The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) exceeded its planned 43 prescribed burns this autumn season protecting local towns, managing biodiversity and working with private landholders to manage their properties.
Director for NPWS Fire Management, Fiona Gill said the Fire Management team successfully completed 46 planned prescribed burns, a total of 5,454 hectares, during the unusually long autumn season.
“This includes 18 burns as part of the NPWS Burning on Private Land program, which targets properties identified in local Bushfire Management Area Plans as being in high bushfire risk locations,” Ms Gill said.
“The autumn result builds upon the 100 per cent achievement of the spring program, where 47 burns were completed, treating 1,816 hectares, bringing the total of the 2021/22 prescribed burning program to 93 burns across 7,270 hectares,” she said.
Ms Gill said cool autumn days, light winds and late summer rains meant NPWS had to be pragmatic when it came to scheduling prescribed burns.
The Director said every season had its nuances and NPWS always paid careful attention to weather trends which could impact the prescribed burn program.
“Each burn is meticulously planned in the lead up to the burn, and is timed to ensure enough moisture in the landscape, which makes burns easier to control, yet with weather conditions warm and dry enough for burns to ignite and spread, but not so hot or windy that they could get out of control,” she said.
“Prescribed burns won’t stop bushfires in heightened fire danger conditions, but the low fuel areas they create can reduce fire behaviour, provide a safer environment for firefighters to work from, increase defendable space around homes and other assets, and provide earlier containment options once conditions subside,” Ms Gill said.
