As we head into the summer months, I thought it might be worth looking at some of the specific conditions associated with development in areas prone to bush fire.
Bush fire prone land (BFPL) is land that has been identified by a local council as that which can support a bush fire or is subject to bush fire attack. Bush fire prone land maps are prepared by council and certified by the Commissioner of the NSW RFS.
In a recent post I referred to the NSW Planning & Environment planning portal. Amongst other things, this on-line tool provides access to current BFPL maps and the associated status of any given parcel of land. If you want to know the BFPL status of your property, this is a good place to start. This information will also appear on a Section 149 certificate, but virtually all of the rural residential areas of the Queanbeyan-Palerang LGA are identified as bush fire prone.
A property does not need to be heavily treed to be considered bush fire prone. As many residents of the Currandooley and Carwoola areas will attest, a grass fire alone can present a serious risk to both property and life.
General information relating to building in a bush fire prone area is available from the NSW RFS website.
More specifically, planning law in NSW requires all new development on bush fire prone land to comply with the provisions of Planning for Bush Fire Protection (PBP) 2006. This and other related publications designed to assist [prospective] home owners at the various stages of building in bush fire prone areas are also available through the publications section of the NSW RFS website.
Typically, dwellings constructed before 2002 will not have been built to these standards and while there is no requirement to retrofit existing buildings, any alterations or additions will need to comply with current provisions regardless. These provisions are not intended to prevent the development of land in bush fire prone areas, only to provide adequate protection from bush fire. As a result, due consideration will need to be given to the style, construction material and sighting of buildings in these areas.
One final note on bush fire preparedness, in addition to the above-mentioned documentation, the NSW RFS has an on-line Bush Fire Household Assessment Tool that residents can use to provide an assessment of both their property’s and the their own ability to deal with a bush fire situation—it’s worth a look. As the summer approaches, it’s a good plan to have a plan.
Pete Harrison ~ The QPR Blog cross-reference
24 February 2019 @ 14:59
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