Getting your block firebreak-ready before fire season

Every year across WA, local councils send out firebreak notices as fire season approaches, and every year plenty of property owners leave it too late. Getting your block sorted early is the easy way to stay compliant, keep your property safer, and avoid a fine that can run into hundreds of dollars.

Here's what's involved and how to get ahead of it.

Start with your council's notice. Firebreak requirements are set by your local government, and they vary from one area to the next. Your notice will spell out what you need to do, commonly a cleared firebreak a few metres wide around the boundary of your property, low fuel loads across the block, and clearing around any structures. Read it properly, because the specifics, the width, the timing and what counts as compliant, depend on where you are.

Put in the firebreak. A firebreak is a strip of cleared land, free of flammable material, that slows the spread of fire and gives firefighters access if they need it. On vacant blocks, acreage and rural properties this usually means slashing or grading a clear perimeter to the width your council requires, before the deadline in your notice.

Bring the fuel load down. A firebreak on its own isn't the whole job. Long dry grass, dead vegetation, fallen branches and rubbish all add to the fire load on your block. Slashing overgrown areas and clearing debris makes a real difference to how a property handles a fire threat.

Clear around structures and boundaries. Pay attention to the areas around sheds, the house and other buildings, and along fence lines where growth tends to build up unnoticed. These are the spots that catch people out.

Don't leave it to the last minute. As deadlines approach, contractors get booked solid and the ground gets harder and drier to work. Booking early means it's done properly and on time, not rushed or missed.

Keep it maintained. Grass and weeds don't stop growing just because you cut them once. Through the danger period, regrowth can quietly put you back out of compliance, so it's worth keeping firebreaks and cleared areas maintained rather than doing it once and forgetting about it.

Getting a block firebreak-ready is straightforward when it's planned, and a headache when it's left late. If you'd rather not sort it yourself, we install firebreaks to council specification, slash and clear overgrown blocks, and can keep it all maintained through the season. Send us a copy of your notice and we'll tell you exactly what it needs.