EARLY START TO BUSHFIRE SEASON

It's barely spring, but in New South Wales the bushfire season has been declared. It might not mean a lot for city dwellers, but for those of us on the urban fringe it's not a good sign. In spite of recent rain New South Wales is described as a tinderbox.

For the uninitiated, tinderbox is an expression that until recent years we didn't hear until midway through a blistering summer. February, March or even April is more traditionally described that way, so to hear it in September is scary.

The Rural Fire Service says that literally millions of people are at risk from bushfires this season in New South Wales. In the Blue Mountains and Hawkesbury we know we're included. This year saw the seventh driest May on record in New South Wales, according to the Bureau of Meteorology, followed by another dry June, which continued a run of 14 consecutive months of warmer-than-average daytime temperatures. The records are likely to continue breaking in coming months.

So it's no surprise that residents flocked to the Blue Mountains Bushfire Building Community Forum at the
weekend, where experts from the New South Wales RFS and other bushfire professionals shared their knowledge,
tips and advice for people living and working in bushfire-prone areas. This was part of a two-day event, with
the other day for the industry to get the latest in bushfire design and construction. It's an initiative that came
out of the 2013 Winmalee fires five years ago, and was organised by Blue Mountains Economic Enterprise and
supported by the RFS.

I want to thank everyone involved in continuing to raise awareness about how we best protect ourselves. I also congratulate those involved in the production of Fire Stories, which looks at the Blue Mountains fires, another useful educational tool for people living in bushfire areas. The Blue Mountains World Heritage Institute, with the support of the RFS, National Parks and Wildlife and Blue Mountains City Council, have made a powerful documentary that I'd encourage people to see.

I would also flag the upcoming workshop by Blue ARC that helps you plan for your animals in a bushfire or other natural disaster. It is on at Springwood on 6 October and details are on my Facebook page.

It would be remiss of me not to note that the banking royal commission is about to turn its attention to insurance, with the treatment of bushfire victims scheduled to be in the spotlight. After the Blue Mountains experience, I believe there is much to be done to ensure home owners' interests are protecte