For those who are not familiar with the Nature Conservation Council of NSW (NCC0, they are the peak environmental non-government organisation in NSW with 164 member groups. The NCC is strongly involved in community engagement and education and has a bushfire program. The NCC sits on the state level Bush Fire Coordinating Committee and local Bush Fire Management Committees that are both responsible for preparing bushfire management plans.
Bushfire risk management planning
It was drawn to the attention of participants that the 2018 Shoalhaven City Council’s Bushfire Management Plan is in the process of review. At present Kangaroo Valley Rural is rated as Very High risk and the Village is rated as High risk. The plan is designed to protect ‘assets’, which are traditionally understood to mean buildings and infrastructure. However, the belief that ‘assets’ should also include valued native vegetation and habitat, particularly for endangered species, as well as areas of cultural significance to First Nations Australians, is being increasingly acknowledged.
The plans currently identify areas of risk and set out land management zones for the purpose of excluding fire, such as, the Asset Protection Zones (APZ) around residential buildings and other major buildings, and Strategic Firefighting Advantage Zones (SFAZ), which are strategically located corridors of land, located and managed to break up major fire runs that could impact residential areas. Fuel management of the SFAZ is meant to be compatible with ecological requirements.
Whether or not the planning process will actually work in the event of a mega fire is uncertain. According to the RFS, it worked in North Nowra but did not work in areas further south such as Conjola and Manyana. The RFS acknowledged that a difficulty with this approach is that many of the fires that we have seen recently spread by ember attack, which limits the effectiveness of zoning to prevent a major fire run.
Time to do new mapping
The mapping process has now started and the community is invited to participate in communicating important assets to the planning committee, including environmental and cultural assets. However, some frustration was expressed by participants regarding difficulties in finding out about the planning process and the procedure for submitting suggestions.
Participants went to Jenanter Drive and were shown the difference between the APZ and SFAZ. There was some discussion about steps taken to ensure that fuel reduction burns in the SFAZ protect tree hollows and nesting birds. People were encouraged to communicate this information to the RFS to be included in their data base, which currently includes endangered ecological communities and habitat of threatened species. The RFS stressed that collaboration is important if we are to build resilience.
Cultural burning
Richard Geddes, ecologist with NCC, discussed cultural burning as a non-Indigenous man who has been to hundreds of such burns. He stressed that they need to be planned in detail and be very site specific using the right people, at the right time (soil moisture and wind), and at the right place.
There are some principles that are applied in all sites such as:
- Fire should not go into the canopy
- Trees are sacred
- A purpose is to create abundance
- Use one small ignition that spreads slowly so that people can walk with it
- Fire is part of connecting to Country.
According to Richard, some ecosystems such as grassier ecosystems may be more frequently burnt. In the past, grassy patches along the ridges of Kangaroo Valley were burnt, such as at the top of Brogers Creek, even by the older generation white farmers, who probably learnt from Indigenous people. Other areas can be burnt to create protective fire breaks such as a break around a rain forest.
Ecological burning
It was explained by NCC that ecological burning using ‘healthy fire’ is similar to cultural burning but without the spiritual value. It uses the same approach of burning in a mosaic of patches and, similarly to cultural burning, is designed to promote ecosystem health. Research into ecological burning is currently being funded by NPWS for the purpose of informing management and, eventually, being included in legislation.
Interestingly, the NPWS also use the same zoning system in their planning processes. Vast areas of land west of the current burnt areas in the Morton National Park are zoned as SFAZ. They will, therefore, need to be managed for the purpose of ecosystem protection and fire risk. One of the participants asked whether similar attention was being given to areas south of the Kangaroo Valley village which is also a potential route for the next fire.
Activities of Kangaroo Valley environmental groups post bushfire
The Friends of the Brush-tailed Rock-wallaby and the Kangaroo Valley Environment Group also talked about steps that each took after the Currowan bushfire. One of the Brush-tailed Rock wallaby colonies was seriously impacted and, for months, water and food needed to be carried over rough terrain to sustain the wallabies who survived. The other colony came perilously close to being burnt out but was saved by the change in wind direction. At the moment, there are no planning measures to protect these colonies.
Kangaroo Valley Wildlife Initiative teams of volunteers also put water and food out for wildlife for many months in burnt areas. The point was made that there is very little by way of reliable information regarding how to do this work, and this needs to be rectified. Ongoing monitoring of the long recovery of wildlife in the burnt areas is also required – not just of the more cute and cuddly of our native fauna but also insects, invertebrates, reptiles and all forms of wildlife.
What next?
The bush fire planning process in NSW needs improvement, and this was made plain in many submissions to the NSW Government’s inquiry into the bushfires. At the moment, it is woefully inadequate regarding planning to protect ecosystems and the natural world more broadly.
There need to be clear avenues for public participation in the planning process, so that communities can ensure that our wildlife is not devastated again in the next bushfire. The NCC also has an important role to play in line with their own values and their position on key planning bodies. These issues were identified during the workshop and in subsequent communications, but the discussion needs to continue.
Sarah Waddell
Secretary
Kangaroo Valley Environment Group
