About the
State Bushfire
Coordination Committee

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Role of the SBCC

The SBCC is a State-level South Australian Government committee appointed by the Governor made up of representatives and nominees of fire and land management and allied agencies, and representative organisations. Executive support is provided by the SACFS.

The primary roles of the Committee are to:

promote the coordination of activities of agencies responsible for bushfire management;
provide oversight, guidance and assurance regarding the operation of Bushfire Management Committees and the implementation of Bushfire Management Area Plans; and
promote bushfire awareness.

The State Bushfire Coordination Committee is established under the Fire and Emergency Services Act 2005 (FES Act), in Section 71. The Committee's functions are set out in Section 71A of the Act, and form the terms of reference for its operation.

Promoting the coordination of bushfire management activities

Supporting better prepared, safer and more resilient communities

Building partnerships and shared responsibility

State Bushfire Coordination Committee governance

The SBCC is a State-level committee tasked with coordinating bushfire management in South Australia. It brings together representatives of State Government fire and land management agencies, along with agencies managing critical infrastructure and those who have responsibilities in bushfire and emergency management. The Committee also includes nominees of representative organisations: local government, primary producers, SACFS volunteers and the environmental conservation sector.

The functions of the SBCC are set out in the Fire and Emergency Services Act 2005 and form the statutory terms of reference for the Committee. They are summarised below:

to advise the Minister on bushfire prevention and matters related to bushfire management in the State;
to promote the State-wide coordination and integration of policies, practices and strategies relating to bushfire management activities;
to provide guidance, direction and advice to bushfire management committees and to resolve issues arising between bushfire management committees;
to prepare, and keep under review, the State Bushfire Management Plan and to keep under review the extent to which Bushfire Management Area Plans and policies, practices and strategies adopted or applied by bushfire management committees are consistent with the State Bushfire Management Plan;
to oversee the implementation of the State Bushfire Management Plan and to report to the Minister on any failure or delay in relation to the implementation of the plan;
to prepare, or initiate the development of, other plans, policies, practices, codes of practice or strategies to promote effective bushfire management within the State;
to promote public awareness of the need to ensure proper bushfire management within the State;
to report at the request of the Minister, or on its own initiative, on any matter relevant to bushfire management.

The SACFS is required to provide executive support to the SBCC under the Act.

The State Bushfire Coordination Committee is, in the performance of its functions, subject to the general direction and control of the Minister (but the Minister cannot give a direction with respect to any advice or recommendation that the State Bushfire Coordination Committee might give or make or with respect to the contents of any report).

Procedural support for governance arrangements for both the SBCC and BMCs is provided in a handbook. This Handbook will be subject to change as the actions in the State Bushfire Management Plan 2021-2025 review of SBCC and BMC governance arrangements are implemented.

Members

Members and deputy members of the SBCC are appointed by the Governor of South Australia for a three-year term. The current term commenced on 14 November 2020 and concludes on 13 November 2023. It is the sixth term of the Committee appointed by the Governor.

Attorney-General's Department - Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation

Mr Ivan-Tiwu Copley OAM JP - Member

Deputy Member - VACANT

Bureau of Meteorology

Ms Kylie Egan - Member

Mr Mark Anolak - Deputy Member

Country Fire Service Volunteers Association

Mr Andrew Cadd - Member

Mr David Lindner - Deputy Member

Conservation Council of South Australia

Mr Mark Ashley - Member

Ms Tessa Roberts - Deputy Member

Department for Environment and Water

Ms Fiona Gill - Member

Mr Damon Ezis - Deputy Member

Department of Infrastructure and Transport

VACANT (pending nominations)

Department of Primary Industries and Regions

Ms Justine Drew - Member

Ms Elena Petrenas - Deputy Member

ForestrySA

Ms Monique Blason - Member

Mr Peter Merry - Deputy Member

Landscape SA

Mr Michael Garrod - Member

Mr Jonathan Clark - Deputy Member

Local Government Association of South Australia

VACANT (pending nominations)

Native Vegetation Council

Ms Sarah Reachill - Member

Ms Merridie Martin - Deputy Member

Outback Communities Authority

Mr Bill McIntosh - Member

VACANT - Deputy Member

Planning and Land Use Services - Department for Trade and Investment

Mr Troy Fountain - Member

Mrs Rhiannon Hardy - Deputy Member

Primary Producers South Australia

Mr Peter White - Member

Mr Don Gilbertson - Deputy Member

SA Country Fire Service

VACANT (pending nominations)

SA Metropolitan Fire Service

Assistant Chief Fire Officer
Peter Button - Member

VACANT - Deputy Member

SA Police

Assistant Commissioner
Stuart McLean - Member

Chief Superintendent
John De Candia APM - Deputy Member

SA Power Networks

Ms Ali Walsh - Member

Mr Luke Brooks - Deputy Member

SA Water

Mr James Crocker - Member

Ms Brooke Swaffer - Deputy Member

Meeting schedule

The SBCC meets quarterly.

Communiques are issued following each meeting.

SBCC Meeting 6/6 18 Mar, 2022
SBCC Meeting 6/7 20 May, 2022
SBCC Meeting 6/8 19 Aug, 2022
SBCC Meeting 6/9 18 Nov, 2022

Meeting communiques

The communique provides a summary of the deliberations of the Committee at each of its formal meetings. This assist in communicating the general directions of the Committee between meetings, and ahead of the endorsement of meeting minutes, noting that the Committee meets quarterly.

More communiques

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