WA planning minister John Day says he is yet to receive Cockburn’s bushfire scheme amendment—because his public servants are still working on it, eight months after it was lodged.

His office called the Chook last week to say the minister is not holding up Cockburn’s amendment (“Day fiddles while ‘burbs burn,” February 8, 2014).

The council was the first to introduce fire risk zones in its town planning scheme as a direct result of the Keelty report into the 2011 hills fires.

Mr Day is waiting for the WA planning commission to provide him with a recommendation on the plan lodged by Cockburn last June.

A WA planning department spokesman says officials are working with Cockburn on the proposed amendment to create new bushfire prone or special control areas. They apply only to rural land in Cockburn and do not include specific bushfire protection measures such as vegetation clearing.

Meanwhile Cockburn’s chief engineer Michael Littleton has brushed off claims its reserves aren’t burnt off, saying they are when fuel loads get too high.

by CARMELO AMALFI