Bushfire Hazard Assessment - 11 Senegal Rise

3.0      BUSHFIRE HAZARD ASSESSMENT
3.1      STATE ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY
3.1.1    General
         The Noosa Plan 2020 requires a site-specific bushfire hazard assessment to be undertaken when
         a development site is located within a mapped Bushfire Hazard Area. Chapter 2, Part 1, Section 8,
         Item 4(a) of the Planning Act 2016 states that where there is an inconsistency between a State
         Planning Policy and a local government planning instrument, a State Planning policy applies
         instead of a local planning instrument. While Council’s Bushfire hazard overlay mapping ascribes
         a high risk to the vegetation, the SPP nominates the area as a very high bushfire hazard. The SPP
         mapping is therefore used as the trigger for assessment under Council’s Bushfire hazard overlay
         code. Furthermore, the site-specific hazard mapping required by the Bushfire hazard overlay code
         is to be prepared consistent with the more recent methodology adopted to prepare the SPP
         mapping.

         The State government have described the methodology used to prepare the SPP mapping in the
         following publications:
         • Natural Hazards, Risk and Resilience –– Bushfire State Planning Policy – state interest guidance
             material (The Department of Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning, 2019)
         • Bushfire Resilient Communities. Technical Reference Guide for the State Planning Policy State
             Interest ‘Natural Hazards, Risk and Resilience - Bushfire’ (Queensland Fire and Emergency
             Services, 2019).

         The preparation of a Local Hazard Area Map has been undertaken for the site in accordance with
         the methodology described in the above referenced documents. The input parameters used to
         determine the bushfire hazard acting on the site are detailed in the sections below.

3.1.2    Vegetation Hazard Classes
         Fuel loads need to be determined when preparing a bushfire hazard assessment. The Queensland
         Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) refers to the process for identifying, classifying and mapping
         vegetation hazard classes as a Vegetation Hazard Class Assessment. In accordance with the
         methodology outlined in Section 6 of the Bushfire Resilient Communities (QFES (2019), the
         following vegetation hazard classes (VHC) were identified within the assessment area (which
         includes a 150m buffer surrounding the location of the subject site):
         • VHC 9.1 – Moist to dry eucalypt open forests on coastal lowlands and ranges; and
         • Vegetation Hazard Class 40.4 – Continuous low grass or tree cover.

3.1.3    Maximum Landscape Slope
         The slope of land underlying the surrounding vegetation is generally steep and falling to the south
         and south-west.


19 July 2021                                      Chris Bentley                                      Page: 5
Job No. 20-052                Bushfire Hazard Assessment – 11 Senegal Rise, Doonan