Australia’s oldest land managers may hold the key to surviving its hottest future. Across the continent, Indigenous fire knowledge is making a comeback—and it’s reshaping how we think about bushfires, biodiversity, and resilience.
🔍 In Brief
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Long before hazard reduction burns became policy, Aboriginal communities were using fire as a tool, not just for survival, but for care.
Known as “cultural burning”, these low, cool burns were designed to clear undergrowth, protect trees, and invite regrowth of food plants and medicinal species.
“Our fires speak the language of Country,” says Victor Steffensen, a Tagalaka fire practitioner. “When done properly, fire doesn’t destroy—it heals.”
After decades of suppression policies, this ancient knowledge is finally gaining ground again, especially as Australia faces hotter, longer bushfire seasons.
🌡️ Fire and a Warming Climate
Australia’s climate is becoming more fire-prone. The CSIRO warns that extreme fire weather days have increased since the 1970s, and fire seasons are starting earlier and ending later.
This puts more pressure on conventional hazard reduction methods. High winds, dry fuel loads, and erratic rain patterns make broadscale burning riskier.
But cultural burns, done at the right time and scale, offer a safer alternative.
Studies show these methods reduce catastrophic fire risk and even enhance biodiversity—especially in savannas and woodlands.
🌾 Reviving Knowledge, Rebuilding Country
Organizations like the Firesticks Alliance are working to train Indigenous rangers and landholders in cultural fire practices. In Arnhem Land and parts of Queensland, these burns are already being used to manage over 17 million hectares.
“This is about more than land—it’s about culture, ceremony, and healing,” says Walgett elder Narelle Long. “Fire knowledge connects us to our ancestors.”
But scaling these efforts faces roadblocks.
Land tenure issues, regulatory red tape, and lack of sustained government support make it hard to integrate traditional knowledge into national bushfire plans.
🌍 Carbon, Co-Benefits, and the Future
Beyond fire risk reduction, cultural burning offers climate co-benefits.
According to a 2021 study by the Climate Council, early-season cool burns can lower greenhouse gas emissions compared to late-season wildfires, which release more methane and nitrous oxide.
There’s also growing interest in the carbon market: Indigenous land managers may earn carbon credits for emissions avoided through cultural burning, providing economic incentives for climate-smart land care.
But to unlock these opportunities, Australia must commit to Indigenous-led fire programs—not just as a cultural gesture, but as core climate policy.
🧭 The Path Forward
Australia’s future will burn.
It’s a matter of how, when, and why.
If done right, fire can be an ally against ecological collapse.
But that means listening to those who’ve managed this land for 65,000 years.
“Cultural burning isn’t just about fire,” says Steffensen. “It’s about responsibility. It’s about reading Country. And it’s about time we put it at the centre of our resilience planning.”
- 🔗 Firesticks Alliance – Cultural fire knowledge and training
- 🔗 Climate Change in Australia – CSIRO
- 🔗 Indigenous Fire Management in a Changing Climate – Climate Council
- 🔗 What Is Cultural Burning? – The Conversation
- 🔗 IPCC AR6 – Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability
- 🔗 Victor Steffensen – Indigenous fire practitioner and author
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