Residents should expect lingering smoke from planned burns this weekend and into next week as wind conditions will likely prevent smoke from dispersing, CFA warns.
This comes as hundreds of Victorians are taking the opportunity to undertake private burn-offs as fire restrictions continue to ease across the state.
CFA and partner agencies will be making the most of cooler autumn conditions to conduct fuel reduction burns to lower bushfire risk for communities, while farmers and private landholders will capitalise on favourable temperatures to ignite stubble burns on their properties.
Over the weekend, wind conditions will prevent smoke from dispersing, with smoke expected to linger over the city and parts of regional Victoria into next week.
CFA Chief Officer Jason Heffernan said although CFA and Forest Fire Management Victoria (FFMV) work closely with the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) and Bureau of Meteorology to keep smoke impact as low as practically possible, smoke in our regional and rural areas can come from a number of sources.
“Along with the important planned burns that are conducted in our forests, parks and reserves led by FFMV and the many kms of road, rail and council reserve burns that are led by CFA, this time of year also sees a large amount of smoke coming from the necessary burn-offs that our farmers and rural property holders undertake,” Jason said.
“These are part of traditional farming practices where burning off of crop stubble is often needed to kill off weeds and return nutrients and carbon back into the soil.”
As the weather cools, smoke will also come from the many thousands of wood heaters households rely on for their autumn and winter heat source.
“This localised smoke or smoke haze can often be misinterpreted as coming from planned burns from a long way away, but this is not always the case,” Jason said.
“As the weather conditions continue to allow for lower intensity burning, we will look to conduct the most suitable planned burns to ensure that our dependant native bush and grasslands are benefitting to avoid much more devastating bushfires.
“Our CFA brigades have already treated over 3,600ha of land this year, helping make at-risk communities safer, with more to come over coming weeks.”
Landowners are urged to continue registering their burn-offs at www.firepermits.vic.gov.au so that if someone reports smoke to Triple Zero, the incident will be cross-checked on the register.
For the latest information about when and where planned burns are occurring near you, residents are encouraged to sign up to Planned Burns Victoria at www.plannedburns.ffm.vic.gov.au and download the App.
If you do see smoke and want to know if it is a planned burn or a fire, visits the VicEmergency App or visit emergency.vic.gov.au.
Detailed information about smoke forecasts, current air quality in your area and health advice can be found on EPA’s website.
Keep your burn off safe and legal:
Check fire restrictions in your area and always register your burn at www.firepermits.vic.gov.au or by calling 1800 668 511
Check and monitor weather conditions – particularly wind
To avoid unnecessary calls to emergency services, notify your neighbours beforehand
Leave a three-metre fire break, free from flammable materials around the burn
Have sufficient equipment and water to stop the fire spreading
Never leave a burn-off unattended – stay for its entire duration
If your burn-off gets out of control, call ‘000’ immediately.
