Research leader

A/Prof Gary Sheridan Research Leader

End User representatives

Jan Radic End-User
This project was commissioned and funded entirely by the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Victoria. 

The objectives of this project were to:

  1. Assess the performance and operating characteristics of fuel moisture sensors deployed in the DEPI Phase II sensor network.
  2. Determine the relationships between litter and sensor fuel moisture in a range of vegetation types
  3. Develop guidelines for determination of location and characteristics of monitoring sites for a statewide sensor network

This project was put in place to assist DELWP in its role to achieve reduced impact of major bushfires and other extreme events on people, infrastructure and the environment, and its objectives of:

1. A planned burning program that delivers government requirements

  • The scheduling and coordination of a large burning program is a key cost factor and challenge, the fuel moisture information would feed directly into this process.

2. Capacity aligned to effective bushfire management

  • The proposal allowed capacity to be more effectively and efficiently deployed and focused.

3. Risk-based approach to preparing and responding to emergencies

  • The proposal provided key information which is fundamental to understanding risk but which is currently unavailable. Existing fire behaviour models have been significantly improved by including this information. This proposal provided the baseline data capture for risk modelling outputs involving fuel moisture

4. Respond to fire and non-fire emergency events

  • An improved understanding of current local fuel conditions is an import element in deciding how DEWLP and the public should respond during and in anticipation of bushfires. The fuel moisture data is helping to predict fire behaviour and the likelihood of fires starting.  Responses and warnings will be able to be better planned and tailored to the on ground conditions
William Bovill Conference Poster 2016
14 Aug 2016
DELWP is trialing the use of a statewide network of in-situ fuel moisture sensors to provide real-time online...