Fighting fire with fire

Australia's devastating 2019-20 bushfire season thrust the debate about prescribed burning back into the national conversation. A webinar series in May delved into the complexities of the issue. 

By Communications Officer Bethany Patch from the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC. This article was first published in Issue Three 2020 of Fire Australia.

Since the devastating 2019-20 bushfire season and subsequent Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements, an inclusive national discussion about the science and effectiveness of prescribed burning has become more urgent. 

Across three weeks in May, the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC and the Australian Academy of Science invited leading figures in bushfire science and knowledge to discuss the issues around prescribed burning in a National Fire Fuels Science webinar series.

The aim of the series was to provide scientific knowledge to the national Royal Commission and various state-based inquires, explained Dr Richard Thornton, CEO of the CRC. 

“The complexity of fire and land management, and prescribed burning, continues to grow,” he said. “We wanted to cover some of the issues and debate the science with leading practitioners and researchers to determine the state of prescribed burning knowledge—what is known, what is unknown, what is in agreement and where we need more research.”

There is broad agreement that prescribed burning reduces the impacts of bushfires—which destroy lives, property and ecosystems. However, there are several complex perspectives about the nature, science and application of prescribed burning, which this series sought to clarify.

The first session outlined some of the key issues that make prescribed burning so difficult and divisive. Dr Sarah Harris (Country Fire Authority) covered impacts of climate change, while Ms Sascha Rundle (ABC Emergency Broadcasting) highlighted the diverse public perspectives in the media. Mr Oliver Costello (Firesticks Alliance) explained the benefits of Indigenous cultural burning, and Mr Justin Leonard (CSIRO) discussed housing survival during bushfire. 

Touching on the integration with Indigenous cultural burning, Mr Costello said that we now have an important opportunity to collaborate and consider how we manage our human needs alongside the needs of our landscapes. 

“We need to enable and empower all local people, particularly Aboriginal custodians, to be active managers in their landscape so we can prevent future impacts in coming fire seasons,” he said.

The second session dug deeper into the science of prescribed burning—what we know and what we do not know. Dr Neil Burrows, a longtime fire scientist and land manager in Western Australia, provided supportive evidence, and Professor Mike Clarke (La Trobe University) discussed the relationship between planned burns and bushfire risk. Associate Professor Tina Bell (University of Sydney and the CRC) covered the influence of burning on carbon and water, Dr Phil Zylstra (Curtin University) spoke about the relationship between the rate of fire spread and vegetation, and Professor Mark Adams (Swinburne University of Technology) outlined key complications of leaf litter and fire fuels.

Dr Burrows reiterated the importance of aligning scientific knowledge with land management practices.

“Scientists need to work closely with land managers and fire management agencies to help us work our way through this,” he said.

Prof Clarke reminded the audience that no single model of prescribed burning can be applied to all ecosystems, which makes it particularly difficult in an ever-changing climate.

“Drought conditions in this past savage summer have shown us that previously non-combustible plant fire masses become combustible,” he said. “Firefighters are reporting places burning that we haven’t seen burning in the past—rainforest gullies, damp mountaintops—on landscape scales. This is really challenging territory as we see an increase in the extent, frequency and severity of drought.”

The third session elaborated on the potentials and limitations of prescribed burning in practice. Dr Adam Leavesley (ACT Parks and Conservation Service) provided practical examples of bushfire suppression, with Dr Valerie Densmore (WA Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions) outlining the impact of fuel moisture on prescribed burns. Ms Ruth Ryan (HVP Plantations) discussed the need for better sociocultural risk modelling, while Dr Simon Heemstra (NSW Rural Fire Service) explained the importance of research from an emergency services point of view. 

To conclude the series, webinar host Mr Gary Morgan reminded everyone that there is no panacea for bushfires, and prevention should come in different forms. 

“Prescribed burning is not just about protecting human lives and their assets, but also about managing biodiversity and protecting our soils and water courses,” he said. “We know enough now to start applying the knowledge from current and past research, and applying it using adaptive management.” 

Dr Thornton said the high engagement across the webinars demonstrated the need for continued and wide-ranging public discussion of prescribed burning. 

“We’ve really only started to touch on the complexity of issues, with so many thoughts, opinions, views, values and lives at stake across the communities. It really underlines the importance of a multi-disciplinary approach to the issue.”

The recorded webinars, presentation slides, audience questions and follow-up videos are now available here.