How best to burn the bush

Burn broadscale in the bush or burn small areas close to homes? One size does not fit all—the Prescribed Burning Atlas will help fire managers decide upon the best option to reduce bushfire risk.

By Nathan Maddock from the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC. This article was first published in Issue Four 2020 of Fire Australia.

New research into the complexities of prescribed burning across varied landscapes and weather conditions is supporting the critical decisions on how and where to use fire to protect communities. 

Drawing on cutting-edge science, the Prescribed Burning Atlas assists Australia’s fire agencies and land management departments by presenting options for their prescribed burning strategies. 

Launched in July 2020, the Atlas is a new website that provides fire and land managers with insights into the effectiveness of prescribed burning.  

Developed through the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC in partnership with the University of Wollongong, Western Sydney University and the University of Melbourne, the Prescribed Burning Atlas is an outcome of the CRC’s From hectares to tailor-made solutions project and was launched in a webinar by Naomi Stephens, CRC Director and Acting Executive Director Park Operations, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. 

The Atlas incorporates thousands of fire simulations across varied landscapes and under different weather conditions, with the research behind it headed by Professor Ross Bradstock at the University of Wollongong.

“The Prescribed Burning Atlas is about helping to identify the sweet spot of prescribed burning. It can compare the level of risk reduction achieved from different combinations of strategies, such as smaller edge burns close to homes or larger broadscale burns,” Professor Bradstock said. 

“There is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution to prescribed burning. Strategies must be tailored to different environments, and the cost-effectiveness of these different strategies can vary considerably between regions. For example, what is suitable for the ACT will not necessarily be best around Hobart.”

One of the key drawcards of the Atlas is its ability to compare the risk reduction from different types of prescribed burning strategies. Different types of burns achieve different outcomes for reducing the likelihood of life and property loss, and for protecting environmental values.

Importantly, the Atlas also has the ability to show the likely costs, and the point at which spending more money on conducting prescribed burning does not have any measurable effect on reducing the bushfire risk. 

With 13 different study areas across NSW, Victoria, ACT, Tasmania, SA and Queensland comprising the urban interface, remote bushland, arid grassland and subtropical bush, the Atlas also has the ability to compare the effects of climate change on prescribed burning effectiveness. 

Dr John Bates, CRC Research Director, believes the Prescribed Burning Atlas is a crucial tool for now and for the future. 

“Australia is a land of fire and prescribed burning has many different objectives—from reducing the risk of bushfire to homes and businesses, to improving ecological outcomes. The Prescribed Burning Atlas will help our fire and land managers to tailor their prescribed burning strategies to best reduce the risk in a target area, showing what is most effective and where it has limited value,” he said. 

Explore the Prescribed Burning Atlas at prescribedburnatlas.science

The team behind the Prescribed Burning Atlas comprises Prof Ross Bradstock (University of Wollongong), A/Prof Owen Price (University of Wollongong), A/Prof Trent Penman (University of Melbourne), A/Prof Matthias Boer (Western Sydney University), Dr Hamish Clarke (University of Wollongong/Western Sydney University), Brett Cirulis (University of Melbourne) and Anthony Rawlins (University of Melbourne).