Support for the Royal Commission's final report into Black Saturday

The Wilderness Society welcomes the final report of the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission and understands why the Commission has recommended a statewide target of 5% for fuel reduction burning in order to achieve the number one goal - protecting lives.

Wilderness Society Victorian Campaigners inspect bushfire damage, 2009

The Wilderness Society has always supported fuel reduction burning, as long as it is scientifically based.

Around towns and the urban fringe, this means that fuel reduction should prioritise the protection of life and property, while in wilderness and remote natural areas the priority of fuel reduction should be the protection of nature and biodiversity.

The over-riding number one goal of the Royal Commission must be to make recommendations which protect human lives. Hence we understand why the Royal Commission has recommended a state-wide fuel reduction target of 5%.

That said, if achieved the 5% target represents almost a three fold increase in planned burning. This will have significant implications on flora and fauna. The scientific evidence to the Royal Commission only really related to a burn target of 5% for foothill forests. The Royal Commission has recognised we have an enormous amount of work to do to understand the behaviour and impact of fire on the other 300 vegetation types in Victoria.

This work is essential if we are to get the fuel reduction program right for the protection of people, property and the environment.

In implementing this target, we welcome the considerable emphasis the Royal Commission has placed on the need to gather further data, undertake further research and monitoring and establish a Commonwealth Centre for Bushfire Research so that future fuel reduction is scientifically based, and so the state government, its agencies and the community are well informed about its impacts.

Amongst other matters, The Royal Commission recommended that the Centre should investigate:

• The effects of prescribed burning and bushfire on biodiversity and on reducing bushfire risk;
• The establishment of databases to map Victoria’s flora and fauna, to register Victoria’s fire risk and to identify its bushfire prone areas

In the coming days we will publish a briefing paper about those Royal Commission's recommendations which concern public land management listed below, our area of expertise.

Royal Commission Recommendations which concern public land management

56           The state fund and commit to implementing a long term program of prescribed burning based on an annual rolling target of 5% minimum of public land.

57           DSE report annually on prescribed burning outcomes in a manner that meets public accountability objectives, including publishing details of targets, area burnt, funds expended on the program, and impacts on biodiversity.

58           DSE significantly upgrade its program of long-term data collection to monitor and model the effects of its prescribed burning programs and of bushfires on biodiversity in Victoria.

59           DSE amend the Code of Practice for Fire Management on Public Land in order to achieve the following:

• Provide a clear statement of objectives, expressed as measurable outcomes.
• Include an explicit risk analysis model for more objective and transparent resolution of competing objectives where human life is the highest priority.
• Specify the characteristics of fire management zones including burn size, percentage of area burnt within the prescribed burn, and residual fuel loading.
• Adopt the use of the term bushfire rather than wildfire.
  

61           The state and Commonwealth provide for municipal councils adequate guidance on resolving the competing tensions arising from the legislation effecting roadside clearing and, where necessary, amend environmental protection legislation to facilitate annual bushfire prevention activities by the appropriate agencies.

65           The Commonwealth establish a national centre for bushfire research in collaboration with other Australian jurisdictions to support pure, applied and long term research in the physical, biological and social sciences relevant to bushfires and to promote continuing research and scholarship in related disciplines.

Background

The Royal Commission released its final report 31 July, 2010. You can order the final report from the 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission directly.

Read our media release: Environment groups supportive of final bushfire report

The Wilderness Society would like to once again convey our deepest sympathies to the communities and families affected by the Black Saturday fires, which were the greatest peacetime disaster on Australian soil.

Many Wilderness Society members and supporters are amongst the people still in the rebuilding phase, and we reiterate our offer of help if you still need assistance on your properties. Please get in touch with Victorian Campaigns Manager Gavan McFadzean p: 03 9038 0888.