Whittlesea council has launched a new program of controlled burn-offs as part of its fire fuel reduction works and ecological regeneration plan.
A burn-off at Quarry Hills Park in South Morang on Thursday afternoon was a joint effort between the council and Epping CFA. Involved were two CFA trucks, six council staff and five contractors from the council’s bushland service providers.
Council bushland works officer Martin Roberts said the council aimed to burn off 10 per cent of the 350 hectares it managed each year.
Fifty hectares within conservation reserves have been prepared for burn-offs, now under way at sites in Lalor, South Morang, Epping, Yan Yean, Mernda and Mill Park Recreation Reserve.
“This area has evolved with a frequent fire regime. [The sites] generally have a very high tolerance to fire events,” he said.
The burns are conducted with the aim of regenerating wildflowers and grasses.
Epping CFA is keen to increase its involvement in the council’s burn-off program.
Mr Roberts said the burn-offs gave the CFA a chance to train volunteers “in a very controlled way” and learn about “fire from a different perspective”. Measures such as fire-retardant foams are used to protect significant native trees.
Epping Cemetery recently had a burn-off to help maintain the site’s ecological significance.
The cemetery is considered to have one of the best remnants of red gum grassy woodlands, a threatened Victorian species.
