On the 24 Jun 2016, ABC Rural published an article titled “WA volunteer bush firefighters will only support rural fire service independent of Department of Fire and Emergency Services”.
The article by Belinda Varischetti and Joanna Pendergast included two recorded interviews that are well worth a listen.
Never before in Australian history has bushfire fuel management fallen to such a low level that the majority of the countryside is classified as having “dangerous” fuel levels.
Never have our bushfire authorities placed such heavy reliance on firefighting as the answer to the bushfire threat, eschewing the “preventative medicine” approach of fuel management that was successful in the past. They ignore the fact that the suppression approach almost always fails when most needed.
We live in a country that needs fire and what happens is that we’ve stopped evolving with fire.
Our fire culture in Australia is totally flawed to nothing.
As before, even if you go back 100 years, pastoralists and people who were historically a part of land can tell you themselves there used to be fires all the time and even indigenous people would work in with them and burn country regularly, but we’ve backed up to a point of regulations, land tenures.
I sit at home and I watch the news and I see masses of country just going and it brings a tear to my eyes to see that country just being annihilated.
The Wambelong fire of January 2013, burnt out the Warrumbungle National Park, destroyed scores of surrounding properties and shattered the lives of many people in the Coonabarabran community.
The subsequent Coronial Inquest and Parliamentary Inquiry made 52 recommendations.
It has taken well over three years for the government to respond to the recommendations, this article looks at some of the local responses from the Coonabarabran community.
Feel free to add your comments.
High intensity fires can cause enormous damage to water catchments by destroying ground-cover and changing hydrology, as well as altering the structure, behaviour and erosion of soil. Furthermore, the chemical reactions triggered by fire can release nutrients, metals and other toxicants stored in vegetation and soil. Post-fire rainfall has significant impacts on water quality as it often washes these contaminants into waterways and reservoirs. When this occurs, water may be unsafe for agriculture or human consumption without additional treatment or alternative sources of water. Poor water quality and loss of amenity can therefore have substantial financial implications.
Spend money on mitigation, not mayhem.
ABC Landline produces some excellent programs and these archived episodes on the Pinery and Esperance Fires are no exception.
Feel free to makes comments on issues that you wish to bring to the table.
This video (link) was sent to us with the question – sound familiar?
It would seem that they have similar issues in the United States. The video suggests that the U.S. Congress spends too much money on suppression and not enough on mitigation.
Again we say “Spend more money on mitigation and less on mayhem…”
Aboriginal custodians say a massive 2,000 square kilometres of eucalyptus viminalis, known as Manna Gum or Ribbon Gum, that has died on the Monaro Plains in New South Wales is the result of a lack of traditional burning practices.
Most firefighters will recognise the image (above), it is used in text books and in classrooms to teach the very basics of firefighting, you need all three sides of there fire triangle for fire to occur. We cannot control the heat of any given day, we cannot control how much oxygen is in the air but we can control many types of fuel loads.
Given that the fire triangle is such a simple and basic concept then why is the “F” word (Fuel) omitted from many news articles, papers and other references to the worsening bushfire threats to our communities. See the news examples in this post…
This newspaper article raises a number of complex issues including:
1. Do we have sufficient number of rangers for day to day operations and proper land management of our national parks?
2. If park rangers deserve an increased rate of pay, should it be built into their base pay rate? They should not have to rely on firefighting operations to supplement their income.
3. Is it appropriate to pay firefighters an excessive rate of pay over and above their normal rate during firefighting operations?
4. Remembering that volunteer firefighters (particularly those who are self employed) can often find themselves fighting fires at personal cost. Is it appropriate to pay other firefighters who are working alongside them an excessive rate of pay?
These issues could be mitigated if proper land management practices and increased burning regimes were adopted.
Spend more money on mitigation and less on mayhem…