Bushfire

Facing the future of disaster resilience

Extreme events continue to challenge Australians under a changing climate. We explore the role of science in helping build our resilience as we prepare for future disasters and improve our response and recovery.

country side with smoke plume in the distance

Protecting the health of Australians through improved bushfire smoke forecasting

Air quality forecasting improvements will be able to provide hourly and daily information on pollutants in the air to help fire and environmental authorities, and the community.

Ten steps to increasing bushfire resilience

A Queensland bushfire resilience guide for homeowners was named a state finalist in the Resilient Australia Awards in Brisbane on October 6, 2021. We step through the guide's top tips.

A raging Australian bushfire with large flames against a green forest. Image/Flickr

Why hazard reduction burning is no smokescreen

Used alongside other fire management approaches, hazard reduction burning can reduce the impact of bushfire on property and loss of life.

A boat sits on the water while the bush behind it (on the edge of the lake) is on fire.

One House to save many

Sometimes playing with fire is actually the safest option – especially when you’re building houses designed to withstand extreme events.

Building our nation’s climate and disaster resilience: where to from here?

Recent extreme climate and disaster events are fresh in our minds given the summer of 2019/20. So it's timely to question what we can do to build climate and disaster resilience to support our communities, the economy and our environment.

Plants resprouting from a tree trunk after fire

Where there’s smoke there’s complex decisions in the land that burns

Australia is one of the most fire-prone countries on earth. Last summer, as the fires raged, so did the national debate: could we have done more to prevent the carnage? Should we have done more hazard reduction burning?

NSW Digital Twin to inform emergency planning this bushfire season

The new NSW Spatial Digital Twin will assist emergency services in developing effective emergency management strategies ahead of the upcoming bushfire season.

Aerial image of south-western Victoria. A red dot shows Cobden and there is a trail of smoke blowing to the west.

Forecasting smoke from a forty-day fire

In recent years there has been an increase in the occurrence of peat fires. Smoke from these events can significantly impact surrounding communities due to the health risks associated with prolonged poor air quality. Using an air quality forecasting system (AQFx), CSIRO researchers are helping authorities to minimise this impact.

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