PLACING ELECTRICITY UNDERGROUND IN HEAVILY-POPULATED BUSHFIRE PRONE AREAS LOWERS RISK TO COMMUNITY AND EMERGENCY ESCAPE ARTERIALS

Community safety will be improved and emergency escape arterials made less susceptible to bushfire by undergrounding electricity distribution wires in Park Orchards and surrounding areas.

Park Orchards exhibits a number of significant bushfire risk factors, including steep hills with deep valleys (and resulting microclimates), urban population density amongst heavily-treed blocks and few viable emergency exits from the suburb. Electricity distribution infrastructure within the suburb is overwhelmingly located above ground, demanding maintenance and delivering an imperfect safety record.

Park Orchards also sits immediately to the south and west of emergency escape arterials used by residents of Warrandyte and surrounding communities. Any fire in Park Orchards presents a serious risk to communities attempting to flee other bushfires approaching from the northwest quarter, and draws on emergency services resources that could (or may already) be focussed elsewhere.

Bushfire mitigation is the combined responsibility of the community, of emergency services and of utility infrastructure providers. Whereas the community and emergency service providers are actively engaged in bushfire mitigation, only utility infrastructure providers have the capability to remove the risk of bushfire ignition caused by faults in electricity distribution infrastructure.

Park Orchards Ratepayers Association Inc. (PORA) therefore calls for the undergrounding of electricity distribution wires in Park Orchards and surrounding areas to mitigate the potentially catastrophic consequences of bushfires in these areas.

Park Orchards – a profile

Park Orchards is a designated Bushfire Prone Area. Significant risks and potential consequences of bushfires in Park Orchards are created by a highly-treed undulating topography, with parts of the area classified Extreme Risk for bushfire. The suburb features very steep hills overlooking deep valleys, with microclimate conditions varying from one location to the next and wind deviated along valleys in contradiction to prevailing conditions in the area.

Park Orchards houses approximately 1,200 homes, many located on these heavily treed, steep blocks and accessed in places by narrow, winding and dead-end roads. Whereas the majority of roads in the suburb are sealed, many are overhung by trees and have tree trunks within centimetres of the edge of the road surface.

Electricity distribution infrastructure in Park Orchards is primarily above ground, with many conductors woven across the suburb adjacent to tall and overhanging trees. Falling trees and limbs have proven to be a source of power interruptions and fire ignition in the suburb despite efforts to maintain appropriate clearances.

A heavily-treed paradise: This photo, taken in Park Orchards, highlights the potential consequences of a bushfire in the area. There are approximately 20 homes and an arterial escape route in the field of view of this image, almost entirely obscured by dense bush and overhanging trees.

Arterial Escape Routes

Access into and out of Park Orchards is difficult with few realistic emergency routes. The only emergency escape arterials are:

Long-term engagement with the local South Warrandyte CFA in community events, notably attendance at the monthly Park Orchards Farmer’s Market (with a free stall provided by PORA)

Land management practices including fuel clearing and disposal through approved burn-offs, Manningham City Council green waste services and Council-provided vouchers for the free disposal of bulk green waste in the early part of the fire season

Substantial attendance at the Fire Ready Park Orchards fire season planning event hosted by PORA in October 2015

Few Escape Options: This aerial image of Park Orchard and bordering suburbs shows the density of homes, the intensity of tree and bush cover and the few escape arterials available to residents. The major arterial on the right running north south (Ringwood Warrandyte Road) comes to a standstill under the weight of Warrandyte residents fleeing fire emergencies from the north.

Image: https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/Park+Orchards+VIC+3114/@-37.77918,145.2008803,4660m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!3m1!1s0x6ad639ed868676bd:0x5045675218cd620

In the event of a bushfire ignited by an electrical fault, the co-location of electricity infrastructure adjacent to roadways creates the unfortunate consequence of compromising the escape routes of nearby residents. In the case of such a bushfire compromising an emergency escape arterial, this creates additional difficulty for the wider population where there are so few alternative arterials.

The north and east of Park Orchards host two emergency escape arterials for residents residing to the west, north and east, including parts of Donvale, Doncaster East, Warranwood and Ringwood North. For residents of the wider Warrandyte area, the arterial to the east (Ringwood Warrandyte Road) is the more critical of the two possible escape arterials from Warrandyte in the event of fire approaching from the north western quarter (the other being Heidelberg Warrandyte Road).

The sheer volume of traffic being channelled along this single-lane arterial is the cause of gridlock in emergency evacuation conditions. In conjunction with an evacuation imperative from the north, a bushfire in Park Orchards fanned by a south-westerly wind (commonly associated with a cool change in this part of the state) could have disastrous consequences for those trapped on the Ringwood Warrandyte Road, and for those behind them seeking to escape via this route.

Bushfire Awareness and Preparation

To minimise the consequences of a bushfire in the area, the Park Orchards community has, like many other localities, demonstrated a responsible approach to bushfire awareness and preparation. This is evidenced by a range of actions and initiatives including:

Long-term engagement with the local South Warrandyte CFA in community events, notably attendance at the monthly Park Orchards Farmer’s Market (with a free stall provided by PORA)

Land management practices including fuel clearing and disposal through approved burn-offs, Manningham City Council green waste services and Council-provided vouchers for the free disposal of bulk green waste in the early part of the fire season

Substantial attendance at the Fire Ready Park Orchards fire season planning event hosted by PORA in October 2015

In response to the highly-treed characteristics of the area, the electricity infrastructure provider in the area continues to be involved in tree clearing and maintenance, but is restricted in the degree to which vegetation is permitted to be cleared and by demand on limited resources for this same activity in other localities. As a result, falling trees and their limbs continue to create the potential for electric faults resulting in fire ignition, such as that which occurred recently in Frogmore Crescent (and thankfully extinguished at great risk by a vigilant resident). Power outages due to infrastructure faults are common in the area, and where combined with hot, dry and windy conditions, are capable of igniting fires in surrounding vegetation.

Consequences of Bushfire in Park Orchards

In comparison with other recognised fire-prone areas like Strathewen, Park Orchards is a far more densely populated area. All other things being equal, a bushfire in Park Orchards will have far more significant consequences in terms of loss of life and property.

In addition to the consequences for Park Orchards residents, a bushfire in Park Orchards has the potential to close the most important of only two significant emergency escape arterials for residents of Warrandyte and surrounding areas (Ringwood Warrandyte Road), not to mention the consequences for those motorists trapped on this road when a fire front passes.

Electricity distribution lines should be undergrounded in Park Orchards and surrounding areas

To reduce the risk of bushfire in Park Orchards and therefore avoid potentially catastrophic consequences, PORA calls for the undergrounding of electricity distribution wires in Park Orchards and surrounding areas.

Park Orchards exhibits a number of significant bushfire risk factors, including:

Steep hills with deep valleys (and resulting microclimates) Urban population density amongst heavily-treed blocks, and Few viable emergency exits from the suburb

Electricity distribution infrastructure within the suburb is overwhelmingly located above ground, demanding maintenance and delivering an imperfect safety record. The high density of homes in Park Orchards creates the potential for the cost of undergrounding (measured on a per-supplied-property basis) to be at the lower end.

Park Orchards sits immediately to the south and west of emergency escape arterials used by residents of Warrandyte and surrounding communities. Any fire in Park Orchards presents a risk to communities attempting to flee other bushfires approaching from the northwest quarter, and draws on emergency services resources that could (or may already) be focussed elsewhere.

These factors combine to deliver significant consequences of a bushfire in Park Orchards and surrounding areas. Whereas the community and emergency services have demonstrated a responsible approach to bushfire awareness and preparation, the responsibility for removing the risk of bushfire created by an electrical fault lies directly with the electricity distributor. As regulation is seen to be the necessary path to create this outcome in other high-risk areas, PORA calls for electricity distribution infrastructure to be replaced with underground cabling throughout Park Orchards and surrounding areas.

WHO IS PORA

Park Orchards Ratepayers Association Inc. (PORA) was formed in 1968 by residents seeking to protect, maintain and improve the unique and picturesque character of the suburb. PORA seeks to establish open and credible communication channels between the Association and the various council, governmental and general authorities to influence thinking and decision-making on the issues that affect our community.

Examples of PORA’s achievements include:

The establishment of The 100 Acres Reserve and protection against future subdivision The establishment of a further 4 nature reserves in the suburb Support for the early introduction of a new secondary school to the area (Parkwood

Secondary College) The creation of the Park Orchards Community Centre The extension of existing and creation of new bus services in the suburb Assisted in the creation of the Park Orchards Lions Club The establishment of the Park Orchards Farmers Market