Bunyah Local Aboriginal Land Council (LALC) and Forestry Corporation of NSW will be hosting a contemporary cultural burn at the soon to be developed Tourism Precinct in Cowarra State Forest on Wednesday 30th of September.

This burn follows on from fire fighter training provided by Forestry Corporation for LALC members in July. Forestry Corporation will support Bunyah LALC in their first of many cross-cultural fire training burns, with Coffs Harbour and District LALC teaming up with Bunyah and Biripi LALC’s to implement cultural fire in Cowarra State Forest.

Amos Donovan, CEO of Bunyah LALC said, “The sharing of cultural knowledge between two neighbouring communities is a great thing.”

John Shipp from Forestry Corporations Aboriginal Partnerships Team is proud to assist Aboriginal communities in making our forests healthy again.

“This partnership encourages cultural connection to country and management of traditional lands in the Bunya LALC region. Regular cool burns, used by Aboriginal communities for centuries, help forests develop a more open understorey and denser canopy,” Mr Shipp said.

Member for Port Macquarie, Leslie Williams said this burning was an important part of the Tourism Precinct showcasing the importance of traditional burning practices in the contemporary management of forests.

“The development of this facility is supported by a $2.1 million from the NSW Government’s Regional Growth – Environment and Tourism Fund and a financial contribution from the Forestry Corporation of New South Wales which will boost tourism in the local region, while showcasing modern forest management and traditional cultural land management practices to the wider community,” Mrs Williams said.

“Sustainable forest management is more important than ever as we rebuild fire-affected towns with sustainably-managed timber for bridges, electricity poles and homes. This new precinct is no different and will include local hardwood timber features throughout while being an important hub for Koala rehabilitation through the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital involvement in the precinct.”

Protection Forester, Mick Wilson, urged people to be mindful of the burning activity which will take place close to the Oxley Highway between the Pacific Highway and Wauchope.

“While the aim of this burn is to be slow moving with light smoke in line with traditional practices, there is many years of built up forest fuels to be burnt which will make some heavier smoke unavoidable. We are asking that motorists be aware there could be smoke in the area and please, drive to the conditions,” Mr Wilson said.

“We also advise people to stay out of the forest until the fire has been fully extinguished and avoid entering recently-burnt areas in the weeks following the burn for safety reasons.

“We thank the community for their understanding during this important burn. Updates and further information will be made available on the Rural Fire Service’s Fires Near Me website and app throughout the burn,” Mr Wilson said.