Grasslands and paddocks are likely to be the main focus for firefighters this summer as wet weather changes the nature of the upcoming fire danger season.
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Riverina RFS district coordinator Scott Conlan said the wetter winter and forecasts of a rainy spring would reduce dryness but also increase fuel loads.
"It's a bit of a double-edged sword really, on one side of it it's slowing or delaying the fire season but on the other side of the coin it's promoting the growth," Mr Conlan said.
"What we're anticipating is that we're more likely to see grass and broadacre fires rather than the forest type fires we saw last year."
He said the change in major risk areas would not do much to change how RFS prepared for the season, but their focus would be on grass fires which could move quickly once they get going.
"We're going to have significantly more growth on the roadsides and in the paddocks, crops at this stage are looking to be pretty good so there's going to be a lot of fuel load left over after the crops have been harvested," he said.
He said the RFS were usually conducting work to mitigate fire risks for about 10 months of the year, with teams currently working on asset protection zones around villages.
In spring, he said there would be a critical period of about three to five weeks once growth caused by winter and spring rains had reached its peak and begun to dry off where the RFS would ramp up mechanical and chemical fuel reduction efforts.
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NSW Forestry Corporation fire manager Charlie Taylor said the organisation took a similar approach in the Snowy Region, focusing on checking and clearing fire trails in spring.
Like the RFS, controlled burning is only part of the picture, with burns done in autumn before the bulk of the rain.
Mr Taylor said the spring rain would give them more time to prepare as the most dangerous part of the season is pushed back.
"Typically if it's a grass fire season those fires tend to occur around January, and maybe late December," he said.
Mr Taylor said the Forestry Corporation had been able to prepare for a normal fire season so far, with the outdoor hazard reduction work able to be done with little disruption from the coronavirus pandemic.
With much of the region covered in forest rather than grassland, the Riverina Highlands RFS Zone is expecting a less intense season than last summer.
The Dunns Road fire burnt through more than 330,000 hectares of the region, and while fire risk still remains district coordinator Peter Jones said they were expecting less activity.
"It doesn't mean we won't have a fire in that area ... what it has done is reduced the intensity so any fire that does start we should be able to get on top of quite easily," he said.
However, Mr Jones said the summer bushfires had forced many local farmers to de-stock, and less grazing would add to increased fuels caused by the rain.
He said the eastern side of the Snowy Valleys region which was not as heavily impacted by the fires would also still be at risk.