Fire coverage 'puts conservation at risk'

Daniel Simmons Ritchie | 2nd July 2010

Conservation land is a fire risk because of inadequate coverage, according to Department of Conservation officials who are pushing for a fire equivalent of Auckland's new Super City.
DoC fears its Tararaua Forest Park, a 116,000ha sanctuary for native birds and plants, is at risk because it lies outside the boundaries of the Wairarapa Rural Fire District.
DoC currently trains 20-25 of its own staff to respond to fire in that area but area manager Chris Lester said cost savings and better protection could be achieved under a merger with surrounding districts to cover the Tararua Ranges.
''If the rural fire district was much much larger we would have a much larger rate base and a much larger funding base.
''It's a bit like the super city concept, you're putting everything together and catching the available efficiencies and synergies that exist.
''Instead of having a whole lot of small rural fire establishments, we would have one larger and more effective one.''
DoC has made its concerns over rural fire coverage known in submissions to the annual plans of Masterton District Council, Carterton District Council, and South Wairarapa District Council.
''At the moment the rural fire district employs one person, as half chef and half bottle-washer.

I don't think that's appropriate or sustainable,'' Mr Lester said.
As a member of the Wairarapa rural district committee he was quick to praise their work but said expertise and assistance was supplied by forest companies and councils and could not be guaranteed long term.
Dave Hilliard, chairman of Wairarapa Rural Fire District, said that while progress on amalgamation with Western or Northern districts would be made over the next year, there were lingering questions over how it would operate.
''It's a no-brainer in terms of economies of scale but it's a matter of how big you amalgamate.
''If you amalgamate too big you may lose something. You're talking about something very personal to people, you're protecting their property or their trees or their whatever. They don't want you to lose sight of that.''
Other regions may be concerned that amalgamation will see resources pulled to more fire-prone areas.
Hawke's Bay and Tararaua were more sympathetic to a Wairarapa merger compared to Wellington because of the similar dry conditions they suffered. Mr Hilliard said rural fire mergers were happening nationally but Wairarapa was already ahead of the game after merging its four separate districts years ago.
Phill Wishnowsky, principal rural fire officer and the district's only full-time employee, said Wairarapa's current coverage was adequate. It had 240-250 and 11-12 fire trucks, with operation points spread out across the district.
As a volunteer force, he said, response time was heavily dependent on the time of day and time of week.