If you were pregnant or parenting during Australia’s 2019–20 summer of smoke and fire, chances are you felt acutely anxious – and grappling with impossible responsibility.
We used satellite data to create global maps of where and how fires are burning. Fire season lasts two weeks longer than it used to and fires are more intense. But there are regional differences.
Parents and emergency responders repeatedly said evacuation centres should have a separate space for families with very young children. Here’s what else we could do.
Before the colonists came, we managed the land with careful use of cool burns. To stop giant bushfires, we have to learn again how to care for country.
The predatory beetle Eurylychnus blagravei.
Nick Porch
New research finds the Victorian town of Buchan never experienced catastrophic bushfires, until misguided laws banned the use of burning as a way to control the land.
The tiny golden-tipped bat roosts in the nests of rainforest birds. But high intensity extreme fires can increasingly reach into their unburnt sanctuaries.
The paltry spending means many species severely impacted by the megafires were left in desperate trouble, potentially pushing some closer to extinction.
This election was a perfect storm for the Coalition, with fires, floods and international criticism dialing up the pressure for climate action. In the end, Australia made the decision for them.
Without changes, many birds will continue to decline or be lost altogether. But when conservation action is well resourced and implemented, we can turn the trend around.
One year following the 2019/20 fires, this forest has been slow to recover.
Rachael Nolan
Many plants are really good at withstanding bushfires, but the combination of drought, heatwaves and pest insects under climate change may push them to the brink.
New research also identified steps people wished they’d taken to prepare for disaster, such as protecting sentimental items, planning a meeting place and better managing stress.