A NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) is conducting a hazard reduction burn at Medowie State Conservation Area is creating large smoke clouds visible from Scenic Drive, Newcastle.
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At 11am, the fire had burned through 73 hectares and was considered under control.
According to the NPWS website, the management of fire-prone NSW national parks requires a multi-layered approach, which includes fuel management.
"When it comes to reducing risks from fire-prone fuels, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) conducts planned hazard reduction activities like mowing and controlled burning to assist in the protection of life, property and the community," the site advised.
"A hazard reduction burn is a fire ignited and controlled to burn a predetermined area under specific fuel and weather conditions to attain planned fuel management outcomes.
"Hazard reduction burning, sometimes called controlled burning or prescribed burning, is completed in strategic areas of a park.
"This reduces fire-prone fuel hazards which can moderate fire behaviour and aid fire suppression efforts in the right weather conditions.
"However, when fires weather is severe, extreme or catastrophic, areas treated by hazard reduction burns may have limited influence on fire behaviour driven largely by the weather."
For more information about fires in your area, visit the NSW Rural Fire Service website.
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