Under the Repay WA scheme, supervised community-based offenders will coat fire retardant paint onto power poles in high fire risk areas.
Fire retardant paint protects poles against low intensity fires and prevents a wood pole from smouldering for hours.
The three week trial was designed to test whether hand painting poles could become a viable long-term option.
Western Power already machine coats new poles with fire retardant paint before they are placed in the field, but it plans to explore the option of retrospectively painting poles already in the field and in high fire risk areas.
Fire retardant paint protects poles against low intensity fires and prevents a wood pole from smouldering for hours.
The three week trial was designed to test whether hand painting poles could become a viable long-term option.
Western Power already machine coats new poles with fire retardant paint before they are placed in the field, but it plans to explore the option of retrospectively painting poles already in the field and in high fire risk areas.
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Ph: +61 (08) 9923 9211; Fax: +61 (08) 9923 9222; Email: brian.ellis@mp.wa.gov.au
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Community offenders to fireproof power poles
Hand painting poles after they have been installed is usually a prohibitively costly option, which is why Western Power is looking at the opportunity of using community-based offenders.
It is expected to be a win-win project, as Western Power will provide basic training and the opportunity for some offenders to learn a new skill, while the corporation will have access to no-cost labour.
A quality assessment and feasibility study will be conducted at the conclusion of the trial.
The trial is just one example of how communities can benefit from the work of Repay WA crews carrying out a range of tasks.
About 144,000 hours of adult community work were completed last financial year, equating to about $2.294 million worth of labour.
Around 400 community projects across the State currently getting valuable labour from Repay WA.
It is expected to be a win-win project, as Western Power will provide basic training and the opportunity for some offenders to learn a new skill, while the corporation will have access to no-cost labour.
A quality assessment and feasibility study will be conducted at the conclusion of the trial.
The trial is just one example of how communities can benefit from the work of Repay WA crews carrying out a range of tasks.
About 144,000 hours of adult community work were completed last financial year, equating to about $2.294 million worth of labour.
Around 400 community projects across the State currently getting valuable labour from Repay WA.