Inquiry Search
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC327-4348 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | By December 2023, the Rural Fire Service should: report annually on fleet allocations to RFS Districts, and identify the ways in which fleet resources align with district-level fire risks |
REC327-4349 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | By December 2023, the Rural Fire Service should: develop performance measures to assess the performance and capabilities of the fleet in each RFS District by recording and publicly reporting on: fire response times and fire response outcomes; and, completions of fire hazard reduction works. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC326-4343 | 24 - Govt responsibility | To promote integrity and transparency, the Department of Regional NSW should ensure that for all future grant programs it: ensures a communications plan is in place, including the communication of guidelines to potential applicants. |
REC326-4344 | 24 - Govt responsibility | To promote integrity and transparency, the Department of Regional NSW should ensure that for all future grant programs it: establishes and follows guidelines that align with relevant good practice guidance including accountabilities, key assessment steps and clear assessment criteria. |
REC326-4340 | 24 - Govt responsibility | To promote integrity and transparency, the Department of Regional NSW should ensure that for all future grant programs it: documents all key decisions and approvals in line with record keeping obligations. |
REC326-4341 | 24 - Govt responsibility | To promote integrity and transparency, the Department of Regional NSW should ensure that for all future grant programs it: ensures regular monitoring is in place as part of funding deeds. |
REC326-4342 | 24 - Govt responsibility | To promote integrity and transparency, the Department of Regional NSW should ensure that for all future grant programs it: ensures staff declare conflicts of interest prior to the commencement of a grants stream, and that these conflicts of interest are recorded and managed. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC315-3828 | 9 - Community education | That, in order to improve bush fire planning and protection of road infrastructure and to ensure communities, freight movers and fire fighting agencies have appropriate access and egress in a bush fire event, Government, working with local government as needed: |
REC315-3802 | 26 - Research | That Government establish NSW as a major world centre of bush fire research, and technology development and commercialisation. This should include: |
REC315-3845 | 26 - Research | That Government commission further research on the potential risks and benefits of backburning during severe, extreme and catastrophic conditions and/or in particular terrain, and that the NSW RFS use this research to inform future backburning protocols and training. |
REC315-3813 | 35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry | That, in order to ensure tourism businesses are prepared for natural disasters including bush fires, Resilience NSW work with NSW RFS and Destination NSW to develop bush fire preparedness support for tourism businesses, based on research into existing models. Over time, this support could be expanded to include other natural hazards. |
REC315-3862 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That, in order to improve information flows and increase public awareness of ABC emergency broadcasts, Government: |
REC315-3824 | 1 - Land-use and building regs | That Government commit to shifting to a strategic approach to planning for bush fire, and develop a new NSW Bush Fire Policy similar to the NSW Flood Prone Land Policy in order to accommodate changing climate conditions and the increasing likelihood of catastrophic bush fire conditions; to build greater resilience into both existing and future communities; and to decrease costs associated with recovery and rebuilding. |
REC315-3873 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That Resilience NSW review existing functional area arrangements to ensure they are closely aligned to agencies responsible for direct service delivery. |
REC315-3801 | 13 - Mapping and data quality | That, in order to improve capability to detect ignitions and monitor accurately all fire edge intensity and progression automatically across the State in near real time, Government establish a spatial technology acceleration program to maximise the information available from the various remote sensing technologies currently in use and to plan for inclusion of new remote sensing systems that can sense precisely and rapidly through heavy smoke, cloud, fog and dust. This will require work within the State and with partners nationally and internationally. |
REC315-3842 | 24 - Govt responsibility | That, in order to prioritise early suppression and keep fires small: |
REC315-3812 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That Government commit to: |
REC315-3860 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That, in order to ensure the guiding principles and approval processes are contemporary, streamlined and more flexible, the NSW and Commonwealth Governments review the Defence Assistance to the Civil Community (DACC) arrangements. This review should include the circumstances in which the State can request Commonwealth assistance, and the level of information provided by the ADF to the State on available resources and capabilities. |
REC315-3823 | 42 - Culture and Heritage | That, in order to increase the respectful, collaborative and effective use of Aboriginal land management practices in planning and preparing for bush fire, Government commit to pursuing greater application of Aboriginal land management, including cultural burning, through a program to be coordinated by Aboriginal Affairs and Department of Planning, Industry and Environment working in partnership with Aboriginal communities. This should be accompanied by a program of evaluation alongside the scaled-up application of these techniques. |
REC315-3869 | 42 - Culture and Heritage | That, in order to ensure Aboriginal people can access appropriate support during evacuation, Resilience NSW work with Local Emergency Management Committees and Aboriginal Affairs to ensure: |
REC315-3800 | 13 - Mapping and data quality | That the NSW Government, along with other Australian governments, ask AFAC to establish a national bush fire database. This database would enable: |
REC315-3833 | 3 - Biodiversity | That Government invest in long-term ecosystem and land management monitoring, modelling, forecasting, research and evaluation, and harness citizen science in this effort. This will include, among other things: |
REC315-3811 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That in order to provide greater consistency in public information and warnings, especially in border areas: |
REC315-3859 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That, in order to ensure State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) interoperability during all natural disasters, Resilience NSW review the current SEOC arrangements and location including responsibilities for ongoing resourcing and maintenance. |
REC315-3822 | 42 - Culture and Heritage | That Government adopt the principle that cultural burning is one component of a broader practice of traditional Aboriginal land management and is an important cultural practice, not simply another technique of hazard reduction burning. |
REC315-3868 | 33 - Relief and recovery | That, in order to ensure people only need to tell their story once to access government agency support following an emergency, Resilience NSW and Service NSW jointly design an inclusive, person-centred approach to information collection at evacuation centres. This should be supported by an opt-in scheme enabling personal information to be shared between NSW government agencies, local councils and non-governmental organisations administering support services for disaster-affected people. |
REC315-3799 | 9 - Community education | That at the start of each fire season, based on advice from the Bush Fire Coordinating Committee, Government provide a public statement with an evaluation of the likely fire season risk and the effectiveness of the planning and preparation for the upcoming season. This should be based on sophisticated monitoring of the key risk factors and signals for an extreme fire season. It should form the basis for clear public communication about these risks on a regional basis and the actions that Government proposes in preparation. |
REC315-3832 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That, in order to improve the provision of evidence-based public health messaging about air quality during bush fire events, Government develop a public education campaign and supporting systems before the next bush fire season. This should include: |
REC315-3810 | 24 - Govt responsibility | That, to ensure updated resource-sharing arrangements are in place, the NSW and Victorian Governments progress and finalise a multi-agency Memorandum of Understanding before the 2020-21 fire season commences. |
REC315-3858 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That, in order to improve cross-agency communication and coordination during bush fires, the NSW RFS review Fire Control Centres (FCCs) in areas that were heavily affected by fire. The results should be combined with the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) Facilities Review to identify areas that would benefit from a purpose-built FCC, enabling co-location with the EOC. |
REC315-3819 | 13 - Mapping and data quality | That, as part of the spatial technology acceleration program, Government support deployment of remote sensing and picture processing technologies to monitor and audit how well Asset Protection Zones and defendable space are being maintained, especially around towns. |
REC315-3865 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That the NSW RFS include the following priorities in the Fires Near Me improvements roadmap: |
REC315-3798 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That, in order to ensure recommendations accepted by the Government are implemented in a timely and transparent manner, Government establish a central accountability mechanism to track implementation of recommendations from bush fire-related reviews and inquiries and consider expanding this to other policy areas. |
REC315-3831 | 26 - Research | That, in order to capture and understand the impacts of bush fire smoke better, Government invest in operational air quality forecasting and alert systems, and public health research and policy development. This would involve investment to: |
REC315-3808 | 22 - Role of local Gvt | That, in order to strengthen the capability of local councils in future emergency events: |
REC315-3850 | 3 - Biodiversity | That Government develop and implement a policy on injured wildlife response, rescue and rehabilitation including: |
REC315-3818 | 26 - Research | That, in order to improve understanding of optimal hazard reduction techniques and their application in the landscape: |
REC315-3864 | 9 - Community education | That, in order to ensure people can access clear information on cross-border fires, the NSW RFS: |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC314-3273 | 26 - Research | Collate data and research the impact of bushfires upon communities, firefighters and animals (both native and domestic) to identify appropriate medium and long-term welfare and support requirements. |
REC314-3271 | 8 - Communications and warnings | Better coordinate public information and warnings including evacuation plans and provide a single source of information about, the location and direction of fires, how and when to use Safer Places, Places of Last Resort, relief and recovery centres and directed evacuations. |
REC314-3261 | 24 - Govt responsibility | Consider amending the Fire and Emergency Services Act 2005 to align SAFECOM Board operations with accepted governance standards with the Minister appointing an Independent Chair of the SAFECOM Board. The SAFECOM Chief Executive (CE) should report to the Board and maintain SAFECOM’s role at the direction of the Board. Alternatively, SAFECOM could be abolished, moving to a model of a Department of Fire and Emergency Services where the departmental head reports to the Minister but the value proposition of any such machinery of government change would need to be thoroughly examined. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC302-2404 | 8 - Communications and warnings | Review the effectiveness of emergency public information arrangements, and give consideration to embedding an ABC Manager (not a journalist) into the RFS headquarters during emergencies to broadcast warnings to the community that can be pooled to commercial media outlets |
REC302-2399 | 24 - Govt responsibility | Implement a fully integrated civilianised single call and dispatch centre, that includes a redundancy option outside the Sydney CBD, which will adopt an agnostic approach to deploy the quickest most suitable resource to an emergency. Such a centre should be managed by either a non uniformed public servant staffed organisation like the Office for Emergency Management, or the NSW Police Force |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC002-4004 | 35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry | Where safety-lamps are used, and the obligation is laid upon the men to cleanse the same, all examinations, tests, and repairs to these should be done by the owners. |
REC002-4003 | 35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry | Where gas exists, and no provisions are made for its constant removal, no shots should be fired, and, where permitted in a gassy mine, shots should be fired only by a man specially appointed, and at such hours when the miners are not within the mine. All shots should be tamped by stone well damped, and only copper or wooden tools should be employed. As far as possible the use of explosives should be discouraged, and skilful mining encouraged. Danger-boards should be placed further from the faces whence gas issues (say), where practicable, 50 yards. |
REC002-4013 | 19 - Offences | Infringement of the regulations by either party should be followed by a summary form of justice, instituted before two Magistrates. |
REC002-4002 | 19 - Offences | Where safety-lamps are necessary - gas being present for (say) one month after being found in dangerous quantity - they should be securely locked by a man duly appointed, and tampering with them must be punishable by a simple and inexpensive process of law. |
REC002-4012 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | Complete sets of daily-report books should be provided, and kept in the mine or office, to be overlooked by the Inspector during his periodical visits. |
REC002-4001 | 35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry | The Commission consider that in all mines where gas exists the course of the air should be directed to sweep along the working-faces; in mines worked by Pillar and Stall, bratticing must be resorted to to carry the gas from the face as it issues, and so prevent any accumulation of explosive gases or of gases inimical to life. In cases where gas exists it would be better that no bords should be broken off the back or return heading or supplied with air fouled by dangerous gases. The panel system of working by confining and localising districts, or some modification thereof, might be pursued with advantage. |
REC002-4010 | 35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry | The Commission do not approve of removing any responsibility from the management by increasing the power or number of the Inspectors. The visits of these officials should, so far as possible, be visits of surprise. |
REC002-4008 | 35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry | Where dust exists in quantity, and under conditions favourable for ignition, it should be periodically and sufficiently dampened by water |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC280-1399 | 1 - Land-use and building regs | That the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service remove from its boundary fencing policy and standard contract the condition that requires adjoining land owners to maintain a fence that has been damaged by trees falling from national park land. |
REC280-1380 | 13 - Mapping and data quality | That the NSW Rural Fire Service investigate mechanisms to enhance the predictability of megafires and how this information is communicated easily to the public. |
REC280-1398 | 1 - Land-use and building regs | That the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service: |
REC280-1379 | 9 - Community education | That the NSW Rural Fire Service develop and implement a comprehensive community education campaign aimed at increasing community understanding of and support for hazard reduction burns. |
REC280-1396 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That the Minister for Police and Emergency Services review the communications technologies used by the NSW Rural Fire Service, Fire and Rescue NSW, the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service and Forestry NSW during fire fighting operations, to ensure that systems are standardised and effective. Within this context, the potential value of satellite phone technology should be investigated. |
REC280-1388 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That the NSW Rural Fire Service: |
REC280-1385 | 1 - Land-use and building regs | That the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service consider the feasibility, on a case by case basis, of closing public roads through national parks on days with catastrophic fire danger rating, to mitigate the risk of bush fire ignition in national parks. |
REC280-1383 | 1 - Land-use and building regs | That the NSW Government improve the protection of media and telecommunications towers around New South Wales by: |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC273-1141 | 21 - Role of Commonwealth Government | SACFS and the BoM review current weather, fuel loads and curing rates to determine the most appropriate and accurate forecast is prepared, issued and validated against current conditions. |
REC273-1140 | 8 - Communications and warnings | Review the current practise of issuing an ‘emergency alert’ telephone message or an emergency warning and/or watch and act alert to ensure that it is consistent, relevant and necessary. Prior to issuing an emergency alert message, consider state level involvement so that other agencies are made aware of message and intent. |
REC273-1134 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That future declarations be undertaken to ensure that the areas affected by the declaration are clear and concise. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC261-1508 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That the NSW Rural Fire Service review its procedures, systems and infrastructure for notifying community members of bush fires, both when a fire has broken out and as it proceeds, to ensure the provision of timely and adequate information. |
REC261-1507 | 24 - Govt responsibility | That the NSW Government consider enabling the default position during catastrophic and extreme fire danger periods to be the same as for section 44 fires, so that fire control centres have the same systems and resources ready to deploy should a fire break out. |
REC261-1505 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That the NSW Rural Fire Service: |
REC261-1497 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That the NSW Rural Fire Service investigate mechanisms to enhance the predictability of megafires and how this information is communicated easily to the public. |
REC261-1520 | 33 - Relief and recovery | That the Ministry for Police and Emergency Services urgently review its policies for the provision of disaster welfare services to ensure that in the event of a bush fire emergency and the declaration of a fire under section 44 of the Rural Fires Act 1997, adequate funding and services, especially recovery centres and mental health services, are provided for an adequate length of time, with gradual transition to normal service delivery when those services are no longer required. |
REC261-1496 | 9 - Community education | That the NSW Rural Fire Service develop and implement a comprehensive community education campaign aimed at increasing community understanding of and support for hazard reduction burns. |
REC261-1514 | 1 - Land-use and building regs | That the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service adopt an interim fencing agreement in the immediate aftermath of a fire. This will enable emergency and interim works to commence, but features such as length, fencing components and site of the fence line are not binding. A final fencing agreement would be negotiated no earlier than six months following a major national park fire. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC260-1059 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That the Rural Fire Service and National Parks and Wildlife Service consider amending their protocols for upgrading advices to higher levels to emphasise the significance and urgency of raising warning levels as soon as the potential dangers of fire to lives or property materially increase. |
REC260-1058 | 28 - Personal responsibility | That NPWS and the RFS consider developing a land management policy that requires active engagement with property owners adjoining the Park to ensure that hazard reduction and asset protection is encouraged and undertaken before the bush fire season commences |
REC260-1051 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That the Rural Fire Service consider redrafting the disclaimer in its fire predictions to make abundantly clear where the potential errors or omissions may affect the prediction and how to detect them if they are there (for example, by comparing them with linescans) and what other factors (such as VLS) may affect the predictions and in what way. |
REC260-1050 | 13 - Mapping and data quality | Alternatively, I recommend that the RFS consider developing such capacity to deploy weather balloons itself, in conjunction with mobile weather stations, for this purpose. |
REC260-1049 | 13 - Mapping and data quality | That the Rural Fire Service consider proposing an arrangement with the Bureau of Meteorology to deploy weather balloons specifically for the purpose of assessing atmospheric instability during periods of severe to catastrophic fire danger in locations most likely to be severely affected, for example, areas in which a very high C-Haines index reading is registered and local fires have been identified. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC259-1048 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That State and Local Government agencies maximise communication to the residents owning bushfire prone properties to be aware of their level of exposure by having access to the BAL relevant to their property. |
REC259-1046 | 33 - Relief and recovery | That prior to the commencement of any major clean-up, firm policy be established and made known to the extent to which material removal will be the responsibility of the home owner, the Council or the State led recovery effort. |
REC259-1045 | 9 - Community education | That recovery policy incorporates the need for regular public meetings which give access to officials and representatives of agencies, as required |
REC259-1044 | 9 - Community education | That where, in the future a similar process for land clearing is adopted, the rationale and process is better explained and widely promulgated. |
REC259-1043 | 33 - Relief and recovery | That a single victim registration form be designed, which captures all relevant details required for use by any support agency both in the Response Phase at Evacuation centres and during the Recovery Phase. That such documents when completed form part of a wider database which can be accessed by all relevant agencies |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC208-0527 | 35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry | That the Office of Environment and Heritage require Orica to engage and fund appropriate independent experts to oversee any modifications to the plant in the next major maintenance overhaul of the plant in 2016 and in any upgrades to the plant prior to that date. |
REC208-0526 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | That OEH’s testing procedures for determining the impact of pollution incidents incorporate additional requirements for the checking and verification of results before those results are released. |
REC208-0524 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That the Premier issue clear and unambiguous guidelines to all Government Ministers specifying the timing of notifications to the public of any matters that may affect public health or safety. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC192-1923 | 21 - Role of Commonwealth Government | The Committee recommends that Parliament establish a standing committee for natural disasters. The purpose of this committee would be to ensure that Government agencies and emergency services are fully prepared to deal with natural disasters and to provide an opportunity for Members of Parliament, as opposed to Cabinet, to have input into disaster management. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC163-1936 | 19 - Offences | The prescribed penalty notice penalty amount for section 66(7) of the Rural Fires Act 1997 be increased to $1,100. |
REC163-1935 | 19 - Offences | The prescribed penalty notice penalty amount for section 99(6) of the Rural Fires Act 1997 be increased to $1,100. |
REC163-1934 | 19 - Offences | The prescribed penalty notice penalty amount for section 100(2) of the Rural Fires Act 1997 be increased to $1,100. |
REC163-1941 | 19 - Offences | A working group be established to consider methods of preventing criminal firestarting. |
REC163-1940 | 19 - Offences | That legislation be prepared by the Criminal Law Review Division of the Attorney General’s Department allowing designated officers of the Rural Fire Service to apply for a warrant in certain circumstances. |
REC163-1937 | 19 - Offences | That the Attorney General’s Department’s Crime Prevention Division consider the causes of, and any solution to, the high number of juveniles involved in causing bushfires. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC153-1786 | 9 - Community education | That the Minister for Emergency Services and the South Australian Country Fire Service implement programs to develop in the minds of citizens a heightened awareness of bushfire risk, and in particular to encourage citizens to listen for radio announcements relating to the progression of a fire during the course of a bushfire incident |
REC153-1778 | 9 - Community education | That the President of the South Australian Farmers’ Federation of South Australia draws these recommendations and findings to the attention of its members and constituents |
REC153-1785 | 9 - Community education | That the Minister for Emergency Services in conjunction with the South Australian Country Fire Service conduct tuition courses to be made available to the general public to enable members of the public to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to implement their preparation and planning for bushfires |
REC153-1776 | 26 - Research | That the Minister for Emergency Services cause independent scientific or other research to be undertaken to establish means by which risk of bushfires, as created by continuous cropping, minimum tillage, direct drilling seeding practices and the retention of cropping stubble across the landscape, can be minimised. |
REC153-1784 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That the South Australian Country Fire Service empower the Regional Public Warnings Officer to create and deliver public warnings on that Officer’s initiative without the necessity of seeking the approval of personnel at State Headquarters. |
REC153-1775 | 26 - Research | That the Minister for Emergency Services cause independent scientific or other research to be undertaken to identify the effects of continuous cropping, minimum tillage, direct drilling seeding practices and of the retention of cropping stubble, in respect of bushfire risk and prevention. |
REC153-1782 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That the Minister for Emergency Services, the Chief Officer of the South Australian Country Fire Service, the Chief Officer of the South Australian State Emergency Services and the Commissioner of Police establish a panel to develop policies and practices to ensure that at the time bushfire warnings are created and delivered, all such warnings are made known to all emergency service entities, and to ensure that warnings of an approaching fire are delivered in a timely manner with detailed and specific information relevant to the circumstances of the section of the public to whom they are directed. |
REC153-1781 | 8 - Communications and warnings | That the Minister for Emergency Services in conjunction with the Chief Officer of the South Australian Country Fire Service, the Chief Officer of the South Australian State Emergency Services and the Commissioner of South Australia Police develop policies and practices regarding the issuing of public warnings that address the risk posed to the public by an existing fire incident with a view to disseminating such warnings to the public at a time before the escalation of an existing fire incident occurs. |
REC153-1804 | 35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry | That the Chief Officer and the Editors of all newspapers and other media outlets develop a Memorandum of Understanding that ensures that all CFS press releases concerning total fire ban days and ongoing bushfire incidents are published in full. |
REC153-1780 | 22 - Role of local Gvt | That the Minister for Local Government cause rural councils to appoint an Officer whose duties consist entirely of bushfire prevention, such Officer being required to become a trained, operative member of the South Australian Country Fire Service during the currency of his or her appointment. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC139-3546 | 22 - Role of local Gvt | Local Government to be maintained as an important component of bushfire management in South Australia because of the link with the community. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC122-3797 | 9 - Community education | The Committee recommends that the Native Vegetation Council continue to seek mechanisms to interact with, and educate the individual farmer and landholder with respect to the Native Vegetation Act, its regulations and exemptions. |
REC122-3779 | 24 - Govt responsibility | The Committee recommends that relevant government departments implement an ongoing management program for the eradication of feral pests and weeds. |
REC122-3796 | 9 - Community education | The Committee recommends that the government undertake public education programs to increase the awareness of the community to bushfires, the role fire plays in ecosystems and what steps they should take to minimise the impact of a fire. |
REC122-3777 | 1 - Land-use and building regs | The Committee recommends that native vegetation, excluding road reserves be fenced. |
REC122-3795 | 3 - Biodiversity | The Committee recommends that the government assess the impact on fauna movement prior to managing native vegetation. |
REC122-3794 | 3 - Biodiversity | The Committee recommends that when preparing the plan for fire management (including identifying where and when to undertake prescribed burning, firebreaks and fire access tracks) consideration must be given to the impact on local fauna. |
REC122-3793 | 3 - Biodiversity | The committee recommends that the government actively manage native vegetation for fuel loads, weeds and pests. |
REC122-3792 | 3 - Biodiversity | The Committee recommends that, after a fire, as much vegetation as feasible be retained to minimise soil erosion from wind and first rains. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC121-3691 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | The ITSRR should audit the RMC to ensure communications protocols are being followed. The sanction for non-compliance with communications protocols should be identical to that in the aviation industry and involve immediate removal from duty. Any RailCorp employee not following communications protocols should be required to undertake further training. If, following return to duties after such training, the officer continues to fail to comply with communications protocols, that officer is not to be employed in communications related work. |
REC121-3753 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | The RailCorp Board should establish independent external safety auditing processes to regularly audit and report to the Board on the implementation of an integrated safety management system by RailCorp and on safety performance generally. |
REC121-3768 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | The ITSRR, when considering a re-application for accreditation, should conduct a field audit of the organisation to ensure that it is carrying on its activities in accordance with the basis upon which it seeks accreditation. |
REC121-3712 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | RailCorp and ITSRR should co-operate with national programs for the collection, collation, trend analysis and dissemination of safety critical information. |
REC121-3723 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | All ATSB accident investigation reports should be made public. |
REC121-3678 | 35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry | All railway owners and operators should have a quality assurance program for the design and construction of rolling stock and regular review of construction to ensure that the rolling stock satisfies the original functional performance specifications. |
REC121-3742 | 19 - Offences | The risk of abuse of internal passenger emergency door releases should be further reduced by introducing significant penalties for any improper use of such an emergency facility. It should be a criminal offence for anyone to use or tamper improperly with an emergency escape facility in a train. |
REC121-3767 | 24 - Govt responsibility | All accredited rail organisations should be required to re-apply every three years to ITSRR for accreditation. |
REC121-3704 | 28 - Personal responsibility | RailCorp should continue its system of voluntary self-identification and rehabilitation of employees with alcohol or drug related problems. |
REC121-3722 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | The ATSB should deliver any report of any such rail accident which it investigates to the Board of any rail organisation involved in the accident, ITSRR and the Minister for Transport Services. |
REC121-3729 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | All reports of the Chief Investigator of OTSI should be delivered, upon completion and without being reviewed, to ITSRR and the Minister for Transport Services. |
REC121-3765 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | The ITSRR should conduct field audits to satisfy itself that all accredited rail organisations conduct their activities in accordance with the safety management system on the basis of which each was accredited. |
REC121-3697 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | All train drivers’ defects reports should be entered by RailCorp into a computerised record and tracked to finalisation. |
REC121-3776 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | The Minister for Transport Services should retain, independently of ITSRR, safety auditors to provide a report to the Minister confirming or qualifying the contents of each such ITSRR quarterly report. |
REC121-3721 | 24 - Govt responsibility | The ITSRR should ensure that OTSI, as a division of ITSRR, co-operates and assists the ATSB in the conduct of any independent investigation by the ATSB of any rail accident or incident in New South Wales. |
REC121-3726 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | The OTSI should continue to conduct rail accident investigations on behalf of ITSRR and report directly to the Chief Executive of ITSRR. |
REC121-3758 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | Following completion of any external audit, a corrective action plan to remedy any identified safety deficiencies should be developed by RailCorp, implemented and followed up within the business groups affected, to ensure appropriate and timely completion of the action plan, by a formal examination of the effectiveness of the controls put in place. Senior management personnel should certify that the corrective action plan has been implemented and is effective. Senior management personnel should be accountable for any such certification. |
REC121-3694 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | The ITSRR should conduct random audits of accredited rail organisations for compliance with communications protocols. |
REC121-3775 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | The Minister for Transport Services must table in Parliament, each such quarterly report by ITSRR. |
REC121-3720 | 24 - Govt responsibility | The New South Wales Government should make the necessary arrangements with the Australian Government, including any necessary legislation, for the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) to have the power to investigate all rail accidents occurring on the New South Wales rail network the investigation of which may advance the knowledge of the causes of rail accidents in Australia. |
REC121-3725 | 13 - Mapping and data quality | The data and information management system should be compatible with any data and information management system established by the ATSB for the designated interstate rail network, provided that the establishment of a compatible system does not reduce the amount or quality of the information obtained by ITSRR below the optimum levels which it needs to conduct trend analysis, and otherwise properly manage the safety of rail operations in New South Wales. |
REC121-3693 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | ITSRR should ensure that, as a condition of accreditation, each of these recommendations is carried into effect and should audit against them to enforce compliance. |
REC121-3757 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | RailCorp should conduct internal and external safety audits to evaluate the adequacy of its safety management system and to ensure that any risk control measures are effective. |
REC121-3774 | 38 - Agency/Department Reporting | The ITSRR must provide a quarterly report to the Minister for Transport Services on the progress made by RailCorp in implementing these recommendations, including: |
REC121-3713 | 25 - Inquiry, audit, lessons management and after action review | Recommendations one to seven of the final report of the Special Commission of Inquiry into the Glenbrook Rail Accident should be fully implemented, save that the random auditing referred to in recommendations five and seven should be carried out by ITSRR. |
REC121-3724 | 13 - Mapping and data quality | The ITSRR should establish a data and information management system, containing all data and information that it requires, to continually monitor the safety of the New South Wales rail system. |
Rec-ID | Code | Recommendation |
---|---|---|
REC013_3967 | 22 - Role of local Gvt | Each Shire Council shall divide the lands within their respective shires into suitable areas for the formation of Bush Fire Brigades as requested. |
REC013_3982 | 19 - Offences | To prohibit persons taking into a harvest field or through any grass or bush lands any motor, tractor, harvester, &c., which is not supplied with an approved fire extinguisher or without the exhaust being properly fitted and protected, under a penalty not exceeding $50. |
REC013_3981 | 3 - Biodiversity | To prohibit the preparation of baits for the destruction of rabbits and other noxious animals in which stick phosphorus is used at the time of mixing on any farm, pastoral or grazing area. |
REC013_3977 | 8 - Communications and warnings | To arrange with settlers who live on hills or have a clear view, and are connected by telephone, to act as " look-outs ", and to communicate with the brigade in the case of fire. |
REC013_3974 | 1 - Land-use and building regs | To link up fallow paddocks and natural fire breaks by ploughing or burning breaks through private or public property, roads, &c. |
REC013_3968 | 22 - Role of local Gvt | Any number of persons, wishing to form a Bush Fire Brigade, may, by a majority vote of the ratepayers in the particular area, requisition the Shire Council to proclaim such area a Bush Fire Brigade area, and the Council may then impose, with the concurrence of a majority of such ratepayers, a special levy for the purpose of equipping such brigades and carrying out its neccessary functions. |
REC013_3983 | 19 - Offences | To prohibit persons throwing lighted cigarettes, cigars and tobacco among any straw, stubble, grass or herbage during the months of September to March in any Bush Fire area, under a penalty not exceeding $10. |