Requirements of a Bushfire Management Plan
Requirements of a Bushfire Management Plan
This fact sheet is provided to support the preparation of Bushfire Management Plans to address the requirements of the Bushfire Overlay Code under the Gladstone Regional Council Planning Scheme. Bushfire Management Plans aim to identify strategies for mitigating the impacts of bushfire on life, property and the environment. They should include:
Assessment of bushfire hazard:
(a) Regard to the Planning Scheme’s Bushfire Hazard Overlay Map including the 100m buffer extent;
(b) Conducted in accordance with Section 5 of the Queensland Fire Department’s ‘Bushfire Resilient Communities: Technical Reference Guide for the State Planning Policy State Interest ‘Natural Hazards, Risk and Resilience – Bushfire’;
(c) A 1:20year Annual Return Interval (ARI) fire weather severity for the subject site as identified by the Queensland Fire Departments’ (QFD) Bushfire Resilient Communities MapViewer
(d) An approach that considers the mature ‘remnant’ vegetation classification, and accounts for revegetation proposed that may ultimately constitute bushfire hazard. Fuel hazard assessments are to have regard to 80th percentile potential fuel loads for expected mature ‘remnant’ Regional Ecosystems, rather than provide a snapshot in time and must consider vegetation within an assessment area extending 150m from the site;
(e) Photographic evidence in addition to aerial imagery and/or vegetation mapping data to verify bushfire hazard areas and any vegetation identified as low hazard, or for which ‘patch and corridor’ filtering per Section 4.2.6 of the Bushfire Resilient Communities: Technical Reference Guide for the State Planning Policy State Interest ‘Natural Hazards, Risk and Resilience – Bushfire.
Note: The New South Wales (NSW) Rural Fire Service short fire run methodology is a performance-based solution in NSW and is not fit-for-purpose for use within the Queensland planning context;
(f) All slopes (including effective slope and site slope) within a 150m assessment area with land contour information;
(g) Details or any other features of the subject site and assessment area relevant to bushfire considerations relating to proposed development;
(h) The nature and severity of the bushfire hazard affecting the site and the assessment area within 150m, including matters such as likely direction of bushfire attack, environmental values and any circumstances that may limit mitigation options. This is to include radiant heat flux calculations (showing inputs and outputs);
(i) An assessment of the specific risk factors associated with the development proposal, including matters such as the nature of land uses, activities conducted and materials to be stored on the site, numbers and types of persons likely to be present, occupant vulnerabilities, traffic generation, etc.; and
(j) An assessment against the Bushfire Overlay Code.
Bushfire management plans:
(a) Identify all relevant mitigation measures for the proposed development that address radiant heat flux, ember attack and avoidance of direct flame contact potential;
a. Asset Protection Zones (APZs) are calculated in accordance with Section 7 of the Bushfire Resilient Communities: Technical Reference Guide for the State Planning Policy State Interest ‘Natural Hazards, Risk and Resilience – Bushfire; and
b. APZs achieve a maximum radiant heat flux exposure of 29 kW/m2 for proposed development, unless the use is a Vulnerable use, Essential community infrastructure or where the use involves storage, handling or manufacturing of Hazardous materials and chemicals in which case the APZ must achieve a maximum radiant heat flux of 10 kW/m2, as per the Bushfire Resilient Communities technical reference guide;
(b) Outline the details for and spatial location and extent of mitigations identified to address the potential impact of bushfire, recommending specific mitigation actions for the proposed development which may include (but are not limited to):
(i) How separation from the hazard will be achieved, including the extent and location of any APZ that is required;
a. The landscaping specifications required to achieve a low-fuel APZ, having regard to Section 8 of the Bushfire Resilient Communities: Technical Reference Guide for the State Planning Policy State Interest ‘Natural Hazards, Risk and Resilience – Bushfire.
(ii) Siting and layout of development to minimise exposure of development to potential bushfire hazard to;
a. avoid siting development on ridgelines or on slopes where the up-hill run of fire toward development could occur, on ridgelines, hillsides or in locations of complex topography including crests and saddles;
b. maximise separation of proposed development from potential bushfire hazard; and
c. locate development in proximity to access points and the public road network, enabling vehicle access from multiple points and directions away from bushfire hazard. Driveway length should avoid exceeding 70m to support firefighter safety. Where this cannot be achieved, and it is acknowledged that fire services may elect not to access the property:
i. passing bays every 200m are provided;
ii. a turn-around for fire appliances is provided that avoids the use of reverse gear;
iii. signage for water tank locations is provided at the frontage;
iv. gradient of driveway does not exceed 12.5 degrees, is constructed to a width of 4m and with overhead clearance of 4.5m;
(iii) Access, including perimeter roads and road layout, access to and egress from the site, evacuation opportunities and design for fire-fighting appliances;
a. multiple egress opportunities are provided or identified to avoid one-way-in and one-way-out situations;
(iv) The provision of fire trails, which are not provided in lieu of perimeter roads for new subdivisions, to access hazardous vegetation to support land management are designed in accordance with the QFDs fire trail design specifications;
(v) Details of, including location and extent of any rehabilitation or revegetation proposed or previously approved within the assessment area, including regard to the required buffers for turtle nesting beaches
(vi) Details of any clearing proposed; having regard the overlay and / zone requirements to minimise clearing where possible;
(vii) Identification of risk from surrounding lands;
(viii) Fire-fighting requirements including infrastructure and the requirement for dedicated water storage exclusively for fire-fighting purpose per specifications at Section 9 of the Bushfire Resilient Communities technical reference guide. Water supply is required for emergency services;
(ix) Ongoing maintenance and identification of specific responsibility for actions to be taken under the bushfire management plan, including a summary of the responsibilities of:
a. owners/occupiers and Council, including estimated costs of Council’s responsibilities;
b. a general statement of the implications of non-compliance with the recommendations of the bushfire management plan; and
c. any other relevant matters which may become apparent during preparation of the plan
Construction of buildings in bushfire prone areas:
(c) Building design can have a significant impact on the likelihood of damage occurring due to bushfire.
(d) Construction standards dependent on the Bushfire Attack Level are contained in the National Construction Code, with the Deemed-to-Satisfy provisions contained in Australian Standard AS 3959:2018 — Construction of Buildings in Bushfire Prone Areas, NASH Standard – Steel framed construction in bushfire areas and Specification 43 Bushfire protection for certain Class 9 buildings. Development for Class 1, 2, 3 and certain Class 9 buildings and associated Class 10 buildings in bushfire hazard overlay areas must be constructed in accordance with the National Construction Code requirements.
(e) The Bushfire Resilient Building Guidance for Queensland Homes, prepared by the Queensland Government, provides detailed dwelling design principles for Queensland homes, which include guidance on retrofitting, designing for bushfire resilience, landscaping for bushfire prone areas and ongoing property maintenance. Applicants are strongly encouraged to consult this material at development design phase.
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