The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends Department of Environment and Science implement an awareness and engagement strategy aimed at deterring the lighting of campfires to encourage behavioural change amongst visitors.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends Queensland Fire and Emergency Services regularly review and evaluate the effectiveness of the Queensland Bushfire Plan with land managers and stakeholders, including disaster management groups. A review should occur in line with any material change to the Queensland State Disaster Management Plan, the Disaster Management Act 2003, the Prevention Preparedness Response and Recovery Guideline, or after major bushfire events, to ensure appropriate alignment and currency.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends the Bushfire Risk Mitigation Plan for Fraser Coast Area Fire Management Group include a schedule of planned engagement activities, or a community engagement sub-plan outlining these activities, and be publicly available.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends the Queensland State Disaster Management Plan and the Queensland Bushfire Plan be reviewed to enhance appropriate arrangements for the management of bushfire and disaster events where a threat is posed to significant environmental and cultural heritage sites.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends entities with responsibilities for land and fire management consider the establishment of roles for Traditional Owner and First Nations representatives in incident management structures for significant bushfire or disaster events including those that may impact on cultural heritage in Queensland’s World Heritage sites.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends this report be returned to the IGEM to monitor, evaluate and report on progress and implementation of the recommendations that are accepted in whole or in part by government.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends that the Queensland Government works with the Commonwealth Government to review the Project Agreement for World Heritage Management to ensure Queensland and Australia continue to meet their obligations under the World Heritage Convention to protect, conserve and present our World Heritage properties.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends the next review of the Queensland State Disaster Management Plan examines and provides guidance in respect to the application of Queensland’s disaster management arrangements to support hazard specific events such as bushfire.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends should a Queensland Government Action Plan be considered, clarity about the intent of the recommendations be sought from the Inspector-General Emergency Management to assist in informing this process.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends a set of guiding principles that reflect a unified response to World Heritage listed sites in Queensland be included in the Queensland State Disaster Management Plan and reflected in the Queensland Bushfire Plan.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends the Interagency Protocol for Fire Management be reviewed by all relevant entities, including representatives of the Butchulla people, and be updated as a matter of priority. Entities responsible for the protocol should implement a process for regular review and evaluation of its effectiveness. This review process should be conducted after a major bushfire event, or to reflect any material change to applicable legislation and policy. It should also consider pre-arranged approvals and a range of agreed fiscal protocols between the agencies.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends Queensland Fire and Emergency Services and the Department of Environment and Science monitor the progress of relevant improvement activities resulting from the K’gari (Fraser Island) Bushfire Review, through their respective lessons management programs.

The Inspector-General Emergency Management recommends all Area Fire Management Groups in Queensland make their Bushfire Risk Mitigation Plans, bushfire risk mapping and methodology easily understood and available to the community. All public plans should be dated to ensure currency and incorporate mechanisms for community feedback.

The Department of Housing and Public Works should be included within Local Disaster Management Group evacuation centre planning and plans and assist with decision making around the relocation of evacuees from evacuation centres.

Councils, with the support of stakeholders, continue to develop and promote local disaster dashboards as the ‘point of truth’ for community information and messaging during disaster events. Greater use during recovery should be considered. 

A single point of truth be established for accurately capturing and reporting on disaster management group activation levels for any given timeframe. 

Further work be undertaken to develop effective public flood risk messaging and community education materials that are easy to understand and tested with the community to ensure flood risk is understood. 

Councils should formalise arrangements with entities that have the skills, capability and capacity to effectively manage spontaneous volunteers. These should be documented and integrated into planning and exercising.

The progress of recovery for this event be reviewed incrementally over the next 2 to 3 years, with a formal, independent report provided on the effectiveness of the recovery after 3 years.

A Local Government Association of Queensland representative should be included on the Crisis Communications Network to enhance the delivery of consistent information across and between levels of government.

Planning and warnings for storm tide should be based on modelling that shows the chances of an event occurring (probabilistic).

Queensland should implement and maintain a system-wide lesson management program.

A strategy should be developed between the key tourism and transport operators, and local and state government. It should address the arrival of visitors and tourists after a disaster, and should ensure that their arrival matches communities’ needs for recovery and return to normal business. The Department of Tourism, Major Events, Small Business and the Commonwealth Games should monitor its implementation.

A strategy should be developed to improve the availability of information to decision-makers and other audiences. Information should be searchable, more specific, timely, and allow stake-holders to find what they want.

A good neighbour policy such as that of the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, setting out clear expectations, be developed to guide all landholders.

Education on bushfires should include information about: 
- the change in climate resulting in higher level of bushfire risk
- local bushfire risk, possible consequences, and preventative and preparedness actions for the community
- the purpose of bushfire mitigation activities (to reduce, not stop bushfire)
- the need, types and purposes for planned burning
- intersects between different legislation and their regulations and exemptions
 the importance of a shared approach to bushfire mitigation
All agencies with education material should share it freely. Material should be appropriately authorised for use in Queensland.

The future risk of bushfires to Queensland communities should be re-evaluated as part of the 2020 State Risk Assessment in light of recent and emerging science, events and lessons.

The outputs of these capabilities should be shared and actively inform the disaster management sector, including response operations and the creation of warnings and public messaging.

To make planned burning and land clearing easier to understand and implement for landholders, a single point of contact for all bushfire mitigation inquiries and permits should be established.

Area Fire Management Groups should share seasonal risk information with local groups and actively and appropriately contribute to disaster management planning.

Targeted education about the short- and long-term effects of chemical suppressants should reach those likely to be exposed to them before aerial chemical suppressants are used in Queensland again.

All Area Fire Management Groups should adopt and be guided by a good neighbour policy.

Clear public messaging regarding risks (if any) from the use of suppressants, including to 'organic' producers, should be developed and socialised before the next fire season and be readily available for dissemination when needed.

An audit of all local government areas vulnerable to storm tide events is completed and opportunities identified to resolve gaps in evacuation zone planning to ensure consistency with the Queensland Evacuation Guidelines for Disaster Management Groups and neighbouring local government areas.

The Department of Housing and Public Works should consider preparing an annual communique to asset owners of, and local governments with access to public cyclone shelters, outlining the maintenance and certification process and pre-season status.

Opportunities should be identified through the Local Government Association of Queensland council to council arrangement to share structural engineers to assess potential places of refuge against the Department of Housing and Public Works’ structure classification criteria.

A state-wide engagement strategy is coordinated to ensure community messaging is consistent across all levels of Queensland’s disaster management arrangements.

A state-wide strategy, including a common definition, is developed for identifying and engaging vulnerable people in emergencies.

improves engagement with communities to prepare for and respond to bushfires by:
- increasing focus on monitoring the effects of educational materials it develops
- reviewing and amending its bushfire warnings and alert protocols to provide clear and consistent messages to residents about the action to be taken before and during a bushfire.

That the Queensland Government liaise with the Federal Government with a view to securing incentives for employers that recognise loss of income and employee time for emergency operations.

That a Ministerial Advisory Council be established to inform the Minister of matters relating to Rural Fire Service and SES volunteers.

That Rural Fire Brigades only be required to conduct an audit of finances if the Brigades income exceeds $5,000 for a financial year. RFSQ District offices should investigate options for savings on the costs of auditing Brigades in their district through either an in-house or external provider. Legal Status of Brigades

That the extent of forest and plantation fuel load fire risk in South East Queensland requires a designated government resources fire team to manage this risk and proactively conduct fuel mitigation burning; and provide a wildfire response to government land.

That on all land where fuel load creates a fire risk, the owner shall be responsible for the construction and maintenance of effective firebreaks. Failure to provide effective and accessible firebreaks will result in the cost of firebreak construction to control a wildfire on this land being debited to the land owner

that the Deputy Premier, Attorney-General, Minister for Local Government and Special Minister of State establish with local government a communication strategy to inform all residents about their fire prevention responsibilities.

QFRS introduce a system to collate and analyse performance information for use in management reporting and to support effective decision making processes. 

In any future disaster of comparable proportions, consideration should be given to the co-location of the Building Coordination Centre and the principal One Stop Shop. 

This Report should be considered for publication so that the insights, data, conclusions and recommendations are available within Queensland and other jurisdictions to assist with disaster management issues in the future.

The Queensland Government should consider the endorsement of transitional arrangements proposed in this report, in order to ensure as far as possible the smooth completion of the recovery and the ultimate return to government operations as usual in the cyclone-affected area.