Bushfire Report · MCU26/0104

Bushfire Report


clearance efforts is essential to ensure ongoing fire safety and resilience within the
environment.

Unmanaged invasive pest plants can swiftly amplify fuel loads, comprising fast-
growing introduced grasses, dense woody weeds, and invasive climbing vines.
These factors collectively escalate fuel loads, fostering a "laddering" effect,
intensifying fire spread and allowing it to transition from ground to canopy. Effective
weed management markedly diminishes bushfire risk to the site and surrounding
properties.

      5.3.7 Importance of Ongoing Vegetation Management
Ongoing vegetation management is essential to maintain the effectiveness of
bushfire protection measures and ensure the site continues to meet relevant
performance requirements. Without regular maintenance, vegetation can quickly
regenerate, resulting in increased fuel loads, higher flame heights, and elevated
radiant heat exposure to buildings and access routes.
Routine activities such as mowing, slashing, mulching, weed control, and the
removal of fallen branches or debris should be undertaken on a regular basis. The
maintenance program should be implemented on an ongoing and scheduled cycle,
taking into account seasonal growth patterns, rainfall, and local climatic conditions.
Regular monitoring and prompt intervention are critical to ensure that vegetation
conditions remain consistent with the prescribed bushfire protection objectives.

5.4     Biodiversity Overlay
Bushfire risk is defined in the Natural Hazards, Risk and Resilience - Bushfire State
Planning Policy – State Interest Guidance Material (December 2019) and is
categorized as Acceptable or Tolerable risk. It is noted that exemptions under
Schedule 6, Part 3, Section 20A(a)(i) of the Planning Regulation 2017 allow for the
clearing of vegetation for essential management, specifically for “establishing or
maintaining a necessary firebreak to protect infrastructure, if the maximum width of
the firebreak is equal to 1.5 times the height of the tallest vegetation next to the
infrastructure or 20 m, whichever is wider.”

The Bushfire Management Plan has been designed to have minimal impact on the
Biodiversity Overlay Area. This includes the implementation of asset protection
zones and measures aimed at reducing vegetation clearing. The majority of the
proposed Asset Protection Zone utilizes existing cleared and landscaped areas,
thereby minimising further disturbance. In the Outer Protection Area of the designed
Asset Protection Zone, a small portion may intersect with an area mapped under the
Biodiversity MSES Overlay. Within this zone, fuel load reduction activities will be
carefully targeted, focusing exclusively on the management of invasive weeds,
overgrown ground cover, and understorey vegetation. Importantly, these measures
will not require the removal of mature native trees, ensuring the preservation of
significant ecological values.


Max Bushfire Protection Consulting                                                41