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