Bushfires 2
As of 2013 in Queensland the State Planning Policy pertaining to bushfires (SPP 1/03) is no longer in operation. This issue is to be dealt with on a Shire-wide basis through their respective Town Plans.
However the method of hazard assessment within SPP 1/03 forms the basis of the appropriate Code or Planning Scheme Policy of most Queensland Councils. So far, so good because the SPP 1/03 methodology is reasonably robust.
Unfortunately some Councils have adapted some peculiar interpretations of the original methodology. These interpretations only add to the complexity of what is after all only an arbitrary finding.
While this may keep out some of the cowboy practitioners it is most concerning that the assessors of submitted reports are often out of their depth when it comes to bushfires. It is not their fault - many environmental graduates are never given the opportunity to study what is one of the main determinants of the Australian biota.