Bushfire risk in Maryborough in Victoria Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Bushfire risk in Maryborough in Victoria - Essay Example Regardless of the positive influence of the fires on the country’s flora and fauna, the extent of the loss of lives and destruction of property in the country is unwarranted thus compelling the country to country to invest millions of dollars with the view of safeguarding the population. Among the most adversely affected states in the country is state of Victoria, which has had a long history of bushfire disasters. The most recent of such disasters in the state was the Black Saturday bushfires, which resulted in more than one hundred and seventy deaths (O’Brien, 2002). To prevent such unwarranted loss of human lives and property, the Victorian state government has instituted several agencies such as the Department of environment and primary industries and the county fire authority both of which work in collaboration to mitigate on such disasters in the future. To do this, the organizations carry out effective risk assessment thus inform their population appropriately wi th the view of preventing the loss of lives and property in case of such fires. Additionally, the authorities strive to curb the fires in case they break out before the result in extensive loss of the country’s flora. ... Risk assessment and planning involves the utilization of varying amount of resources depending on the nature and size of the underlying potential of the risk. Such develops the concept of acceptable risk, which refers to the risk that the community can only accommodate. The cost of implementing an effective countermeasure to such risks is always too great for the community to bear. Furthermore, vulnerability of the countermeasure always exceeds the expected loss, such compel the community to understand and tolerate the prevailing risks (Lerche & Glaesser, 2006). An effective assessment of the risk that the fires present to the local population in the state of Victoria has helped reduce the deaths and magnitude of property damage in the event of such fires. However, the assessment compels the analysis of such factors as the climatic condition and the nature of the vegetative cover in the state. With such, the state authorities can therefore manage the settlement of the people and cont rol the activities of the local communities with the view of reducing the activities that pose threats such as smoking and garbage burning among other uncontrolled fire during the dry months. Sensitization and preparedness helps minimize the destruction of the fires since the local population stay aware of the nature of the prevalence of the fires. Additionally, the state authorities are also therefore capable of carrying out specific measures that help minimize the risk. Risk assessment matrix and methodology The fires vary in size thus pose varying risks to the local community. The varying magnitudes of the risks thus validate the use of a risk matrix, which