CAN WE BETTER FIRE-PROOF

OUR COUNTRY TOWNS?Using matches and machines to

reduce fuel load

Gavin Matthew

Senior Policy Manager, AFPA

Bushfires in Australia

• Hotter and drier weather, and more

frequent bushfires, are costing Australia.

• Rural communities devastated:

• Yarloop WA 2016

• Dunalley TAS 2013

• Victorian high country 2003 and 2007

• Canberra & NSW 2003

• Industries impacted:

• Plantations

• Water supply

• Productions forests

• Processing facilities

Traditional Fire Management

Bushfire Suppression

Costs of Bushfires

Bushfire Trends

A different approach• Governments

working with rural

communities and

land managers to

reduce bushfire

risk.

• Targeted fuel

reduction around

at-risk towns and

strategic assets

creating a ‘bushfire

buffer’.

Case StudyUS Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program

• $400m over 10 years

• 1.45 million acres treated

Photos: Mick Stephens

Existing Mechanical Bushfire Fuel Load

Reduction Programme

• Part of the National Bushfire

Mitigation Programme ($15m)

• $1.5m from the Federal

Government for mechanical fuel

load reduction trials over 2 years

• Gather scientific, cost-benefit and

social attitude evidence from

different forest types across

Australia.

Forest Industry Advisory Council Report –

May 2016

Recommends that the

Australian Government

commit to a $300m - 10

year program of

mechanical fuel

reduction

Bioenergy from Biomass

• Objective is to remove

biomass and reduce fuel

loads.

• If the economics add up

an outlet or market for

the woody biomass

could be bioenergy or

bioproducts.