Rural Fire Authority chief at conference in South Africa

Posted on 23 June 2011

Chief Executive and Principal Rural Fire Officer Mike Grant recently returned from a trip to South Africa where he was one of the delegates from 72 countries attending the 2011 Wildfire Conference at Sun City.

Mr Grant represented the Southern Rural Fire Authority at the four day conference entitled "Addressing Global Change through Integrated Fire Management". The conference looked international fire management policies and their greater effect on the atmosphere, the climate and on human health.  

"The Wildfire Conference was a great way of generating international relationships and exchanging information and technology. No matter what environment the other attendees came from, the same principles of fire safety apply," Mr Grant said.

The conference was preceded by a Firewise Community Workshop which discussed a method of how to work with communities on fire safety, how to make communities aware of fire issues and of ways to mitigate fire risk. The workshop complimented a recent social research project carried out by the Southern Rural Fire Authority on engaging rural communities with fire safety.

"This workshop provided us with another tool that we can use to best work with our communities," Mr Grant said. "South Africa and New Zealand share a similar rural fire management structure with larger entities in South Africa being formed to co-ordinate rural fire activities similar to the Southern Rural Fire Authority."

Afterwards, there was a two week study tour of national parks, conservation organisations, forest companies and wild land fire authorities to observe and learn first-hand how they operate in order to see what might work in New Zealand.

Mr Grant was one of eight fire managers from New Zealand who attended the conference and various study tours.