‘Environmental Compliance’• Two year pilot (years 3 and 4)• Community Engagement Workshop Pilot
– Modeled on “HotSpots” program: NSW Rural Fire Service partnering Nature Conservation Council
– Burn planning across landscape tenures
Pilot Project: a background
Fire Ecology Project
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Overview of the Workshops• Fire planning: ecological perspective• Fire behaviour• Fire Planning: Risk perspective - BAL• Burn Planning• Monitoring the effects of fire• Property planning for fire
Fire Ecology Project
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Fire Ecology Project
What we have done so far• Identified groups
– Share boundaries in bushland – share risk and interests
– Mixture of attitudes and motivations• Two workshop sessions
– Education and planning– Planning review and Burn
• Burn separately if coordination can’t be done
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• Fish Creek– South Gippsland, north of Wilson’s Prom– An isolated rural group
• Koonwarra– South Gippsland, near Leongatha– A semi-urban group
• Barongarook– Near Colac– Engaged with CFA support
Fire Ecology Project
Communities involved
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Communities involved
• Fish Creek– Small number of households– Predominantly semi-retired farming– Shared attitudes– Coherent local community
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Communities involved
• Location of Gippsland communities
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Fish Creek
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Fish Creek
• Fish Creek, burn block
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Koonwarra
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Koonwarra characteristics
• Koonwarra– Larger town than Fish Creek– Working locally – 50% House blocks – Not shared attitudes– Less well connected community
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Program Structure
• Two sessions– Session I – Education then planning
• Fire Ecology – Planning fire without people– ParksVic: Fire and Environment Program Officer
• Fire Risk – Fire Behaviour, Asset risk, BAL scale– CFA
• Local brigade input – Brigade role and expectation
• Walk and talk – Site inspection and reinforcement
• Long lunch• Planning session (Big Maps)
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• Session II– Review and update plan– Burn if possible
Program Structure
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Monitoring
• Year 2 activity• Land owners concerns
– Will this:• damage the environment• regenerate species • remove animals from the area
• Interest from DEPI– Fire risk on private land– Fauna monitoring linking remnants– Fire history on private land