New research projects

The recently established NSW Bushfire & Natural Hazards Research Centre (see post below of 24 July) has published their research program. Most of the 19 projects are bushfire-related, covering topics as diverse as smoke hazards, fuel management, early detection of lightning fires, backburning, ecological management, fire retardant impacts and utilising FESM (fire extent severity mapping). Many of the projects are classified as “large > $200,000” with timeframes running up to 2+ years.

The BNHRC is an extraordinary partnership between eight NSW Government end-user agencies…and six participating universities (WSU, UNSW, UOW, ANU, UMelb, and UTAS).

– BNHRC website

This program is a major step up in research to support and improve evidence-based fire management, and one of the more progressive outcomes from the NSW Independent Bushfire Inquiry. Interested people can sign up online for the centre’s newsletter.

IBG comment

• This extensive research program is very welcome, especially in the previously depauperate landscape of research to help bushfire operations. For some projects, the 2019-2020 season will provide a wealth of data and examples. All research outputs should be published.
• It is hoped the outputs will also be useful and robust enough to encourage the government to extend the life of the BNHRC beyond the few years currently funded. The potential economic payoff in bushfire management costs and impacts from this investment is considerable, noting that a $200,000 project is equivalent to the cost of about three drops from the NSW Marie Bashir VLAT (very large air tanker).
• A number of projects are particularly relevant to issues on which IBG has been advocating. These include backburning and the ecological impacts of fire. These projects arise from specific recommendations of the NSW Bushfire Inquiry which handed down its report in 2020. After a long wait of four years its encouraging to see those recommendations activated.
• The backburning and fire-break project will need to delve deeply into the operational details of examples to determine the fundamental reasons for successful and unsuccessful burns, in order to produce guidance for future operations. These details include not only fire and weather conditions, but also the resources used and how and when actions were undertaken.