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Managing fire in NSW national parks

The Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) manages more than seven per cent of the land area of NSW. Much of this land is rugged, remote and wildfire-prone. As part of its charter, OEH acts as a fire authority and is responsible for the management of fire on all lands under its control.

That's why OEH employs over 900 trained firefighters and has a full range of vehicles, aircraft, plant and equipment available for fire management.

Fires do not recognise boundaries, so OEH works closely with the Rural Fire Service, NSW Fire Brigades, State Forests and Sydney Catchment Authority to reduce fire risk across the state's national parks.

Many farms, communities and urban areas across NSW lie next to or are surrounded by bushland, which means protecting life and property are the highest priority for government land management authorities.

On its parks and reserves, OEH's primary fire management objectives are to:

• protect life and property - both within parks and on immediately adjacent land
• protect and conserve natural, cultural, scenic and recreational features
• cooperate with other organisations in planning and implementing fire management.

Planning and research

Effective bush fire management relies on detailed planning that accounts for the risks and requirements of each landscape and community in NSW.

OEH uses fire management strategies to set out the fire management objectives for particular parks and reserves. These strategies are used to plan fire suppression, hazard reduction burning and other fire-related operations.

All OEH parks and reserves are currently covered by fire management strategies.

Fire management strategies include maps showing:

• previous bushfires
• detailed terrain, including natural features that act as barriers to fire
• different fire management zones, including those that can help to protect towns and villages near a park
• vegetation communities, Aboriginal and historic heritage sites, threatened species, park facilities and equipment, and sensitive areas
• fire control advantages such as fire trails, water supply points and dams, and helipads.

Local communities, bush fire management committees, the Rural Fire Service, NSW Fire Brigades and other interested parties are consulted in the preparation of fire management strategies. The strategies are placed on public exhibition before they are finalised, and members of the public are encouraged to read and comment on draft strategies.

OEH works as part of an integrated team in fire management and planning. Our partners include:

• the NSW Rural Fire Service
• Forests NSW
• NSW Fire Brigades
• local government
• neighbours of national parks.

These agencies and groups work together through local bushfire management committees across NSW. Set up under the NSW Rural Fires Act, these committees coordinate fire management planning, prevention and suppression in local areas. OEH is represented on more than 120 bushfire management committees.

Bushfire management committees give local communities a say in local fire management plans. These plans identify community and environmental assets at risk in their local areas. They provide appropriate strategies, including hazard reduction, to reduce the risk of damage from fire. OEH has helped to develop more than 268 district bushfire management committee plans of operation and risk management plans.