General
The Fire Management Notice outlines the prohibited and restricted burning times in the City of Albany's, North East and South West Sectors, for further information refer to the City of Albany's Fire Management Notice
The City of Albany may vary a requirement of conditions of the Notice at it's discretion, by providing a Variation to the Fire Management Notice of Prohibited or Restricted burning times depending on weather conditions.
RESTRICTED BURNING TIMES
SOUTHWEST SECTOR - up to and including 14 MAY 2025 (Permits to Burn are available through your local Bush Fire Brigade)
NORTHEAST SECTOR - the Restricted Burning Period was varied and has now ended
*All other conditions under the Bush Fire Act 1954 and Fire Management Notice must be maintained.
Emergency Information and Contacts
Report a Fire: 000
Fire information: www.emergency.wa.gov.au
Weather information: http://www.bom.gov.au/
Live to air information: ABC Radio (AM 648)
Australian Fire Danger Rating System
The Fire Danger Rating system is a national initiative to ensure Fire Danger Ratings are communicated consistently across Australia.
The Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) created a new system with greater ability to predict fire behaviour with increased accuracy.
The Fire Danger Rating system applies the latest scientific information about weather, fuel and how fire behaves in different types of vegetation to improve the reliability of fire danger forecasts. Click here for a printable Australian Fire Danger Rating System information sheet
Permits To Burn
The lighting of a fire is not permitted during the restricted burning time without a valid permit to burn.
A permit to burn can only be issued by an authorised Fire Control Officer (FCO).
The holder of a permit to burn shall observe and carry out any requirement or direction contained within the permit.
Failure to comply with permit conditions is an offence under the Bush Fires Act 1954 and may result in prosecution and fines as prescribed under the Act.
Where a person starts a fire on land, the fire escapes from the land or, if the fire is, in the opinion of a bush fire control officer or an officer of a bush fire brigade, out of control on the land, the person shall be liable to pay to the Local Government on the request of and for recoup to its bush fire brigade, any expenses incurred by it up to a maximum amount of $10,000 as prescribed by the Bush Fires Act.
Permits to Burn are automatically suspended when the Fire Danger Rating is "High", "Extreme" or "Catastrophic" and when a Harvest and Vehicle Movement Ban or Total Fire Ban is in place for the area covered by the permit.
To locate the FCO/Permit issuer for your property you will need to:
- Identify who your Brigade Sector is - Gazetted townsite, North East or South West
- Identify who your local Volunteer Bushfire Brigade is - City, Bornholm, Napier, Kalgan etc
To locate your Brigade Sector, local Volunteer Bushfire Brigade or Fire Control Officers are click here.
The City of Albany encourage residents and visitors to our region to stay up to date with the DFES Emergency WA incidents and warnings page at DFES website.
Please consider your neighbours when undertaking a burn and make sure that smoke does not drift onto roads causing a traffic hazard.
The insurance and conditions attached to a permit to burn will vary depending on the location, soil dryness indices and weather conditions.
Permit to Burn in the City of Albany Gazetted Townsite
Permits will not be issued within the South West Sector, for the purposes of burning materials that can be disposed of in a green-waste bin (domestic waste or green waste).
To apply for a Permit to Burn in the DFES Fire and Rescue Services (FRS) district (the Albany town site and close adjacent areas) you need to:
Permits to Burn - North East
Contact your local Volunteer Bushfire Brigade or Fire Control Officer (FCO) Here.
Permits to Burn - South West Sector
Contact your local Volunteer Bushfire Brigade or Fire Control Officer (FCO) Here.
Prescribed Burns
Fuels that feed fire have built up considerably since settlement, and ostensibly changed the dynamic of the local bush, as fire has been excluded. Fire is used in a manner to restore balance to our ecosystems, as well as reduce risk to the community and the environment.
The City utilises a number of methods to control or manage fuel levels. Prescribed burning is only one option and is only considered where other options are less effective, less efficient or too costly.
If residents wish to have their local fire brigade assist them with conducting a hazard reduction burn you need to:
Total Fire and Movement Ban Information
TOTAL FIRE BAN
A Total Fire Ban (TFB) may be declared by the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) on days when fires are most likely to threaten lives and property. This is because of predicted adverse fire weather or when widespread fires are impacting the availability of resources.
During a TFB, the lighting of any fire in the open air is prohibited. This includes all open cooking and camping fires and incinerators. It also includes ‘hot work’ such as welding, grinding and soldering or gas cutting. The penalty is a fine of $25,000 or imprisonment for 12 months, or both.
TFBs are announced on the DFES website, on ABC Radio and the DFES Twitter feed. Exemptions may be available. You can find out more about TFBs by visiting the DFES website.
HARVEST AND VEHICLE MOVEMENT BANS
The City of Albany may impose Harvest and/or Vehicle Movement Bans when adverse fire weather conditions are experienced. The City will consult with Volunteer Bush Fire Brigades' weather officers to determine if a ban is warranted.
During harvest bans all harvesting operations must immediately cease. No harvesting is permitted on Christmas Day.
A vehicle movement ban means no internal combustion powered vehicles are to be driven in paddocks or bush areas and ‘hot work’ such as welding or grinding is not to be undertaken in the open air.
FIRE BAN COMMUNICATIONS
The City of Albany will endeavour to communicate broadly when a ban is imposed. However, it is the responsibility of landowners and occupiers to check if bans are in place before engaging in any activity that may be prohibited for the duration of the ban.
All bans will be communicated via ABC local radio on 558AM or 630AM 10:05am, 12:35pm and 2:05pm.
If you are a farmer or a contractor and would like to receive notification by SMS notification of Harvest or Vehicle Movement Bans direct to your mobile phone email [email protected] with your name, organisation name and mobile number.
Guidelines for Operating Private Equipment at Fires
These guidelines have been developed to help you understand your responsibilities when fighting fires on or near your land and are available for download here.
In many parts of WA, private equipment is an essential part of the community’s response to fire. A key principle of this community response is that it be done with safety as the number one priority. Your safety at fires is your responsibility. However, Fire Services are committed to working with residents operating private equipment to ensure safety is at the front of everyone’s mind during bushfires.
The guideline promote the safe, efficient, effective and cooperative involvement of private equipment to control a fire in the shortest possible time. It also provides private equipment operators information so that they can make informed decisions about their actions, based on their knowledge of their capabilities and that of their equipment, to ensure the tasks undertaken are appropriate and safely performed.
Bushfire Resilience in the Great Southern (BRIGS)
August 2020 Presentation
Below are PDF versions of the presentations that were recently given in regards to local efforts to build bushfire resilience.
These presentations aim to give a better understanding of your bushfire risk, what you can do to improve it and what Local Government and other agencies can and can't do to help. The BRIGS projects will allow residents to better understand bushfire risk and to share tactics everyone can use to make themselves, their families and their communities more resilient in the event of a bushfire
Bayonet Head
Goode Beach
Little Grove
Useful Documents & Links
Documents