DBCA called to modernise as conservationists claim prescribed burning policy makes things worse for forests

Prescribed burning has been one of Australia’s top tools for reducing the devastating impacts of bushfires for some time, but as technology advances, conservationists say it could be doing more harm than good.

Campaigners from the WA Forest Alliance have called for the Department of Biodivesity, Conservation and Attractions to urgently modernise its fire prevention methods as the group claims thousands of hectares of forest are needlessly burnt each year.

The DBCA targets 200,000ha of forest each year for burn-offs — around eight per cent of the remaining forested areas in the State.

Meeting this ensures the DBCA maintains a target to have 45 per cent of forested areas managed with a fuel age of less than six years.

Forested areas are broken up into zones, with Zone A within 3.5km of a populated area, Zone B within 11km of a populated area and Zone C covering beyond that.

Burns done within Zone A areas are essential to protecting infrastructure and make sense, WA Forest Alliance senior campaigner Jason Fowler said, but the rest may not be necessary.

“Because of this target (DBCA) have to hit each year, a lot of effort is going into burning wilderness a long way from any towns,” he said.

“And burning a forest down 50 kilometres from town has little impact on the bushfire risk in your town.”

Mr Fowler said the current over-burning of remote wilderness was proving to be “incredibly damaging” to the environment and animal inhabitants unable to escape.

Mr Fowler said established old-growth forests are naturally fire-resistant, but with only 1.5 per cent remaining, the majority of forested areas are currently regrowing.

“Every time we burn these areas, we create a big flush of new regrowth,” he said.

“This actually makes the problem worse, not better.

“Big animals like kangaroos and emus can run fast and get out of the road, but smaller animals, like the numbat, don’t run fast. They hide in logs and boughs, and when a fire comes along and if that log is incinerated, they will die.”

Mr Fowler said the DBCA didn’t have a thorough understanding of the damage being caused.

A DBCA spokesperson said the department’s management approach was informed by the best available science and evidence.

“DBCA maintains a Statewide fire research program building on knowledge gained over more than 60 years,” they said.

“Research shows that prescribed burning is effective in reducing the frequency, severity, and size of bushfires in South West forests when at least 45 per cent of the landscape has a fuel age of less than six years since it was last burnt.”

The spokesperson said these lower fuel loads result in lower-intensity and slower-spreading bushfires during summer and provide a safer working environment for firefighters.

The DBCA’s 2022-2023 annual report states 59,488ha of forest within 11kms of populated areas was burnt through the prescribed regime and more than 110,000ha of isolated forest went up in smoke.

The 2024-25 State Budget shows a $10 million increase in prescribed burning and fire management — going from $55m to $65m. Meanwhile bushfire suppression received a boost of just $500,000.

Mr Fowler said he sees this spending as a “backwards step”.

“If you think of the Darling Scarp, above places like Waroona, Yarloop or Harvey, it’s a very lightning-prone area and every year there’s a big bushfire there,” he said.

“Why don’t we have a network of cameras up there, so we can deal with fires much faster than we currently do?

“Targeting specific areas that are high-risk is a really good way to start to mitigate the risk, without destroying the forest in the process.”

The DBCA spokesperson said the department agreed quick detection and direct on-ground suppression efforts were critical in minimising the size and impact of bushfires, however, these methods are complemented by the proactive prescribed burning.

They said the DBCA will continue to explore new opportunities with emerging technology to assist with early bushfire detection.

Currently the DBCA’s early detection network includes the aerial spotter fleet of 10 American Champion Scout aircraft.