2008 Fuel Reduction Burn Program Launched

On Saturday, 15 March, the Honourable Michelle O’Byrne, Minister for Environment, Heritage and the Arts, Minister for Sport and Recreation announced the Tasmanian Government’s 2008 fuel reduction burn program, along with a new brochure that explains the safety reasons behind reducing fuel loads on the landscape.




“The Fuel Reduction Program’s principal objectives are to reduce the risk of large wildfires, and to minimise risk to people, private property and the state’s economic and ecological assets in the event of a major fire,” said Tony Blanks, Manager of Forestry Tasmania’s Fire Management Branch.

The inter-agency task force overseeing the second year of the Government’s $650,000 Fuel Reduction program is planning up to seven burns on the West Coast, the North West, the Central Highlands and the East Coast in the 2008 Autumn.

“The sequence and timing of burns will be determined by weather conditions but are expected to start in March and conclude by September,” Mr Blanks said.

The 2008 burns will include all land tenures including private property, State forest and conservation areas including several national parks. Forestry Tasmania, the Parks and Wildlife Service, and the Tasmanian Fire Service plan and implement the program.

The Asthma Foundation of Tasmania (AFT) acknowledges that planned burns are in the public interest, even though the presence of smoke affects sufferers of respiratory illness. CEO Cathy Beswick represented the AFT at the launch.

This year has seen a diverse coalition of groups working together in the broader interests of the community. The Tourism Industry Council of Tasmania has also been a part of the development of the new brochure called Fire: Managing the Risks and will support efforts to promote understanding.

At the request of the Tourism Industry Council of Tasmania, tourism operators will be provided with information for visitors who may be alarmed by forest fires, including the new multi-agency brochure. The TICT has also requested special care be taken during the Easter period in relation to smoke management.

“In the wake of the 2007, East Coast bushfires, there is widespread community support for fuel reduction burning. It’s a matter of public safety,” Mr Blanks added.

To download a copy of the 2008 Fuel Reduction Burn Program - brochure 1,758kb pdf click here
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