Field Staff Handbook
Guidelines for CfoC Bushfire Recovery
on Private Land
Contents:
1. Introduction
2. Purpose of the Caring for our Country private land program
3. Delivery of the Program – the service to landholders
4. Eligibility criteria for Caring for our Country (CfoC) funding
5. Ineligible activities
6. Reporting Requirements
Attachments:
· Property Recovery Plan Template
· Copy of Landholder Agreement
· Governance Arrangements - Terms of Reference
· Melbourne Water component of the Program
· Guidelines for contacting AAV
1. Introduction
1.1 Purpose of the Handbook
This Handbook describes the process for delivery of the Caring for our Country Bushfire Recovery service provided to landholders in the Port Philip and Western Port region. This service will be provided by a number of Field Officers located around the region.
The information provided in this Handbook will enable Field Officers to deliver the bushfire recovery service to landholders in a coordinated, cooperative and consistent manner.
1.2 Background
In February 2007, bushfires raged across Victoria, destroying thousands of hectares of private and public land. In response the Australian Government allocated funds towards the recovery of the natural assets in these bushfire impacted areas.
The Port Phillip and Westernport CMA (PPWCMA) was invited to apply to the Australian Government for bushfire recovery funding on behalf of their region. The PPWCMA funding application included a program for private and public land recovery. A provision for Field Officers, small landholder grants, knowledge and skill building activities, a volunteer labour program and expert technical advice for landholders was included in the private land recovery component.
The funding from the Australian Government encompasses a range of activities across private and public land in the bushfire impacted area. This is not an ongoing program, but is in response to the significant impact of the February 7, 2009 bushfires in Victoria. The program will be completed by 30 June 2011.
2. Purpose of the Caring for our Country private land program
The Australian Government has funded the Bushfire Recovery Program on Private Land, through Caring for Our Country (CfoC). The CfoC funding is for bushfire recovery where actions will protect and enhance nationally and regionally significant natural assets within the bushfire impacted areas. The Port Phillip and Westernport CMA Program must comply with CfoC priority areas as described in this Handbook. These CfoC priorities have guided the activities that can be funded. Details about what is eligible for funding are provided in this document. Pre and post fire mapping data and assessments will be used to guide broad geographic priority areas and location of known assets in the region.
The CfoC Bushfire Recovery Program on Private Land (the Program), will provide a service to landholders to assist them to recover from the February 2009 fires. The service provides bushfire recovery advice and management options for natural resources associated with their property, property recovery planning, and access to small grants for eligible recovery works.
The Field Officer will provide this service by taking a ‘case manager’ role. They will be the primary point of contact regarding natural resource management issues for affected landholders. The Field Officer will help the landholder understand the impacts from fire on natural resources on their property their options for managing the recovery process, will prepare a ‘Property Recovery Plan’, and help them access funds for planned works and/or assistance from volunteers. The exception to this is advice and small grants associated with waterway health recovery works that will be assessed for eligibility, and authorised by Melbourne Water field staff.
The Field Officer will also organise and promote information sessions and demonstration field days designed to build the capacity of landholders to manage the recovery of their property.
The provision of this service to landholders is funded from July 2009 until January 2011 (an eighteen month period). The Program and all associated works will be completed by 30 June 2011.
Program partners
Delivery of the Program will be the responsibility of the following organisations: PPWCMA, the Baw Baw, Yarra Ranges, and Nillumbik Shires, the City of Whittlesea, Melbourne Water, Department of Primary Industries and Goulburn Broken CMA. The partners have, and will contribute additional resources to the CfoC funded program.
Other Partners
Funding and support from other partners have been vital in the recovery activities in the region to date and will make a significant contribution to the success of this program. This includes support and resources from Landcare Groups and Networks, Department of Primary Industries, Department of Sustainability and Environment, Landcare Australia Limited, Victorian Farmers Federation and the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority (VBRRA).
3. Delivery of the Program – the service to landholders
Landholders with a rural or rural residential property that has been impacted by the February 2009 bushfires are eligible for a site visit from a Field Officer. The landholder will receive a Property Recovery Plan as part of the service provided.
3.1. Promotion of the service
The Program will be promoted through a number of avenues where landholders may be seeking advice and support during the recovery process. This will include information at Recovery Centres and Shire offices.
Landholders may make direct contact, or be referred to the Field Officer by Department of Human Services Case Managers, Community Recovery Committees, Department of Primary Industries, PPWCMA, Landcare Groups or Melbourne Water staff.
The PPWCMA will be creating promotional material in the form or flyers, postcards, media releases, email and website information. This will be supplied to the Field Officers and relevant agency staff for distribution.
· Landholder Information Kit
The PPWCMA will produce A4 folders called a ‘Landholder Information Kit’, which will hold information given to the Landholder regarding the Program and the landholder’s recovery plan. These A4 folders will be given to the Field Officers to give to the landholder for site visits. They can be used by the landholder to hold any Shire information that they are given, for example weed booklets, contractor lists. There will be a limited print run of these folders which are to be used for this Program, not for general use.
3.2 Property Recovery Planning
Landholders with a rural or rural residential property where the land has been impacted by the February 2009 bushfires are eligible for a site visit from a Field Officer. The landholder will receive a Property Recovery Plan (including a property map) as part of the service provided.
The Property Recovery Planning process is summarised in the flow chart included on page X of the Handbook.
There are three key parts to the process, the pre site visit assessment, the site visit and the post site visit.
Pre site visit
The Field Officer will make contact with the landholder to arrange a site visit. This is an opportunity to get some useful information from the landholder about the site and what the impacts have been. The Field Officer should describe the purpose of the site visit and ask the landholder to have relevant ABN and banking details with them. This will ensure you can complete the funding assessment and Landholder Agreement onsite (if they are eligible).
Before the site visit is undertaken, the Field Officer will look up the property address and any relevant mapping to indicate the likely assets on the property. From this desktop assessment, the Field Officer may identify the need to involve Melbourne Water and/or Department of Primary Industries in the site visit and should arrange for their involvement in the initial site visit. A joint site visit is preferable so staff are working together to provide the best advice, and to make the process easier for the landholder.
In performing the pre site visit assessment information must be collected about the property particularly the natural and cultural values at the site.
The mapping layers that must be checked before the site visit to establish natural and cultural assets present include:
o EVC’s on the property (current or pre 1750 data)
o Biological Conservation Status (BCS) of remnant vegetation
o Threatened species records (flora and fauna)
o Registered sites of cultural significance or areas of cultural sensitivity (based on AAV data)
o Waterways
Important referrals before the site visit:
Research into the property via the landholder and the mapping data, will reveal whether a number of pre site visit steps must be taken:
· Waterways: If waterways are present on the property contact Melbourne Water to arrange their involvement in the site visit
· Aboriginal cultural sites or sensitive areas present: You must contact AAV for advice. Refer to the AAV Guidelines prepared by PPWCMA included in the Handbook Appendices.
· Soil erosion: If the mapping, your prior knowledge of the site or feedback from the landholder indicates significant erosion issues at the property, then contact DPI to arrange a joint site visit.
A base map should be created in preparation for the site visit. This includes a standard mapping template with property address, and a ‘base’ aerial photo(s) showing:
o Property boundary
o House site and driveway
o Area of property burnt
o Other mapping layers (as per above)
Field Officer ‘checklist’ for site visits:
The following equipment and information will be required for site visits:
- Spatial information on known priorities in the landscape (data sharing agreements can be arranged)
- Funding and program guidelines and criteria (CfoC and other programs)
- Property Recovery Plan template and Landholder Agreement copy book
- Copies of aerial photographs of property (pre & post fire)
- GPS (where possible)
- Digital camera (photo monitoring)
- Information regarding volunteer assistance (eg CVA team, Landcare)
The Field Officer will provide information to the landholder regarding:
· Threatened species information - where there is or may be threatened flora or fauna located
· Recommended suppliers – eg nurseries, fencing material, sediment control materials
· Contractors – list of qualified service providers
· Shire – based programs and incentives, other grants that may be appropriate
· Other useful local information eg AgNotes, Landcare Notes, weed booklets, flora booklets
· EVC Lists, identification booklets and other information about native vegetation
The site visit
During the site visit, a Property Recovery Plan will be created by the Field Officer. A funding assessment will be completed where CfoC priorities are identified.
The Field Officer will look over the property and record the relevant assets on the property map, talk to the landholder about the natural resources on-site, the impacts from the bushfire and possible management options.
The Property Recovery Plan will include a map and a workplan to guide the landholder on what activities will assist in property recovery. Other information provided will help them build the knowledge and skills required for the tasks identified.
To be shown on the map in the Property Recovery Plan:
o Location of existing and proposed assets and fences (boundary, waterway protection, native vegetation protection, stock containment area, other internal)
o Location and impact of pest animal problems
o Location of erosion problems and proposed works
o Distribution of high priority weeds (threatening conservation values)
o Distribution of high priority weeds (threatening pasture values)
o Location of proposed revegetation and fencing to restore corridors
The Field Officer should be able to identify works eligible for funding in the workplan and fill out the required information. If the Property Recovery Plan does not include any CfoC priority areas eligible for funding, the Field Officer then completes the Property Recovery Plan and provides other assistance to the landholder where relevant.
Landholder small grants
The Property Recovery Plan may include activities that qualify for CfoC funding. In this case, the amount of funding going to the landholder must be established using the guidelines provided. The Field Officer must tally the total amount of CfoC funding, and complete the Landholder Agreement (including relevant banking and GST information on this form). The Landholder Agreement will include a total amount of funding to be paid to the landholder for the agreed works as you have identified in the Property Recovery Plan (up to $5,000 if given on the spot).
If the identified works are more than $5,000, the Field Officer has two options. One is to create a Landholder Agreement to fund part of the works that are eligible until further advice can be sought on the additional funding. A second Landholder Agreement can be then completed at a later date when approval is given for the additional funding. The second option is to defer any payment until approval is given by PPWCMA for the entire amount. The Field Officer will then draw up the Landholder Agreement at a later date.
Small grants to be managed by the Shire for multiple property works
Where the Field Officer identifies a pest or weed issue across a number of properties, they can organise for a contractor to undertake these works as one project as long as the activities are eligible under the CfoC priorities. The activity required should be included in the Property Recovery Plan but the funding amount should not be included in the workplan or Landholder Agreement. The funding for this work will not go direct to the landholder.
The Field Officer must apply to the PPWCMA for funding a multi-property project from the small grants budget. This will require a project proposal to PPWCMA and signing of a Project Agreement. These templates will be provided to the Field Officers as required. Funding will then be provided to the Shire for this project once approved.
Volunteer assistance
If there are appropriate tasks identified in the Property Recovery workplan suitable for volunteers to undertake, the landholder should be asked if they would like to register for help with these activities, and this should be indicated on the workplan. If the landholder would like volunteer assistance, the Field Officer will contact with the relevant volunteer program on the landholder’s behalf and provide information about what is required from the volunteer program. The Property Recovery Plan can provide details to the volunteer coordinator regarding the site and the work required. There may be local volunteer programs available that the Field Officer can refer the landholder too.