Vineyard owners within 3km of proposed prescribed burns to be undertaken by National Parks and Wildlife Service SA (NPWSSA) in the Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges Region this autumn have been contacted by Vinehealth Australia with information about how to stay informed about burns.
Vineyard owners can monitor the status of prescribed burns via the NPWSSA’s interactive map. This map shows you the location of burns and their status (proposed, seven days prior to ignition, 24 hours prior to ignition, patrolling, and safe), so you will know if one is about to happen near you.
Note, there is rarely seven days warning as prescribed burns are highly dependent on specific weather conditions.
You can also sign up for The Fire Side e-news which includes information about prescribed burns.
We recognise that smoke taint is an important issue. You can voice concerns about an upcoming burn and unharvested grapes by contacting Dani Boddington (NPWSSA Regional Fire Management Officer) on 0437 118 217, or the NPWSSA Regional Fire Duty Officer on 0423 027 346.
In addition to this, NPWSSA:
- Will notify you of a prescribed burn by letter drop if your property directly adjoins a prescribed burn site.
- May on a case-by-case basis, ask Vinehealth Australia to contact Vineyard Owners to find out whether you have finished harvest. These instances are most likely to be associated with critical burns, larger burns and ones where weather may be changeable.
NPWSSA has indicated they are committed to reducing the risk of smoke taint by following these steps:
- Identifying prescribed burns which may impact neighbouring vineyards.
- Liaising with wine industry groups regarding the status of the grape harvest.
- Choosing a day with favourable wind conditions to avoid smoke exposure to neighbouring vineyards which have not been harvested.
- Contacting the Bureau of Meteorology for its smoke modelling tools to help predict smoke dispersion.
- Assessing potential impacts from smoke drift or inversion layers.
- Monitoring weather conditions during the burn, and changing the lighting pattern or postponing the burn, if conditions become unsuitable.
To date NPWSSA has not been informed of any incidences of smoke taint caused by these prescribed burns in SA.
Prescribed burns are conducted under controlled conditions on public or private land, in strategically chosen locations, in partnership with local landholders and the CFS. They are done to reduce fuel in an environmentally sensitive way and regenerate plant and animal habitats.