Boorowa
Indicator: Fire
Results for this indicator are also available for [an error occurred while processing this directive]
What the results tell us for Boorowa
Available data indicate that at no land was burnt in Boorowa Council area during the current reporting period from prescribed burns. Programs to reduce the level of fuel available to burn in a bush fire were undertaken in the Council area during the current reporting period. Examples of hazard reduction strategies undertook include hazard reduction slashing/trittering. No information was available on the effects of fire on fire sensitive vegetation communities that occur in the Council area.
High fire frequency is considered a threat to the Spotted-tailed Quoll (Dasyurus maculates), and a threatened population of the Squirrel Glider, and may put more threatened plant and animal species at risk (NSW Scientific Committee 2008). Inappropriate fire frequencies are considered a threat to at least one threatened species within the Council area (DECC, 2008c).
Boorowa Council area has occurrences of four threatened ecological communities listed nationally or in New South Wales (NSW) (DECC, 2008a; DECC, 2008b; DEWHA, 2008a). (Note: threatened ecological community lists are generated based on Bioregions). All of these communities are at risk from inappropriate fire regimes (DECC, 2008b, DEWHA, 2008b). No information was available to assess the impact of fire on these communities during the current reporting period.
A bushfire risk management plan was prepared for the Council area during the previous reporting period to guide fire management strategies and measures there.
Occurrence of fires
One wildfire occurred during the current reporting period, however no information is available on areas burnt by this wildfire. It was a designated Class 1 fire, a fire under control of the responsible fire authority whether or not incidental or low level assistance is provided by other agencies.
No Section 44 wildfires (fires which cross more than one land tenure and are usually major wildfires) were recorded within the Council area during the current reporting period. No information is available on possible fuel management burns that may have occurred on private lands.
No information was available on the area of fires occurring within Boorowa Council area and number of vegetation communities affected during the current reporting period.
Impacts of fires on native species and communities
Native animals and plants respond differently to fire. Some can persist under a range of fire regimes. However, in many cases, too frequent fire may harm species by killing them, preventing them from spreading, depleting the soil seed bank, or modifying their habitat. Planning for threatened species recovery in relation to fire may mean implementing variable fire regimes and excluding those that are detrimental. Fire management may involve managing hazard reduction activities such as slashing and mowing, to prevent these activities from impacting on species and their habitats.
The impact of fires on native plant and animal species and ecological communities varies with factors such as fire type, intensity and frequency, season of occurrence, and scale and patchiness of the burn. The effects and rate of recovery of plant communities exposed to the impacts of fire may also be affected by broader ecological pressures such as infestation by weeds, grazing pressure, drought, changed hydrology and invasive species.
No information is available on the effects of wildfires and hazard reduction burns on vegetation communities within the Boorowa Council area over the reporting period. The South West District Bush Fire Risk Management Plan (SWDBFMC 2002), which encompasses Boorowa Council area, outlines fire regime thresholds for vegetation complexes within the Council area. These thresholds indicate where declines in biodiversity are predicted under certain fire conditions.
Impacts on fire sensitive species and communities
No information is available on whether fire sensitive species or communities that occur in Boorowa Council area were impacted by control or wildfires during the current reporting period.
Potential impacts on threatened species and communities
High frequency fire resulting in the disruption of life cycle processes in plants and animals and loss of vegetation structure and composition is listed as a key threatening process on Schedule 3 of the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995.
Inappropriate fire frequency is considered a threat to at least one threatened species and one threatened fauna population within the Council area (DECC, 2008c; NSW Scientific Committee 2008), and may put other species, including threatened plant and animal species, at risk. When it occurs, high frequency fire is resulting in the disruption of life cycle processes in plants and animals and loss of vegetation structure and composition. High fire frequency is considered a threat to the Spotted-tailed Quoll (Dasyurus maculates), and a threatened population of the Squirrel Glider, and may put more threatened plant and animal species at risk (NSW Scientific Committee 2008).
There is one priority actions under the "habitat management: fire" recovery strategy in the Boorowa Council. These actions apply to one threatened species, the Superb Parrot (Polytelis swainsonii ) (DECC, 2008c). A priority action is to insure that planned burns do not have the potential to destroy nest trees. Inappropriate fire regimes are a key threatening process for an endangered population of the Squirrel Glider (Petaurus norfolcensis) (NSW Scientific Committee 2008). Other threatened plant and animal species present there may also be at risk if subject to fires at an inappropriate frequency.
Boorowa Council area contains four ecological communities listed as endangered or critically endangered within NSW or nationally, or both (see Ecological communities) (DECC, 2008a; DECC, 2008b; DEWHA, 2008a). (Note: threatened ecological community lists are generated based on Bioregions). Two are listed under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995, two are listed under the Commonwealth's Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.
Significant ecological damage may result from fire in Montane peatlands and swamps of the New England Tableland, NSW North Coast, Sydney Basin, South East Corner, South Eastern Highlands and Australian Alps bioregions (DECC, 2008b; DEWHA, 2008b). The extent to which these communities have been affected by fire during the reporting period is not known.
Inappropriate fire regimes are considered a threat to White Box Yellow Box Blakely's Red Gum Woodlands, White Box Yellow Box Blakely's Red Gum Grassy Woodlands and Derived Native Grasslands and Natural Temperate Grasslands of the Southern Tablelands of NSW and the ACT communities (DECC 2008b; DEWHA, 2008b). No information was available to assess the impact of inappropriate fire regimes on these communities during the current reporting period.
Potential impacts on other species and communities
Remnant vegetation plays an important role in safeguarding biodiversity in terms of providing habitat requirements for a diverse range of fauna and flora once widespread in Australia. Many of the species they support have become increasingly rare across broad areas of their former distribution due to extensive habitat destruction and modification for agriculture and pastoralism. Remnant vegetation, including roadside remnants, is an important refuge for fauna and flora, some of which may be affected by inappropriate fire regimes and/or high frequency fire. The resilience of remnant vegetation and their associated fauna to the effects of fire may also be undermined by cumulative effects of other ecological factors including grazing pressure, invasive species, drought and changed hydrology (salinity and/or drainage).
Fire management
Laws and policies
The Rural Fires Act 1997 is the main state government law relating to fire management in NSW, although the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 also contain clauses relating to fire and fire management. For more information on these laws, see government laws and policies.
The NSW Rural Fire Service has developed several policy documents and guidelines relating to fire management, including the Bush Fire Environmental Assessment Code (RFS 2003) and Planning for Bushfire Protection (RFS and Planning NSW 2001). The former lists threatened species, threatened populations and endangered ecological communities to be addressed when undertaking hazard reduction burns, and specifies conditions relating to the use of fire and mechanical forms of hazard reduction for each species, population or community. The planning document outlines planning considerations to be taken into account for developments in bushfire prone areas.
South West District Bushfire Management Committee
The South West District Bushfire Management Committee developed a Bushfire Risk Management Plan during the previous reporting period (SWDBFMC 2002). This document maps bushfire risk across the Council area and outlines strategies which land managers will undertake to manage identified bushfire risks. The plan addresses protection of natural and cultural values and protection of life and property.
Council and other land management agencies are required to develop their own programs for implementing the strategies outlined in the bushfire risk management plan. Under this plan, Boorowa Council has sole responsibility to communicate the plan's objectives and strategies to private land managers and to ensure these strategies are implemented in the Council area.
Boorowa Council
Council advises all applicants of development applications to liaise with the local Rural Fire Service for advice regarding their applications.
Other agencies
Young Rural Lands Protection Board, whose administrative area includes Boorowa Council area, has a Travelling Stock Reserve management plan which incorporates fire management and details all works for fire management to be undertaken on the reserves (SWDBFMC 2002). Actions within the Young Travelling Stock Reserve Management Plan relating to fire include (Young RLPB 2003):
- strategic burning for weed management on reserves
- routine grazing to minimise bushfire hazard
- reducing threat of fire to adjoining lands.
References
DECC – see Department of Environment and Climate Change
Department of Environment and Climate Change (2008a) list of Endangered Populations, Endangered Ecological Communities, Critical Habitat and Key Threatening Processes that may potentially occur within the BOOROWA Lga. shp, provided by ACT Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment from Threatened Species Data Officer, Spatial Data Programs, Department of Environment and Climate Change.
Department of Environment and Climate Change (2008b), Threatened Species – species, populations and ecological communities in NSW, viewed 13 October 2008, http://www.threatenedspecies.environment.nsw.gov.au/tsprofile/home_species.aspx
Department of Environment and Climate Change (2008c) Threatened Species – species, populations and ecological communities in NSW; Recovery and threat abatement, Boorowa Shire Council, viewed 13 October 2008, http://www.threatenedspecies.environment.nsw.gov.au/tsprofile/pas_lga_recovery_
details.aspx?lga=Boorowa%20Council&type=habitat+management:+fire
Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (Commonwealth) (2008a) Environmental Reporting Tool, Database Report, viewed October 2008, http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/erin/ert/ert_dispatch.pl?loc_type=lga&search=Search&report=ert
Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (Commonwealth) (2008b), Biodiversity, viewed October 2008, http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/index.html
NSW Scientific Committee (2008) Ecological consequences of high frequency fires - key threatening process declaration, final determination, accessed 9 October 2008, http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/threatenedspecies/EcologicalConsequencesFiresKTPListing.htm
NSW Rural Fire Service (2003) Bush Fire Environmental Assessment Code for Asset Protection and Strategic Fire Advantage Zones, NSW Rural Fire Service.
NSW Rural Fire Service and Planning NSW (2001) Planning for Bushfire Protection: a guide for Councils, planners, fire authorities, developers and home owners, Planning NSW, viewed 26 August 2005,
RFS—see NSW Rural Fire Service
SWDBFMC—see South West District Bush Fire Management Committee
South West District Bush Fire Management Committee (2002) South West District Bush Fire Management Committee – Bush Fire Risk Management Plan, NSW Rural Fire Service.
Young RLPB—see Young Rural Lands Protection Board
Young Rural Lands Protection Board (2003) Young RLPB TSR Management Plan 2003–2008, Young Rural Lands Protection Board, Young, viewed 29 May 2006, http://www.rlpb.org.au/southern_tablelands/young/local/management_plans/man_plan.htm.
