Massive Australian bushfire impacts: it's our fault
The Black Summer bushfires of 2019–20 claimed 33 lives, destroyed over 3,000 buildings and scorched more than 24 million hectares across South East Australia. But far from being a freak disaster, it was a warning of worse to come. And we have learned almost nothing in relation to mitigation.
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The author considers that current fire management approaches across SE Australia landscapes are failing and, in many cases, have failed. State and federal fire interval approaches focus too narrowly on individual species and threatened flora and fauna communities, while largely ignoring the long-term consequences of not burning.
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For tens of thousands of years, Aboriginal Australians actively managed the land through frequent, low-intensity burning. This "cultural fire" regime created open forests, controlled fuel loads, and sustained biodiversity. European colonisation disrupted this balance. The suppression of Aboriginal fire practices and later policies favouring fire exclusion allowed vegetation to become denser (including understories) and more flammable.
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The ecological toll is staggering. In many cases grassy forests are becoming shrubby forests. Obligate tree species such as Alpine ash forests, which require 15–20 years between fires to regenerate, are at risk from repeat bushfires. Hollow-bearing trees - critical for birds and marsupials - are being lost in large numbers in megafires.