REC315-3817 |
5 - Hazard reduction burns
5 - Hazard reduction burns
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That Government, noting that hazard reduction targeted in proximity to assets is on balance more likely to provide help than hinder, should:
a) support local councils and partner agencies to implement more comprehensive hazard
reduction at a local level around towns/cities, communities and local infrastructure assets, and provide incentives for communities to organise themselves to prioritise and implement local hazard reduction initiatives. This will involve a suite of hazard reduction techniques depending on the landscape including prescribed burning, clearing, mowing, and mechanical treatments, and easy disposal of green waste into processors turning it into bioenergy or biofuels
b) beyond the local level priorities for hazard reduction, prioritise prescribed burning in parts of the landscape where fuel treatment may help reduce probability of fires escalating quickly and where terrain and potential atmospheric interactions are likely to escalate fires into fire-generated thunderstorms. This will likely involve a proactive program of treating ridge tops that are prone to dry lightning where reduced fuels may help reduce speed of spread when the fire first starts, or particular windward or lee-slopes that are susceptible to generating extreme fire behaviour and drive fire towards towns.
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REC315-3839 |
29 - Operational Health and Safety
29 - Operational Health and Safety
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That, to ensure firefighters can access mental health support through GPs, Government work with the Commonwealth Government to:
a) provide a free mental health screen to firefighters post-fire event and waive any gap payments if additional treatment is required
b) create a new Medicare Benefits Scheme item number to enable Governments to track demand for mental health services from firefighters over time and ensure an appropriate level of support is available.
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REC315-3854 |
7 - Inter-agency communication
7 - Inter-agency communication
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That, in order to ensure emergency response agencies can communicate across state and territory borders, the Commonwealth Government allocate 10 + 10 MHz as a dedicated spectrum for Public Safety Mobile Broadband (PSMB) at no cost to states and territories.
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REC315-3816 |
5 - Hazard reduction burns
5 - Hazard reduction burns
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That Government re-commit to the current, regionally based approach to planning and coordinating hazard reduction activities across all tenures through Bush Fire Management Committees but ensure that it is actually being implemented at a high-level of quality across NSW. Getting it to a high-level of quality requires:
a) implementing the Inquiry’s recommendation about performance auditing of Bush Fire Risk Management Plans
b) prioritising implementation of revised processes for bush fire risk management planning that incorporate new modelling and methods for quantifying risk and the residual risk profile as a result of proposed hazard reduction works
c) ensuring regional priorities for hazard reduction, and how they are determined, are communicated clearly to the community, and their implementation is reported on transparently. This will include being very clear about the objectives of hazard reduction activities and communicating that hazard reduction does not eliminate the risk of fire affecting properties
d) the methodology for assessing and planning for risk reduction becomes an ongoing area of research and the frameworks are formally reviewed every three years.
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REC315-3838 |
29 - Operational Health and Safety
29 - Operational Health and Safety
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That, in order to ensure all NSW RFS members can access the mental health support they need, the NSW RFS expands in-house mental health support for members.
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REC315-3853 |
7 - Inter-agency communication
7 - Inter-agency communication
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That, in order to ensure the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) can maintain communications during emergencies, the Government provide the SEOC with independent Public Safety Network functionality.
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REC315-3813 |
35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry
35 - Business and Industry in relation to industry
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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.
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REC315-3829 |
4 - Fire season preparation
4 - Fire season preparation
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That, in order to ensure outcomes-based roadside vegetation management to reduce roadside tree fall and grass ignitions in planning and preparing for bush fire, Transport for NSW, working with local government and NSW RFS, establish a consistent framework for roadside vegetation management that analyses road priority, utility, amenity, strategic value and risk. The framework should:
- take into consideration landscape characteristics like distance, slope, set back, vegetation maturity and type. Acceptable outcomes under this framework could include clear verges, or alternatives such as safe zones/pull-outs
- tie in formally with other strategic land use and biodiversity processes.
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REC315-3852 |
7 - Inter-agency communication
7 - Inter-agency communication
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That, in order to improve fireground communications between NSW agencies and interstate personnel: a) Government ensure all NSW fire authority personnel and vehicles can access and utilise the Public Safety Network (PSN). This should include access to NSW RFS Private Mobile Radio networks where PSN coverage is not yet available.
b) the NSW Telco Authority review cross-border communications availability and planning and advise NSW fire authorities on next steps to enable multi-state interoperability for wide area communications.
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REC315-3805 |
32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform
32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform
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That, to strengthen cross-agency accountability and deliver improved bush fire risk management outcomes:
a) Bush Fire Coordinating Committee (BFCC) members from NSW government agencies are at the level of Coordinator General/Deputy Secretary/Agency Head/Deputy Commissioner (or equivalent)
b) the BFCC ensures all Bush Fire Risk Management Plans, Operation Coordination Plans and Fire Access and Fire Trail (FAFT) Plans are compliant with the timeframes outlined in section 52 of the Rural Fires Act as soon as practicable
c) the BFCC develops a risk-based performance auditing cycle to ensure Bush Fire Risk Management Plans, Operation Coordination Plans and FAFT Plans are fit-for-purpose and any opportunities for improvement are identified and actioned
d) the NSW RFS considers the best way of enhancing the transparency of BFCC decision-making, for example by publishing BFCC membership and minutes on its website
e) the BFCC endorses the annual statement to Parliament on the likely fire risk and the effectiveness of planning and preparation
f) relevant agencies review Bush Fire Management Committee (BFMC) membership and confirm to the NSW RFS that members have sufficient discretion and authority to agree and implement risk mitigation activities at the local level
g) the NSW RFS Commissioner amends the BFMC Policy to require BFMCs to refer unresolved issues to the BFCC for resolution.
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REC315-3821 |
4 - Fire season preparation
4 - Fire season preparation
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That government agencies managing land (at all levels and through all agencies) be the best neighbours possible by considering their neighbours when undertaking activities related to bush fire preparation and having clear, two-way communication about these activities, with the aspiration that government landholders will be seen as highly desirable neighbours.
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REC315-3844 |
32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform
32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform
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That, in order to enhance fire fighting strategies in severe conditions, the NSW RFS implements the following in respect to backburning:
a) establish protocols for each category (tactical and strategic) within their operational and training doctrine. These protocols should include lessons learnt from the 2019-20 season
b) modify ‘ICON’ to implement the capability to record all backburns, including whether or not they break containment lines
c) when fire conditions are approaching Severe or above, an independent review must be undertaken at State Operations Level before strategic backburns are implemented
d) where there is significant concern within a community regarding a backburn, the NSW RFS should undertake a community engagement session with affected residents to discuss the backburn, including any investigation and relevant findings.
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REC315-3804 |
32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform
32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform
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That the NSW RFS Commissioner consult with the Fire and Rescue NSW Commissioner and other emergency services to develop a protocol in the event that simultaneous emergency events necessitate the re-allocation of resources while a Section 44 declaration is in place.
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REC315-3820 |
32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform
32 - Doctrine, standards, and reform
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That Government amend the Rural Fires Act 1997 so that all public land management agencies be required to forward complaints received about bush fire hazards to the Commissioner of the NSW RFS. As an interim measure, heads of agencies should commence this practice immediately.
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REC315-3840 |
29 - Operational Health and Safety
29 - Operational Health and Safety
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That, in order to ensure firefighter sustenance is of sufficient volume and quality, the NSW RFS reviews food standards and procedures in consultation with volunteers. The review should include catering service standards, including food safety, as well as the viability of sourcing commercial contracts and providing 12-hour food packs to firefighters.
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REC315-3855 |
7 - Inter-agency communication
7 - Inter-agency communication
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That, in order to ensure all agencies have a clear understanding of cross-border communication channels during bush fires, all MoUs between state or territory agencies include an agreed protocol about how agencies will communicate across borders and that these are reflected in Incident Action Plans.
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