What are the risks associated with fuel reduction burning?
Many types of bushland are very resilient to fire. Indeed, they need occasional fire to maintain a diversity of plants and animals. However, the wrong approach to fuel reduction can actually make parts of the landscape more, not less, fire prone. Rainforests (such as those in pockets of the Otways and east of Marysville, or the Sassafras forests in East Gippsland) are ancient forest types, much older than 50 million years, and are very vulnerable to any fire. Fuel reduction burning in rainforests can create a long-term hazard by encouraging the growth of more fire-prone types of vegetation. The wrong fire frequency or intensity can permanently change habitats and wipe out native animals. This does not mean all fuel reduction burning should cease, but that it should be scientifically informed and monitored to avoid the long-term loss of biodiversity.
