Planning for Bush Fire Protection (PBP, NSW)

Planning for Bush Fire Protection (PBP) is the NSW Rural Fire Service document that sets the bushfire protection requirements for development on bushfire-prone land. It is the planning-side framework in NSW, and it is broader than the construction-side standard AS 3959: where AS 3959 sets how the building is built (the BAL), PBP sets the whole site response, the buffer, the access, the water, and the design. The current edition is PBP 2019 (verified 2026-05-25).

It has legal teeth in NSW

PBP is a guide, but it is anchored in legislation:

• Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979: development on bushfire-prone land must generally meet PBP. Under s4.14(1A), if a development does not conform with PBP, the consent authority can only approve it after consulting the Commissioner of the NSW RFS.
• Rural Fires Act 1997: PBP is what the RFS applies when deciding whether to issue a Bush Fire Safety Authority, which is required for residential subdivision and Special Fire Protection Purpose (SFPP) development (schools, hospitals, aged and disabled care, tourist accommodation, retirement villages) on bushfire-prone land.

So in NSW, PBP is not optional guidance; it is the test the consent authority and the RFS apply.

The Bushfire Protection Measures

PBP works through a set of Bushfire Protection Measures, the levers that together reduce the risk to an acceptable level:

• Asset Protection Zone (APZ): a managed, low-fuel buffer between the building and the hazard. The required width depends on the vegetation, the slope, and the development type.
• Access: roads, driveways, and turning areas that let firefighting appliances in and occupants out.
• Water and utilities: a dedicated water supply for firefighting, and services located to reduce risk.
• Construction: the building itself, built to the BAL determined under AS 3959.
• Siting, design, and landscaping: where and how the building sits, and managed planting.

The APZ is a perpetual obligation

The APZ is the one that catches people after handover. It is not a one-off clearance: a planning consent commonly requires the APZ to be established and then maintained in perpetuity, an obligation that runs with the land. If the property is sold, the APZ maintenance requirement passes to the new owner and should be disclosed.

PBP vs AS 3959 (the key point)

These get conflated, and they are different scopes:

• AS 3959 is the construction standard: it sets the BAL and the building requirements for that level.
• PBP is the NSW planning framework: it adopts AS 3959 for the construction measure, but it also requires the APZ, access, and water measures that AS 3959 says nothing about.

So in NSW, a BAL assessment alone is not the whole job. The development still has to satisfy PBP’s planning measures, which is why a NSW bushfire assessment addresses PBP, not just AS 3959.

(PBP 2019 is current, but the RFS has a review of PBP underway, so check for a newer edition on a live project.)

For a builder

• On NSW bushfire-prone land, think PBP, not just BAL. The APZ, access, and water measures are planning conditions in their own right, separate from how the house is built.
• APZ is forever. Treat the APZ as a continuing maintenance obligation that runs with the title, and disclose it on sale.
• SFPP and subdivision need the RFS authority. Schools, aged care, tourist accommodation, and residential subdivisions need a Bush Fire Safety Authority; build the RFS process into the program.
• Get a bushfire consultant early. On bushfire-prone land the APZ and siting drive the design; sort them before the plans are locked, not after.

Also known as: PBP, PBP 2019, Planning for Bush Fire Protection 2019.

Related

• Bushfire prone area mapping
• AS 3959 (bushfire construction)
• Bushfire Attack Level (BAL)
• Bushfire consultant

See also

• BAL ratings explained

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Last updated: 2026-05-25. Verified: 2026-05-25. Quarterly review for currency.