Add Category
Longer, hotter and no relief at night. In the 50 years that former Fire and Rescue NSW Commissioner Greg Mullins has fought fires, the seasons have become much more intense. That intensity is predicted to increase further, according to new research.
Mr Mullins said year-round fire risk is now a real possibility for some regions in Australia as seasons expand in a warming climate, resources become more stretched and fire agencies reach the limit of their technical capabilities.
The extreme fires across the globe are expected to increase by 14 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by the end of the century.Credit:Nick Moir
“For 30 [years], we used to wait until nighttime to do back burning and contain them, [but] we can’t do them anymore,” Mr Mullins said. “It’s a direct result of climate change: it stops the humidity and moisture uptake.”
“We are reaching the technological limits of firefighting capability … but the window [to do hazard reduction is] so much smaller … on worst days, none of that is going to help.”
Mr Mullins’ comments come as new research by the United Nations finds climate change and land clearing are likely to make wildfires like the Black Summer fires even more frequent and intense. Spreading like Wildfire: The Rising Threat of Extraordinary Landscape Fires, published on Wednesday, predicts a 14 per cent global increase in extreme fires by 2030, and 50 per cent by the end of the century.
Co-editor and co-author of the report Andrew Sullivan, who is the leader of the CSIRO bushfire behaviour and risks team, said bushfires in the future could be far too fierce to control.
“Throwing more effort at trying to control them when they broke out isn’t going to make a difference,” Dr Sullivan said. “What we need to do is start by addressing what the problem is ... we need to be better prepared and mitigate the risk before the fire breaks out.”
“This isn’t a horror story. It’s about responding appropriately and coping with the fire. It’s not something that we can give up and bury our heads in the sand – it’s about recognising what the situation is and taking the steps necessary to deal.”
When large parts of California burnt earlier this month and residents prepared to evacuate, Orange County Fire Authority Chief Brian Fennessy told a media briefing: “We no longer have a fire season. We have a fire year.”