Falling koala numbers not a crisis, says expert

Australia’s cuddliest native animal is at the centre of fierce scientific dispute, with new research challenging conventional assumptions about koalas, their relationship with the bush and the wisdom of conservation campaigns designed to increase their numbers in the wild.

Vic Jurskis, a respected forester and ecologist and the author of a research paper to be published next week in Wildlife Research, a peer-reviewed, CSIRO journal, dubs it the great koala scam.

He says ignorance about koalas and poor management of our native forests have led to a situation where the decline of koala populations from unsustainable and unnaturally high levels is misinterpreted as a crisis.

Greater Transparency is Required – an Interview with Dr Charlie Teo

This interview by Ray Hadley with neurosurgeon Charlie Teo highlights the problems associated with the fundraising activities of a range of charities.

The money that is gobbled up extends way beyond the administration costs of the fundraising collection company.

What it takes to be a fire behaviour expert with the Rural Fire Service

The VFFA is sharing this ABC News article because we support the comments made by Dr. Simon Heemstra including:

Mapping by hand most reliable
There is no technology that can replace frontline experience
It would be great to see a relocation of these resources to a locality west of the “sandstone curtain”.

Lets not forget all of the volunteers across the state with a wealth of local knowledge to offer.

Ray Hadley talks about the use of Call Centres for Fundraising

You may recall the VFFA publishing a series of posts titled Was the attack on the fundraising activities of the RFSA justified?
Good News from Ray Hadley…. The ACCC is announcing, Charities risk stiff fines if they outsource their fundraising to companies that hound potential donors.
Charities have become big business. Mr Hadley suggests that you donate directly to your local brigade.

Rural Fire Service faces accusations of bullying and nepotism

With the state already facing “extreme” bushfire risks with hot and dry weather, a parliamentary inquiry has heard of allegations of bullying and nepotism within the Rural Fire Service. The hearing was told by vice-president of the Volunteer Fire Fighters Association that the community could no longer be protected.

At the public Emergency Services Agency hearing, chaired by Shooters and Fishers’ Robert Borsak, RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons was quizzed by Greens member David Shoebridge after it was revealed 48 per cent of RFS members had witnessed bullying while 18 per cent had been victims of bullying and that “only two people have been dismissed because of it”.

Inquiry hears of bullying, nepotism in RFS

THE Rural Fire Service (RFS) has lost touch with its regional roots, and volunteers who have spoken against the bureaucracy have faced bullying and harassment, including election interference at a brigade level, a parliamentary inquiry into the emergency services has been told.

Fire-fighting helicopter pilot speaks out against Martin Mars Water Bomber

“Water doesn’t put out a fire, the crews do,” the anonymous pilot wrote. “Large aircraft such as what you have read about in this article take crews off the fire lines, sit helicopters on the ground for hours and stop precious production and critical gains,” the pilot wrote. “[The Bomber’s] water comes out at a force which sends embers out and start spot fires.”

“[The water bombing method] loosens ground, blows over trees creating hazards and ruins guards put in by crews.”

NSW Rural Fire Service announces $9 million Centre for Excellence

The announcement to build a Centre of Excellence in Dubbo is a victory for the people of Dubbo, the VFFA, all volunteers, regional and rural people of NSW.

This news is certainly a step in the right direction as it will pave the way for increased regional and rural influence in the RFS Learning and Development Directorate.

The VFFA congratulates MP Troy Grant, Dubbo Regional Council, NSW RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons and NSW RFS Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers for this commitment but does it goes far enough? The VFFA believes that a much larger chunk of the NSW Rural Fire Service, if not all, needs to be decentralised.

Emergency services leaders meet

Enough talking, it’s time to listen.

After the 2003 Canberra fires, Mr Gary Nairn, MP stated that the House of Representatives, Select Committee heard a consistent message right around Australia:

1. There has been grossly inadequate hazard reduction burning on public lands for far too long.
2. Local knowledge and experience is being ignored by an increasingly top-heavy bureaucracy.
3. When accessing the source of fires, volunteers are fed up with having their lives put at risk by fire trails that are blocked and left without maintenance.
4. There is a reluctance by state agencies to aggressively attack bushfires when they first start, thus enabling the fires to build in intensity and making them harder to control, and
5. Better communications between and within relevant agencies is long overdue.

Very little has changed in the 13 years since the report by Mr Nairn with every increasing bureaucracy, disregard for volunteer firefighters, failures to engage local knowledge and a reluctance by state agencies to aggressively attack bushfires. In fact, the situation has become worse.

It goes without saying that a step in the right direction would be to re-engage with locals and move away from the city-centric management that will never be able to fully understand regional and rural issues.

The only people who can possibly understand regional and rural issues are regional and rural people. This is a no-brainer.

We need to decentralise all of the NSW Rural Fire Service so that regional and rural engagement begins to happen as it once did under local government support.

Troy Grant welcomes Sir Ivan bush fire inquiry

A coronial inquiry into the Sir Ivan bushfire would be a welcome opportunity to distinguish the facts from the opinions, State Member for Dubbo Troy Grant said.

The NSW Farmers Association passed a motion at their annual conference in Sydney this week to push for a Coronial Inquiry into the fire. The fire, which was caused by a lightning strike, destroyed 35 homes in Uarbry and the surrounding areas. It destroyed more than 55,000 hectares, according to NSW Rural Fire Service, as well as 5700 kilometres of fencing. The blaze burned for about a month. It killed 2000 sheep, 56 cattle, 90 goats and 36 poultry.

“We welcome any opportunity for any inquiry to examine any of these incidents which devastate communities so lessons can be learnt,” Mr Grant said.