In Queensland, the rules around bushfire management are mostly based on who controls land, not just who legally owns it. This means landholders, including owners, tenants, occupiers, government agencies and public authorities, carry a lot of day-to-day responsibility for managing bushfire risk on their land.
Queensland Fire Department (QFD) public messaging reinforces this strongly, with materials telling 'landowners they are legally responsible for managing bushfire hazards, and phrases like 'own the fuel, own the risk' being commonly used.
The Fire Services Act doesn't require landholders to reduce fire hazards on their own initiative proactively. In practice, a legal duty to act usually only begins when QFD formally issues a requisition notice, or when conditions are attached to a development approval.
This internship research examines the legal responsibilities of landholders in Queensland when managing bushfire hazards on their property and works toward answering that core question.
