The 2019–2020 Australian bushfires: a potent mix of climate change, problematisation, indigenous disregard, a fractured federation, volunteerism, social media, and more

Abstract

The intensity and duration of the 2019-2020 Australian bushfires were unprecedented, as were the global impacts. The area burnt was greater than the size of South Korea or Scotland and Wales combined. These bushfires took 7 months to contain or extinguish. The smoke plume, which spread around the world, was the equivalent size of the 11 largest states of the US. Carbon dioxide emissions approached Australia's annual total emissions. Over 90% of the adult population was impacted in some way. Thirty-three people died, and nearly 450 people died from smoke affects. More than a billion animals perished. This article contends that the story of these bushfires is much more complex than one of climate change, as posited by some. It is argued that the scale and catastrophic impact of these bushfires were caused-and exacerbated-by a conjunction of cumulative events, (in)actions, and institutions. This story is a potent mix of the problematisation of bushfires and governing, a federation of nation and local states fractured by constitutional responsibilities, the impact of neoliberal austerity policies on land management, discordant local-state policies, a long-term disregard of indigenous fire practices, the role of community (volunteerism), the transmission of (mis)information by social and traditional media, record temperatures, national rainfall the lowest for over a century, at least a third of the continent experiencing a severe 3year drought, and more.

What Do the Australian Black Summer Fires Signify for the Global Fire Crisis?

“…The fires triggered considerable public debate about the extent to which climate change was the cause [10,11]. Alternative propositions centred around land management, principally a lack of fuel management [11], but also the role of forest management [12].…”

“…The fires triggered considerable public debate about the extent to which climate change was the cause [10,11]. Alternative propositions centred around land management, principally a lack of fuel management [11], but also the role of forest management [12]. There was also debate about whether anthropogenic ignitions (specifically arson) or lightning were principally responsible for igniting the fires [10].…”

Animals in Disaster Social Work: An Intersectional Green Perspective Inclusive of Species

“…The overarching mission of social work is to focus on social problems, within their local, national and global contexts, and to do so from a social justice if not anti-oppressive perspective. Climate change and its catastrophic possibilities have been widely publicised for the last 40 years, alongside the devastating and extremely oppressive impacts for both human and animal populations ( Chester, 2020 ). Yet until relatively recently, social work has been slow to engage with the environment and climate change (see Dominelli, 2012 , p. 218; Walker et al , 2015 ; Alston et al , 2016 ).…”

“…Climate change also impacts animals by increasing the frequency and severity of other ecological disasters such as bushfires. In the 2019–20 bushfires in Australia, more land mass was burnt than Wales and Scotland combined, and the emergency responses were so frequent over an extended period of time that magpies (native Australian bird) imitated emergency vehicle sirens ( Chester, 2020 ). A conservative estimate—one known to deliberately underestimate the density of animal populations—is that one billion animals perished in these bushfires alone ( RMIT ABC Fact Check, 2020 ).…”

Fire and water: contaminants and clearance following uncontrolled fires

“…(Nikolakis & Roberts, 2020;Sayre, 2007)). For example, in Australia, it is widely noted that disruptions to ancient cultural burning practice coupled with climate change have led to markedly different patterns of fire severity and occurrence in the past 250 years (Chester, 2020;Fletcher, Hall, & Alexandra, 2020;Lane et al, 2010).…”