I attended this meeting on the 27 September as the FOGGs representative.
The round table is a very diverse group of people all interested in the Grampians and the impacts of natural (and not so natural) events which happen to it. The roundtable is intended to try to get a better understanding of how activities, effect the various users of the Grampians. I think it will only work if the representatives take back to their groups what they have learned from these meetings. So far we seem to have dealt mainly with fire but flood and other issues will be on future agendas.
We identified that there were still some gaps in the membership of stakeholders represented at the roundtable and that 5 additional members could be sought without the group becoming too unwieldy. Expressions of interest will be sought from other relevant groups . We also set out some rules for eligibility and membership for the group.
Graham Parkes also talked to us about the Fire Mangemnet Plan (FMP), Fire Ecology Strategy (FES) and Fire Operations Plan(FOP) and how these fit together and guide fire management decisions. He also explained the four new fire zones, which are Asset protection, Strategic Wildfire Moderation Zone, Ecological Management Zone and Fire Exclusion Zones and how these new zones effect the planning for controlled burns.
We then looked at a fire scenario similar to the Mt Lubra fire and discussed what lessons were learned and how these lessons will influence the future plan burn strategies to try to protect the Grampians from future wildfires.
Code of Practice for Fire Management on Public Land draft consultaion.
I was invited and represented FOGG’s at this meeting in Ballarat. The new ‘code’ addresses many of the concerns handed down in the Royal commission on the 2007 Bushfire. The ‘Code’ will be passed by parliament and last 3-5 years, and as such any minor changes (even a comma) have to go back to parliament. The document has therefore been made strategic and is designed to be an overarching guide to operational documents yet to be drafted. The operational documents will be more easily changed as need arises and also have input from the public.
22nd Annual Grampians Fire Conference
A large crowd gathered at the Mooralla Golf club for morning tea and an overview of the day. We then proceeded along the Goat Track to view areas which are on the planned burn list for this season. We heard about the burn history of the area, the cultural heritage considerations and the reasons behind the proposed burns and the role they play in hopefully abating any future wild fires in the area. One area we stopped at was ready to be burnt last year but when crews went in to check the area, an empty bus was found so, with hikers out and about the burn had to be cancelled. This illustrated the complexities for staff when carrying out some of these fire management operations.
We ended up at the Victoria Valley air base where lunch was served. New equipment was on display. We were also addressed by a researcher from Mildura DPI who told us about a collaborative research program between Curtin University, the WA department of Agriculture, Adelaide University and Victorian Department of Primary Industries which is looking at smoke taint in the Wine industry. The research hopes to find out at what growth stages grapes are the most sensitive to smoke. Another guest speaker was a weather forecaster from the Bureau of Meteorology, she specializes in weather forecasting and implications for fire. Various DSE and CFA staff can contact her directly to gain forecasts for their specific small areas, as forecasts broadcast on radio or put up on the web tend to cover larger areas and have to be general in wording. The day was informative and well worth attending.
After attending these events and being involved in other workshops where fire management has been discussed, it is apparent that fire management is very complex and not an easy subject to get your head around.
Ben also attended the day and added a comment on the Weather talk; “Fascinating that the water level in Lkae Eyre has an impact on Victoria’s summer weather”.