Friends of the Box-Ironbark Forests

FOBIF has made submission to Forest Fire Management’s burning proposals for 2022-5. The submission is printed below.

Our approach over the years has been to insist that all ‘fuel reduction’ exercises be carefully monitored, and that the results be used to improve future practice. This is in fact DELWP policy, but we’re not convinced that the policy is properly followed.

We have been encouraged by the observation by local fire management last year that ‘ lower intensity burns seem to not generate as much fuel and accumulate fuels slower than burns that are generally burnt hotter. In addition, lower intensity burns generally maintain the Overall Fuel Hazard (OFH) levels under triggers for more years than higher intensity burns.’

Let’s see how that observation translates into practice.

Tarilta valley, south end: we believe that the dense regrowth was caused by DSE’s 2012 ‘reduction burn’. The department believes mild fire is better for fuel reduction. We believe it’s better ecologically…but, of course, only detailed monitoring could confirm these ideas.

The submission runs as follows:

Thank you for the opportunity to respond to this plan.

We are encouraged by the following observation made by Adrian Parker in correspondence with us last year: ‘[DELWP] have … observed that lower intensity burns seem to not generate as much fuel and accumulate fuels slower than burns that are generally burnt hotter. In addition, lower intensity burns generally maintain the Overall Fuel Hazard (OFH) levels under triggers for more years than higher intensity burns.’

Unfortunately we have observed over the years that many Department burns feature substantial areas of severe fire, including widespread canopy scorch and destruction of large habitat trees. We are hopeful that future exercises will avoid these excesses. We have a large photo file showing that in fact severe Department fire has generated massive fuel regrowth. The fuel reduction objective of the exercise is completely defeated in these cases. We are aware of the difficulties managers face in these exercises: in our opinion a major part of the problem lies in the size of the blocks to be burned. We have expressed our view on this in past letters to the Department.

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The Department of Environment has released its draft fuel management plan for 2022-4 for comment. The plan includes ‘DELWP led fuel reduction and ecological burns, and does not include Traditional Owner burns, CFA led burns and mechanical works.’

The plan can be seen at this link: https://delwp.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=23959d4ab7864cd98ffd6de81c81b4dd

The interactive map at the link is pretty mediocre, but it does give an idea of proposed management burns for the next couple of years.

A screenshot from this map shows some of the burns proposed for this region:

–Glenluce-Hunters track, centred at the junction of Irishtown and Hunters track, in the Diggings Park

–Irishtown track: a large area bounded by Irishtown tk, Vaughan-Chewton road, Drummond road, Smutta’s track and Hunters track

–Wewak Track: a very large area between Wewak and Sebastopol tracks

–Tarilta: an area west of Porcupine ridge road, at the north end of the valley.

–Taradale: an area on the Old Drummond road, along Humboldt track.

–Taradale: a substantial area along Salt Water track, adjacent to the recent Bones Gully burn.

— A substantial burn along the Maldon Railway line, one of the region’s prime wildflower areas.

–Two burns in the Walmer State forest.

FOBIF has the usual concerns about these exercises (see, for example, our posts here), here, and here )

And there’s an additional one: we’re curious about the fact that three of them seem to be double zone burns. That is, in one go, the Department is going to burn an area that is half zone two (‘Bushfire moderation’) and half zone three (‘Landscape management’). These zones are in theory supposed to be treated quite differently: Zone 2 is largely fuel reduction; Zone 3 is meant to have significant ecological outcomes.

That theory is going to be severely tested.

We’ll be repeating our concerns in a submission to the Department.  Submissions close on July 11. Address your input to Loddonmallee.plannedburning@delwp.vic.gov.au