News Article, May 2012
By Jemimah Clegg
Families building homes in Victoria’s bushfire prone areas could face extra costs of up to $16,000 to comply with building regulations implemented since the Black Saturday Bushfires Royal Commission.
The Department of Planning and Community Development has introduced a revised State Planning Policy which puts restrictions on the type of building that can be done in bushfire prone areas.
Simone Lung from the Department of Justice said after the Black Saturday bushfires on the 7th of February 2009, the whole of Victoria was deemed a bushfire prone area. She said that this was then revised to exclude 12 municipal councils in the Melbourne metropolitan area.
Ms Lung said people building houses in these bushfire prone areas now need to ensure their home meets the new Australian Standard which was revised after the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission.
“Houses have to be built to have a certain Bushfire Attack Level,” she said.
The Department of Planning and Community Development has outlined the minimum Bushfire Attack Level as 12.5.
The 12.5 Bushfire Attack Level means that all roofs, windows and doors need to be properly sealed to prevent the entry of embers which can cause houses to catch fire. This can be a costly process for many.
Compliance Maintenance Solutions (CMS) are an independent fire safety and maintenance company. Mark Bontalik works for CMS as a fire rating inspector in bushfire prone areas.
Bontalik says that although he believes the Bushfire Attack Levels are effective in preventing the spread of fire, he feels that the cost to those building can be extreme.
“On an average 20-25 square house it costs about 15 to 16 thousand dollars for a 12.5 Bushfire Attack Level,” Mr Bontalik said.
He said he has seen cases where people have paid to have their Bushfire Attack Level calculated by independent companies, only to be told by building surveyors that it’s incorrect.
“It’s important if you get your Bushfire Attack Level calculated that you do get the relevant building surveyor to check it,” he said.
Ms Lung said the Country Fire Authority (CFA) is there to assess people’s homes and provide them with information they require to ensure their home is compliant with regulations.
“The CFA also deal with a lot of planning issues, so a planning permit may say that you have to have a bushfire assessment done and the CFA do that,” she said.
The CFA did not respond to a request for an interview for this article.
Ms Lung said the State Government decided to implement all of the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission’s recommendations which are designed to ensure an event like Black Saturday does not occur again.
Bontalik said that although the Bushfire Attack Level regulations will help to prevent houses being lost in the event of a bushfire, early communication should be the first priority so that people aren’t in their houses when they are at risk.
“In commercial properties, the fire protection is there so the occupants can escape, with residential (buildings) it has to be good enough to save the house while people are inside it,” he said.
The final report with recommendations from the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission and responses from the State Government will be tabled by the 31st of July 2012.
Jemimah Clegg 