Preparing Your Own Property for Bushfire Season
While the management of fuel loads on public land is an important aspect of bushfire risk management, Blue Mountains City Council believes that the best defence against loss or damage as a result of bushfire is a well prepared home with an adequate and well maintained asset protection zone.
Results of scientific studies conducted by the CSIRO and Bushfire CRC have shown that ember attack (embers blown by the wind) was responsible for the majority of damaged or destruction of houses during bush fires. You can minimise the effect that ember attack will have on your home by undertaking a few simple tasks. These include:
- Regular cleaning of gutters to prevent a build up of leaves and sticks.
- Removal of flammable materials such as woodpiles, leaf litter, dead/dry plants and grass from around your home.
- Fitting wire mesh screens to windows, doors and any other gaps or vents.
- Enclosing spaces where embers could enter the structure of your home such as underfloor areas and under eaves.
Implementing these simple measures will reduce the probability that embers will settle on and ignite either your home or materials adjacent to it. A more comprehensive checklist of things to do can be downloaded, at right.
Creating an asset protection zone around your home will also reduce the chances of the fire front actually reaching your house (direct flame contact) and will reduce the effects of radiant heat. An asset protection zone is an area of ground that has been cleared and maintained to minimise the amount of fuel available to a fire. When a fire approaches a well-prepared asset protection zone, it runs out of fuel and the intensity of the fire diminishes. In some cases a fire may even self extinguish.
An asset protection zone needs to be suited to both the vegetation surrounding your property and the aspect and slope of the land. An asset protection zone does not need to be cleared to bare earth, but it should aim to reduce the amount of fuel available to a fire as the fire front approaches.
Residents wishing to remove native vegetation for bushfire hazard reduction purposes should obtain a Bushfire Hazard Reduction Certificate. Applying for a Bushfire Hazard Reduction Certificate is free and easy, and means that any clearing work approved is legal, has strategic benefits and is consistent with Council's broader land use policies. Click here for information about applying for a Bushfire Hazard Reduction Certificate.
It is recommended that all property owners throughout the Blue Mountains take appropriate action to prepare their own properties for the effects of bushfire. It is also recommended that further information regarding preparation of your property be obtained from the Blue Mountains District Office of the NSW Rural Fire Service or from Council's fire management staff.