Indigenous support welcome
It was good to see Jan van der Spek's letter noting the need for more active management of the Wildflower Drive area.
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I would, however, point out that standing trees generally do not present a significant fire hazard.
It is the finer fuels such as dead leaves and other organic matter and the level of such fuel is not high in the area concerned.
However, some appropriately timed light burning, informed by indigenous practices, probably would do more good than harm, both in allaying fears regarding fire safety and in rejuvenating the bush.
My concern is rather for other management issues such as the increasing number of unplanned (illegal) bike paths that continue to proliferate between Wildflower Drive and the race at the top of the escarpment.
This is a lovely area and the eponymous wildflowers present a good show in season!
It deserves a more active management program and I take heart from the proposed involvement of the indigenous owners.
John McCallum, Strathdale
Bushfire re-think needed
A Parliamentary Review of Victoria's preparedness for bushfires was conducted during 2016-17, following the 2009 Bushfire Royal Commission recommendations.
It found a number of shortcomings.
The commission recommended a five per cent fuel reduction burn be conducted annually, meaning there should be at Ieast 385,000 hectares burned annually, but in the six years - 2010 to 2016 - only 1,050,000 hectares was burned.
The government's planned burns proposal fails to take account of the cumulative effects of the buildup of hot burn fuel loads on the forest floor.
It is now 10 years since Black Saturday and the government will not release any information about fuel loads in our forests.
No wonder the bushfires had such devastating effects, because of the government and Greens veto over the reduction of the remnant fuel loads left in the forests.
When this is combined with the state government and Greens policies of preventing access to state forests and fire access tracks, it's a recipe for disaster.
Shame on you.
Let's hope the Premier, the state government ministers and departments and those in the Greens are all held accountable for their abject failure to protect Victorians, our native vegetation and wildlife.
Colin Burns, Strathfieldsaye
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