The term ‘prescribed burning’ is used to describe the deliberate use of Þ re under speciÞ c fuel and

weather conditions to achieve deÞ ned management objectives.

In parks and forests, the application of prescribed burning is usually done for three primary purposes,
which are not is usually done for three primary purpos always mutually exclusive: es, which are not

To manage the build-up of flammable fuel (live and dead vegetation) thus reducing the impact, and
difficulty of suppression of wildÞ res. This is commonly referred to as hazard reduction or, more
accurately, as fuel reduction burning.

For the protection and conservation of biodiversity and other environmental values. Many Australian
ecosystems have evolved in the presence of Þ re over thousands of years. They require Þ re at certain
intervals, seasons and scales for their maintenance. In conjunction with the re-establishment of forests
following commercial timber harvesting.

A Þ re regime describes the season, intensity and frequency of Þ re in a given area over a period of time.

Primary Objectives in Natural Area Management (in terms of fire management)

There are two prime objectives in natural area management:

1. Conservation of biodiversity and ecological values More specifically,

these would include aspects such as:
– the conservation of existing biodiversity,
 – the conservation of rare or threatened species,
– the conservation of threatened ecosystems,
– providing suitable habitats (hollows etc.) for native fauna,
– to limit weed invasions / feral animal introduction,
– (fire-related) to maintain an ecologically appropriate fire-frequency
depending on the vegetation type,
– (fire-related) to provide a mosaic of vegetated areas with varying time-
since-fires to provide the maximum number of habitats to support plant and animal
species, and
– (fire-related) to ensure variability in fire regimes, in terms of fire season, extent and
intensity.

2. Management for the protection of life and property

More specifically, these would include aspects such as:
– to protect life and property from fire,
– to ensure culturally significant values are protected

, – to limit the fire risk for adjoining land/property,

– to minimise traffic disturbance or adverse impacts on air quality,

– to ensure suitable design/construction of buildings in designated medium-high potential bushfire

hazard areas,

What are the Steps in Preparing a Fire Management Plan? We have already covered some aspects of
managing fire on council-administered land. A
number of steps are required. These are:
1. Designation of council-administered land into low, medium and high potential
bushfire hazard areas,
2. Identification of assets on land (including ecologically and culturally significant; native title
etc.),
3. Identification of the location of fire-fighting infrastructure and identification of
gaps in infrastructure
, 4. Coordination with agencies responsible for managing adjoining lands to
determine fire-management needs. Involve community representatives on development of fire
management plan,
5. Development of a suitable fire-management plan to suit the objectives for that land and
adjoining land (if appropriate),
6. Development of burn plans (if needed) with adjoining agencies (coordination) and
design/implementation of appropriate monitoring programs, and
7. Review and adaptation of fire management plans (if required) following monitoring program

An adaptive management approach to fire management is crucial. Fire is an inherently

‘chaotic’ force and management plans will need to be flexible to incorporate events such as wildfires,
droughts, land-use changes etc. The Fire and Biodiversity Consortium has encouraged the landscape
perspective in relation to fire management. Fire management plans for individual land parcels and indeed
local council’s development of a Strategic Manual, should encompass this broader principle.
 What is Needed in a Fire-Management Plan? According to Marlow (2000) an integrated fire
management plan should contain the
following elements:
Identification of aims, objectives and responsibilities 1. The participants in the fire management plan,
their responsibilities and capabilities.
This should include all agencies and individuals: a responsible for large tracts
of land in the area; b with fire fighting responsibility and capability in the area
2. The aims (goals) of the fire management plan
3. The short-term objectives of the fire management plan (the planned implementation
of these objectives is described in the fire management plan)
4. The long-term objectives of the fire management plan (objectives that have been
identified, but no planning done on their implementation)

A description of the area and its fire management needs

1. A textural description of the area covered by the plan
2. A cadastral map, showing major built-up areas and roads and tracks significant in fire
management 3. A land tenure/land use map
4. A map indicating the native title status.
5. A contour and drainage map (including surface water storage, such as dams and
weirs)
6. A vegetation map
7. The current species composition of flora and fauna, their distribution and fire
tolerance. (Nature Search 2000, local government atlases and other agencies may provide data. If
necessary, conduct a low-cost biological survey using local conservationists or University volunteers
trained in a particular survey method to supplement this information).
8. A map indicating the management zones – plantations, state forests, national parks, pastures/crops, built-
up areas, urban/rural interface areas, etc.
9. The fire management objectives for each zone

A description of the behaviour of fire in the area

1. The effect of prevailing weather conditions in the different seasons (temperature, rainfall, humidity,
wind speed and wind direction)
2. The effect of contours and drainage
3. A map indicating the fire history of the area
4. The effect of vegetation (including ground litter and flammable material on the trees),
considering both the amount of fuel and its flammability
5. Estimation of the fire hazard 6. A fire hazard/risk/danger map, indicating
fire-prone areas

Clarification of the problems to be addressed

1. The vulnerability of life and property, particularly on the urban-rural interface
2. The environmental impacts of the fire management regimes considered
3. A map showing the areas where special requirements need to be observed. The
special requirements may be protection from fire, multi-stage burning, etc. The reasons may be:
a. environmental (the conservation of endangered species); b. native title; c.
cultural (such as the conservation of aboriginal scar trees).
4. The intended future use of land (if applicable) 5. The fire management regime adopted for an area of
Unallocated State Land (USL) to
be developed as an industrial estate may well differ from the regime adopted for an area of USL to be
transferred to National Park
6. Legal responsibilities (minimise risks to life and property on neighbouring land and the subsequent risk of
legal liability, by minimising the potential of a fire escaping USL)
A prescribed burning plan 1. The strategies adopted (such as segregate all residences, commercial property,
crops
 and pastures from wildfires in bordering bushland) 2. The rationale for the regimes adopted (the reasons
for the locations of fire-breaks the
reasons for the values given to the fire break parameters) 3. The agency responsible for the creation
and/or maintenance of each fire break 4. The physical parameters (width and appearance) of each fire
break 5. Maps of the locations of fire breaks 6. Procedures for the creation and maintenance of fire
breaks
A plan for slashing of allotments 1. Identify each allotment concerned, the agency responsible for its maintenance
and the
maintenance schedule 2. Maps showing the location of the
allotments
An overview of governmental regulation and control 1. The applicability of relevant legislation and by-
laws/local laws to fire management 2. Present and requested requirements of local government planning 3.
Present and requested requirements of developers in fire-prone areas 4. Present and requested requirements of
residents in fire-prone areas
A programme for community education, consultation and liaison 1. Engage the cooperation of the
local media to educate and involved the local
community in the aims and effects of the prescribed burning regime 2. Invite public comment of the
released draft and incorporate valid suggestions in the
final version of the plan
The history and development of ecologically-based fire management policies in savanna
protected areas during the 20th century are reviewed. Research on fire in savannas began in
the 1950s, and from the 1980s onwards, managers of savanna protected areas experimented
on large scales with different management approaches. New ecological paradigms that
embraced variability in space and time, and management goals that broadened from single-
species to biodiversity conservation, precipitated significant changes to management
approaches in the 1990s. Many lessons have been learnt in the process, allowing for the
derivation of general principles regarding both the effects of fire and managerial ability to
influence fire regimes on a large scale. Significant challenges remain; these include dealing
with increasing CO2concentrations in the atmosphere, and with interactions between fire
and increasing elephant numbers in protected areas. The ability of savanna managers to deal
with these challenges in the context of an imperfect understanding will be determined by how
well, and how fast, they can learn from experience.

Savannas constitute one of the largest biomes of the world,

1covering about 20% of the land surface. Most of the world’s savannas occur in Africa, with
smaller areas in South America, India and Australia.2In South Africa, savannas make up 35% of
the land area, and are the basis of two major industries: cattle ranching and wildlife-related
tourism. Savannas have existed in Africa for at least 30 million years, and their distribution and
structure is determined largely by water availability, nutrient availability, herbivory and fire.
2,3Dry and warm winters, experienced over most of South Africa, combined with abundant grass
fuels and ready sources of ignition (both lightning and humans) ensure that fires are a regular
feature of savanna landscapes. Approaches to the management of protected areas evolved as
ecological understanding grew in the 20th century. Management was initially influenced by
research carried out for agricultural purposes, but in the second half of the 20th century, research
carried out in protected areas became more important. Changes in ecological thinking also had a
significant influence. These included a move from management promoting a desired stable state
to one that embraced flux over time and heterogeneity in space, and an expansion of the goals of
conservation to include all elements of biodiversity.

The evolution of fire management in southern Africa over the past century has reflected increasing
levels of ecological understanding. Attitudes towards fire and its management have
changeddramaticallyfromtheviewsofthe1920s, when fire was regarded, in an ecological sense, as a
detrimental force that needed to be controlled. These views were slow to change, but over the next
few decades fire came to be viewed by many as something that was not always bad, and had to be
tolerated and understood. As a result, many critically important long-term burning experiments
were initiated in the 1950s and 1960s. As ecological understanding advanced further, fire was
finally recognised as a key ecosystem process that was both inevitable and necessary.
The evolution of fire management approaches and philosophies reflected this advance in
understanding. During the early 20th century, fire prevention and suppression was the order of
the day. With the later acceptance of prescribed burning as a management practice, policies were
developed with a view to imposing a desired fire regime onto the landscape.

Mosaic Burns
This term refers to a pattern of burning that creates a gradual series of patches rather than one
large destructive event. Small mosaic burns have the advantage of reducing fuel loads while also
leaving areas of unburnt vegetation as a refuge area for animals and seed stock for burnt areas.
While these types of ‘cool’ burns will help reduce fuel loads, total fire exclusion can lead to a
large build up of litter on the forest floor. This means that, when a fire does start, (through
lightning strike or other means), the resultant blaze is more likely to be intense and extensive.
Mosaic burning creates a patchwork of different fire ages and accommodates the needs of fire
dependant species, or species that depend on fire dependant species, without the total destruction
that accompanies hot, intense broadscale burns. Fire related biodiversity loss is the result of
either high fire frequency and intense broadscale fire, or complete fire exclusion - all of which
alter vegetation structure and animal habitat. Used well, fire can be an effective and economical
land management tool that can be employed to protect human life and property as well as
conserving biodiversity
The Fire Crew Boss is responsible for the management, administration and delivery of all forest
fire programs and services.

Fire Crew Boss will oversee all forest fire operations. The Fire Crew Boss will ensure that all
operations are conducted in a respectful and responsible way, ensuring that all decisions and
actions comply with the relevant legislation, policies and procedures.

Responsibilities

1. Organize and supervise the fire crew

2. Maintain firefighting equipment

3. Train fire crews

4. Participate in the forest fire detection program

5. Participate in the initial attack program

6. Perform administrative duties

7. Perform other related duties as required