Fires still burn in Victoria’s forests, but with the exception of the Wilson’s Promontory fire – an unpopulated finger of natural park on Victoria’s souther tip – the big fires are pretty much contained and are no longer threatening private property. Absent a final blast of hot northerly winds, the bushfire threat is (cross fingers) over for the year.
While actual rebuilding of Kinglake, Marysville, and the other devastated communities is some time away, at least a few of the questions of how such rebuilding will take place have been resolved with the introduction of building standards:
Homes will be risk rated as part of the building permit process. Those most at risk of bushfire damage will have to be built up to 51 metres from vegetation, on concrete foundations and have fire-proof outside walls and roofs. Other requirements include ember-proof wall and roof joints, shutters made from non-combustible materials, door frames made from fire-resistant timber and metal-only external trimmings.
Mandatory fire bunkers do not form part of the standard, though the Victorian government has requested its federal counterpart to develop an Australian standard for those who wish to install a bunker. I think this is reasonable in the short term – poorly designed fire bunkers could well do much more harm than good. But there’s a serious question as to whether even the most flame-resistant houses specified by the new standard would have kept their occupants safe in the apparent firestorm conditions in many of the destroyed towns. The idea of making approved fire bunkers compulsory in some places in the future should, in my opinion, get further consideration, hopefully in the Royal Commission. As to the cost, the new building standards are apparently going to add up to $20,000 to the cost of an average house in the most fire-prone areas.
Meanwhile, politics as usual has resumed, with the state opposition claiming that the public wasn’t warned early enough about the danger of Black Saturday. As The Age notes in its editorial, the various emergency services chiefs were all over the media by Thursday, and Brumby was making dire public warnings (and, sadly, 100% correct) about the risks posed – to the point where plenty of people (including me) thought he was being overly melodramatic. While it’s entirely appropriate that politics should get back to normal, and the state government’s handling of Black Saturday should be put under the microscope, you’d have to wonder about the Opposition’s judgement given that the striking thing about the leadup to Black Saturday was the clarity and starkness of the warnings provided.
The commercial agendas are out too. For reasons that aren’t yet clear, the federal government recently decided to cancel the purchase of a new wartoy, the uncrewed Global Hawk spy plane, which was mainly intended for seaborne surveillance. So what does the manufacturer do? Blabber to the Opposition Organ about what a handy firefighting tool it would be, with convenient interviews with Californian firefighters to back up their case. Perhaps. But you could fit a lot of turboprop Cessnas with a lot of fancy surveillance gear for a tiny fraction of the outlay, and avoid buying a plane which presumably the feds have decided isn’t going to meet the military’s needs in a timely manner at an appropriate price.
The building standards stuff frustrates me. Of course it’s a good idea but why didn’t we do this a long time ago and why aren’t we doing it in response to climate change as well.
Betting building standards are a really obvious way to reduce our energy demands.
Early days perhaps, but it would be instructive to know what percentage of previous owner/occupiers intend re-building and what effect, or possible advantage that may offer to planners. I believe about 40 percent of Canberra’s 2003 residents affected decided not to return. This may prompt a similar response in Vic but the impact of new building costs could be an additional barrier.
My ideal of a radical new approach to rural living could yet get a guernsey.
Hmm sounds noice. A bit like a shipping container on a slab. Vewy attwactive.
They need not be I suppose, but knowing what I do of my fellow country men when it comes to residential architecture I suspect that something resembling a shipping container is what we’ll get. Real safe. Real practical and best of all, mate, low maintenance.
Personally I think if you’re prepared to insure it for what’s worth, you should be allowed to build what you like damn well like and if you’re a moron, then not at all. And a bunker in a fire prone area as part of the deal.
Gee just imagine how many less blights on the landscape there’d be if morons, dickheads and residential property developers were simply not allowed to build houses.
Caroline, I don’t think they need be unattractive at all. I have been looking at building in rammed earth for a while, I have had a closer look at some of my designs post-fire and have only thought of a few minor amendments needed.
Gee just imagine how many less blights on the landscape there’d be if morons, dickheads and residential property developers were simply not allowed to build houses.
Well yes, policy would be a lot easier to craft if you could exclude morons, dickheads and that final tautology from the equation.
Robert, the initial view about the Wilsons Prom fire is that it’s been excellent – really what the ecology was looking for. We need to follow it up in less than ten years to flush the tea tree out.
I wonder what magic the Global Hawk has that allows it to do better what already existing planes and satellites are already tasked to do? What a joke. As for the Opposition statements, god they’re desperate for oxygen.
We have a house in the planning stages at the moment that will be built in central vic. Mostly cleared hilly sheep country so not quite Marysville. Fire was a big part of the design considerations. Rendered strawbale on a concrete slab. Metal roof and trims. Tempered double glazed windows. Considered electric roller shutters but they were too hard to get into the design. I’m still considering a manually closed external metal shutter system that can be added when the building is complete. Perhaps hinged to the side or more simply mounted when required. Sprinklers are planned both on the verandah edge and around the outbuildings. A ring main supporting the sprinklers will double as the garden water supply. A pump will assist the gravity fed system.
Also mostly low flammable vegetation rather than the usual native. Stone walls (back willing) will form the outer defences to block radiant heat at ground level.
The redesdale fire came very close. I’m a defender rather than a decamper.
Thanks Robert
maybe ot but Nasa have been doing a little science on the bushfire smoke
http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/calipso-australia.html
Ciao
hey wilful, is there a website or something similar that examines rammed earth in relation to bush fire? I have a net friend from the US west coast who is searching for info on it.
wilful @ 4 – I love the look of rammed earth houses. Unfortunately was a bit beyond our price range (I guess its more expensive to do the in the suburbs) and didn’t quite have the thermal properties we wanted. But was very happy with the look of it.
Thanks dylwah
on “pyrocumulonimbus”, it’s my observation that EVERY time there’s a big summer bushfire, you can see a cumulus (cauliflower tower, anvil) forming around the smoke column. Saw one yesterday north of Warragul, perhaps 25km away. Saw two on Sat 7th Feb., one being the Churchill-Jeeralang fire plume.
Saw another one a couple of years back, in calm conditions. NASA scientists say they’re uncommon. Sounds doubtful. Or do we in Victoria have some of the hottest fires??
Sorry jules, not aware of one – however given that it is cement bonded earth without any flammable bits, the fire resistance would have to be considered excellent.
Chris, it’s true the insulation isn’t excellent, but you can work around that, adn the thermal mass counts for a lot.
no wukkers Ambi, I don’t know whether we have hotter fires or not in Vic, they do seem to be fairly regular and my last BOM calander had an example for Feb.
CSIRO being CSIRO
http://www.csiro.au/news/GH09-Fire-pollution.html