The 10/50 vegetation clearing code is changing the face of the Mountains - and not necessarily for the better, according to the mayor.
Clr Mark Greenhill said it was "open slather" in some parts, with large numbers of trees being removed without giving any greater protection against bushfires. At the same time, their removal potentially affects the biodiversity and landscape of the area.
He introduced a mayoral minute at last week's council meeting, seeking an update on the progress of a review of the legislation which is being conducted by the RFS. It also resolved to once again remind the NSW Government that its support for 10/50 was based on "appropriate environmental safeguards".
Clr Greenhill said council had repeatedly made submissions to the NSW Government regarding the 10/50 code, introduced in the wake of the October 2013 bushfires. It allows people to clear trees within 10 metres of their homes and vegetation up to 50 metres away without seeking approval.
The first submission was made "while the fires were still smouldering", the mayor said.
"We sought to have the 10/50 legislation subject to our own LEP and subject to the relevant environmental protection legislation in the state... Residents would be able to protect themselves but it wouldn't be open slather," he said.
"But we are seeing open slather. You only have to drive around places like Mt Riverview to see the changes in the landscape in areas away from the bushfire zone to know that 10/50 isn't being used in the way it was intended."
Clr Greenhill said since the introduction of the legislation, "there has been a 65 per cent reduction in applications to remove trees and a 33 per cent increase in complaints about clearing of trees".
"10/50 in and of itself is no panacea for bushfire protection. It convinces people they are protected while they aren't and at the same time produces a level of destruction."
The 10/50 code was introduced in August last year. After widespread concerns (particularly in Sydney waterfront suburbs), it was changed in November to align the areas where such clearing was allowed to mapped bushfire prone land.
Ecology student Eli Bendall, from Mt Riverview, said he saw "abuses of 10/50 daily".
Just last week, he took a photo of vegetation which had been cleared and then illegally dumped within an asset protection zone.
Mr Bendall said the legislation was deeply flawed and poorly drafted. The RFS won't investigate allegations of illegal clearing, only referring them to council, which lacked the resources to properly investigate.
He was also alarmed that 10/50 overrides all other legislation, including the Threatened Species Act and Native Vegetation Act. This means that threatened species - such as the remnant turpentine/ironbark forest around Mt Riverview and East Blaxland - are being cleared.
He agreed with the mayor that professional assessment of fire prone vegetation was needed.
