People needed to know they could protect their property and lives, he said.

Cr Simpson said that people in the shire could hear the sound of chainsaws at the first hint of fire in an area that was no stranger to bushfire devastation.

People have the right to protect their property, he said.

There are 200,000 people living in the shire and everyone has the right to defend and protect their homes, he told Sutherland Shire Council meeting on Monday.

Premier Nathan Rees had warned that this summer could be the state's worst bushfire season on record, Cr Simpson said.

He called on the council to change its development control plan (DCP) so that trees could be pruned, cleared and removed from private property without council permission.

Council general manager John Rayner said that DCP changes needed community consultation and ministerial permission.

The councillors voted to defer further discussion of the matter until the next public council meeting on November 23.