Bushfire Opportunities & Constraints

 

One of the fundamental questions clients have for us regarding the development of a site is what can we safely do and what are the legislative requirements for the development type.

New development has considerable bushfire requirements from setback from the hazard, design and location considerations, access arrangements, supply of services, emergency management and evacuation and construction. It is a challenging and complicated space. While the systems provide flexibility, there are minimum requirements that can have significant impact on the design, use and yield for a proposal.

There are a number of ways to reduce uncertainty. One of them is a Opportunities & Constraints Analysis.

The opportunities and constraints analysis identifies bushfire issues that should be considered and prioritised in any future development work and factors a development proposal must respond to.  The analysis can be used in the design process where the information is weighed up to determine what is most pertinent to the development’s design and feasibility.

Knowing the issues up front and incorporating them into a design and yield calculations can save a lot of pain down the track.

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About the Author
Lew Short is a recognised expert in bushfire and emergency management, land-use planning, risk mitigation, consequence management, environment and the working of government.