By Shane Desiatnik 18/03/2009 10:28:00 AM
Blue Mountains firefighters are privately fuming at being powerless to implement a long-identified strategic hazard reduction burn in Linden on land covered with accumulated fuel.
An application for a burn covering an area from the unpaved section of Weemala Avenue towards Bellevue Road (to a point roughly in line with the fruit barn on the highway) has been sitting on Blue Mountains City Council's desk. As council is the local authority in terms of hazard reduction approvals, local fire brigades claim they can only wait while the fire risk north and east of Linden escalates.
The official word from the Blue Mountains District Rural Fire Service (BMDRFS) is "steps are being taken" to progress the situation. This is believed to be in the form of a written request to the RFS head office in Homebush for pressure to be exerted on council to enforce a Section 66 order applicable to a large private property in the centre of the planned burn zone.
The letter will ask council why the order hasn't yet been invoked.
"It's part of that process (Section 66) and we're waiting on that (to be implemented)," said BMDRFS fire mitigation officer John Norris.
For it's part, council said it was contacted by the Blue Mountains Bushfire Risk Management Committee in August 2008 regarding the need for bushfire mitigation measures on the property.
"Council is currently working with the RFS to resolve the matter in order for hazard reduction work to be undertaken," a council spokesperson said.
Faulconbridge RFS Brigade captain Stuart Fuller was willing to talk to the Gazette in more depth about the issue.
He said while council approved the overall application, a property owner whose land "goes halfway through the (proposed) burn area" hasn't agreed to the burn so it is council's role as the authority to issue a Section 66 order to say "you must do something or we will".
"The RFS sought that a Section 66 be served - we asked council three years ago and slowly it's happening, but this (type of case) should happen (be approved) overnight," said Mr Fuller.
He described the area as having a heavy fuel loading and set in a gully that is a natural fire path.
"The evidence is in the 1968 bushfire when the fire jumped the highway at Linden and destroyed homes, and in 1977 when homes were also destroyed.
"Hazard reduction reduces fuel depth and allows us to prepare defence lines to help stop, or at least control, the fire.
"Generally speaking, council is pretty good and has learnt a lot of lessons, but they could do things better.
"I see the issue as a process problem and this is probably an extreme and isolated case of it. (But) as a (brigade) captain, I'm pretty pissed off."
Faulconbridge resident Judith Tabrett said council has a duty of care to ratepayers and residents.
"It is simply negligent and incompetent to have had this on the books for years as it could impact on so many people," she said.
A spokesperson for Member for Blue Mountains Phil Koperberg said "we've been made aware of it".
"It's not something the BMDRFS can move on unless it is approved by council. The BMDRFS is waiting on council and we've been told that it's in hand."