Power Network Bushfire Risk Characterisation – Powerlink, Queensland - Dr Kate Parkins

Annualised Loss to the power transmission network - characterised as the likelihood of a bushfire in the landscape resulting in damage to the Powerlink power transmission network, helping to identify parts of the network that are more vulnerable to impacts from bushfires. [...] Secondly, the Annualised Loss to the power transmission network was characterised as the likelihood of a bushfire occurring in the landscape surrounding the Powerlink network leading to damage or loss of the network. [...] The resulting information can be used to identify the highest risk locations (i.e., the ignitions along the Powerlink network which would result in the greatest consequences, or ignitions in the landscape that will have the greatest impact to Powerlink assets), the conditions under which the impacts will be greatest (i.e., under bad fire weather conditions, or where fuel loads are greatest), and t. [...] One of the objectives of this project was the ability to determine the areas of the greatest consequence from ignitions along the Powerlink network, including the ability to identify where the greatest risk originates from (i.e., where an ignition is likely to cause the greatest impact). [...] In terms of annualised risk to the Powerlink network from fires starting elsewhere in the landscape, the highest probability of loss of the network was found to occur in the coastal and highly urbanised regions (i.e., around Brisbane and Rockhampton).