A first ever statewide program of works to manage fuel on public and private land has been approved by CFA and Forest Fire Management Victoria chiefs.
Parks Victoria Director Fire and Emergency David Nugent, FFMVic Deputy Chief Fire Officer Statewide Integration Darrin McKenzie and CFA Deputy Chief Officer Bushfire Alen Slijepcevic.
The Joint Fuel Management Program is a significant step forward in the Safer Together program, working towards an integrated and risk focused bushfire management approach.
It demonstrates CFA and Forest Fire Management Victoria’s (FFMVic) commitment to working as one sector, planning and delivering fuel management activities across public and private land.
The three-year program includes 1,202 burns across public land, 327 priority burns on private land and 42 cross-tenure burns. This planning approach will improve the ability to estimate risk-reduction benefits of all our actions.
FFMVic Chief Fire Officer Chris Hardman noted that while this is not the first time agencies have come together, the joint program presented a clearer picture to communities on the work being undertaken to prevent bushfires.
“The concept of working together is not a new one,” Chris said.
“This program is building on the collaborative work that CFA and FFMVic have been doing in regions for a long time.
“This is an important step in formalising the great work undertaken by our organisations and presents a consistent picture to our communities”.
CFA Chief Officer Steve Warrington also lauded the partnership, noting that it would be result in a more efficient approach to fuel management.
“Bushfires burn across public and private land,” Steve said.
“This integration means we can more effectively manage risk across the whole landscape”.
The new program includes 39 cultural burns, demonstrating commitment to cultural burning and further improving CFA and FFMVic’s connection to traditional landowners.
This program across both public and private land will give community and industry stakeholders a much clearer picture of the work undertaken by staff and volunteers. Regional plans and maps will be available on www.ffm.vic.gov.au/fop by the end of October.