Infrastructure planning and upgrades

This map shows how Optus infrastructure, such as the pictured Dixon’s Creek Site in Victoria, is assessed for fire threat or building loss potential. Each coloured dot shows the level of hazard that location presents to the Optus infrastructure in the centre of the image. Locations are analysed for ember, radiant and flame threat, with the red dots showing the highest threat due to vegetation, proximity and slope at those locations. Locations with green dots may still pose some risk to bushfire, but do not pose as much of a threat to the infrastructure. © Optus

The National Bushfire Intelligence Capability’s bushfire hazard mapping products have multiple applications. 

These products inform decisions for investment in resilience in the built environment, ranging from residential housing to industry assets

Communities and industry rely heavily on telecommunications networks, especially during natural disasters and extreme weather events. Bushfire poses a major threat to critical telecommunications infrastructure.

With coverage at the national scale, the National Bushfire Intelligence Capability can uniquely resolve risk down to the level of an individual asset

One such demonstration is a collaboration with Optus to assess and mitigate network vulnerability to reasonable worst case bushfire hazard.

The National Bushfire Intelligence Capability provided authoritative information on terrain or slope, fuel load, vegetation type and local bushfire weather severity to develop maps.

Based on these maps site design changes and upgrades were prioritised to achieve resilient telecommunications infrastructure.