A friend was doing a bit of work at home on the weekend and that meant cutting down a heap of unsightly dead palm fronds from the palms that everyone told him he'd regret putting in when he moved in over 10 years ago, and the normal spring tidy up including some heavy pruning.
He'd piled up the stuff he'd cut and later on Sunday put a match to it to get rid of it like we all have done at some time or another and it an hour or two there was little to show except a pile of very hot ash and coals when he had an unannounced visitor.
It wasn't a brown snake, it was actually the local fire warden who had seen the smoke and had come over to let him know that things relating to fires have changed, and there could be serious consequences , a $500 fine for burning off without a permit.
My friend had thought that with the continual local rain, still conditions and plentiful water supply at hand that a quick burn would be the simple way to dispose of his garden waste, what he didn't know is that things have changed.
Of course my friend thought he was allowed to burn a fire that was around the two meters by two meters without a permit, as did everyone else I have asked but apparently things have changed and it seems although it has been advertised in the local papers and other media, we have not got the message.
Apparently, it is ok to burn the two by two without a permit, but only when there is no declaration of a "Fire danger period" and it seems that's been declared already so it means we need to get a permit for every fire we light.
The Commissioner of the Qld Fire and Rescue Service has declared the period from midnight on August 29th until midnight on thew 2nd January as a Fire Danger Period.
Ok, so it's not all bad news, a little inconvenience maybe but a permit is free, it's for your own and everyone else's safety, and it lets the rural fire service and the local fire services know that there is a fire taking place so that firstly the do not need to respond for a cal about it if someone sees your smoke and they know exactly where it is if things do go wrong ( yeah we know that never happens , right?)
To get a permit is a simple matter, contact your local fire warden.
Don't know who it is? simple get on the net and go to www.ruralfire.qld.gov.au
An application can also be downloaded from the website.
Things you need to know to get a permit, a) your real property description e.g lot no. and RL no. (e.g. lot 10 RP 234567) the information should be on your rates notice. b) you need to drop your neighbours a note to let them know about it too.
probably be a good idea to get to know your fire warden, they are volunteers who can risk their lives if fires do get out of control, and they're there to help.
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9 comments:
It sounds like over kill again. But then for those of us lobbying for a metropolitan fire brigade in the northern end of the old BSC area this may work in our favour.
For too long we have watched the population growth and the housing boom - Spring Mountain, Teviot Downs and New Beith Estates - with only a rural volunteer fire brigade. Don't get me wrong, they are a group of fantastic people but far from adequate to deal with any major outbreak.
The standing joke is - hope your house doesn't catch fire during daylight hours during the week.
A classic example was a ute on fire at the roundabout, Middle Road and Teviot Road. By the time the fire engine from Loganlea arrived there wasn't much left of the vehicle.
Then again is this another way to support Logan's 2 bin system?
That's what I was going to say , all your tree cuttings can go to the tip for free as green waste, why would you burn it anyway?
Logan will then be justified in forcing you to pay for the extra bin because of all the extra waste.
Not everyone has a ute or trailer and most times its only a 'bin-full' of leaves or small banches people want to burn off.
From living on a farm for many years, we always burnt off excess dead branches and leaves and the ashes were spread in gardens.
In Victoria many urban properties still have incinerators.
Looking at the application for a 'free permit' I was rather amused with all the details they require eg title details. What the....?
The application also states that you must advise your neighbours of you intent......that means that every time your rake up some leaves, you need a permit to burn them and then you also have to run around alerting the neighbours that you will be burning off a barrow load of leaves????
Give me a break! What next?
A neighbour bought a mulcher thinking he was doing something towards helping the environment.
The first time he used it - late one afternoon, he was dobbed into council as a 'noise nuisance'.
I've heard noisier lawnmowers - but he got a warning from council about the 'noise'.
Why can't people live and let live? Do we constantly have to have backyard police aided by so called neighbours?
It's time Govs and other departments kept their noses out of our business and get on with their jobs.
With all the rain we've been having its hard to believe that it could possibly be declared a fire hazard time, can you even light a fire in this sort of weather?
This works well for neighbours with nothing better to do with their time than report their neighbours for what ever it is that annoys them, trail bike noise, a small tractor or sprayer and now burning a few leaves and prunings. The wowsers and whingers are getting their way and our dopey representatives are making goo political milage out of agreeing with these vocal minorities.
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Hear, hear. Unless you are a part of the 'group' you aren't listened to.
God help the Rural people who just want to live in peace and be left alone. The reason we moved to the acreage lots was to be away from nosey neighbours who would complain if they heard you F... in your yard. For Christ"s sake get a life and find something worthwhile to do for your community . Our Crs will jump at shadows if they beleive it will get them another vote.!!
It only proves that crs don't have anything better to do. Sad thing is we keep paying their wages!
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