Module 25: After action review

Evaluation

Module Objective: To understand the benefits of a post-burn evaluation, and what important things to consider in evaluating the burn.

After-Action Review

After the burn is completed, its important to conduct a debrief (or After-Action Review) with staff about the burn (successes and failures). The debrief with staff will help you develop a written evaluation of the burn. Documenting this will help you remember and improve for future burns.

Why conduct a post-burn evaluation?

Evaluating how a prescribed burn went can help to:

• See if you have achieved your objectives, and reflect on why or why not
• Consider ways that might help to better achieve the objectives next time,
• Record thoughts and experiences, or possible adjustments to burn planning and execution to take into account in future. Having such a record will assist in jogging the memory as there can be long periods between when land managers conduct burns.

Evaluating the burn objectives

Reflective practice - The burn supervisor should briefly discuss and review the day‘s activities and experiences with those staff who were part of the burn, for the benefit of future performance.

Review against the Burn objectives - The landowner and burn supervisor (if they are not the same person) should review the performance of the burning operation against the plan, and make a written record of the area actually burned, noting any particular elements that were learned during the burn; e.g. fire behaviour in different vegetation types or slopes; wind behaviour ; etc. Records such as these will be invaluable in planning future burning operations in the same area. Old burn plans can also help you evaluate if you’ve been achieving your longer-term farm management objectives.

  A template or form can assist in recording the plan versus what actually occurred

[ Download a post burn evaluation here ]

Activity: Look at past burn plans for your land and discuss (with at least one other person who attended the burn) whether the burn met your objectives.

Learning outcome:

Know why it is important to perform a post-burn evaluation, and how to use the evaluation in future burn planning.