Reponse to Commission Report

Gary Blackwood Member for Narracan has used his response to the Bushfire Royal Commissions Report into Black Saturday to remember those who lost their lives and pressure the Brumby Government to take action before the coming fire season.

'My response will be mindful and reflective of the impact of the Bunyip Ridge fire on many families and individuals in my electorate of Narracan.

'This contribution will be delivered against a backdrop of the incredible loss of 173 lives across rural Victoria and the pain and suffering of all bushfire survivors, families, relatives and friends.

In his response, Mr Blackwood said that the protection of human life was the most important message that came from the Commissions Report when he quoted Justice Bernard Teague, who said;

"the recommendations we make give priority to protecting human life and they are designed to reflect the shared responsibility that Governments, fire agencies, communities and individuals have for minimising the prospect of a tragedy of this scale ever happening again."

However the Brumby Governments past policies and lack of action had left many Victorians seriously exposed and unprepared when faced with the enormity of Black Saturday.

'The protection of human life has been clearly compromised by the inaction of governments to implement recommendations following the fires of 1939 and 1983 and, even more recently, the fires of 2003 and 2007.

'The Brumby Government has presided over ineffective government departments whose activities and responsibilities have been paralysed by competing interests and conflicting interpretations of policy when they are charged with the responsibility of implementing the recommendations of successive inquiries following recent bushfire events', said Mr Blackwood.

Mr Blackwood criticised the Brumby Governments determination to pursue consultation arguing that a more proactive approach to land management should be taken and that Government agencies needed to look at alternate management strategies in the future.

'The Brumby government's appalling record in public land management over the last 11 years is clear evidence that the public land managers -- that is, the Department of Sustainability and Environment and Parks Victoria -- have been hijacked by the dark green influences from within their departments and have placed flora and fauna preservation at the forefront of their decision making at the expense of fuel reduction burning', Mr Blackwood said.

Together with the increased fuel reduction burning, Mr Blackwood cited that timber harvesting strategies could be used to help sustain forestry areas and protect them against future overgrowth that fuelled the fires on Black Saturday.

'Not only is timber harvesting a proven fire management tool but it serves to provide the firefighting force with the expertise, local knowledge and equipment that has played a critical role in firefighting over many years', said Mr Blackwood.

'The commission also identified the importance of other government agencies such as VicRoads accepting responsibility for taking steps to minimise risk and protect human life.

'The commission indicated that Vicroads does not carry out any systematic roadside bushfire risk assessment. They have not considered whether particular stretches of road carry increased fire risks and require different or additional treatments.

'This was particularly evident in the Bunyip Ridge fire where the intensity of the burn along roadsides in Labertouche was incredibly severe and significantly increased the risk to property in close proximity to roadsides', Mr Blackwood said.

Mr Blackwood raised the issue of recovery since the fires and called for a review of the recovery effort.

'There is a great deal of concern about the way help was and is being delivered.

'I believe it is terribly important that a review is conducted into this aspect of bushfire recovery with a view to learning and improving and implementing more efficient and appropriate methods of assistance delivery to those impacted in the future by wildfire.

'Just as sure as we will have another major bushfire event, so we will find ourselves in another recovery phase.

'We must take this opportunity to learn from the mistakes and gaps that are evident in the current recovery process.

'We must become more effective and efficient in delivering the help to those battling to resurrect their lives after such catastrophic events', Mr Blackwood said.