Our Burning Shores
Implications for fire management on the Kimberley coast October 2012 Richard Costin & Annabelle Sandes Kimberley Media
Fire has been an integral part of the
region’s biodiversity and productivity of the
Once the dry season settles over the land,
Kimberley’s environment for millions of years
active pastoral leases.
the fuel dries and the prevailing easterly
and has modified the biodiversity of the flora
winds kick in, making it difficult to predict
and fauna in the region. Natural fire patterns Prescribed burning is being used to create
the extent and severity of the fires. Land
across the land have been modified since
a mosaic of burnt and unburnt patches
managers in the Kimberley are faced with
the arrival of man.
throughout the country. There is a broad
the difficult task of deciding when to burn
acceptance that “cool” fires help to reduce
and how frequently to burn.
Aboriginal people used fire as a tool to
fuel loads in the bush and limit the impacts
open up access, to hunt, to cook , for
of fire on the biodiversity of the rangelands,
Fires along the Kimberley coast are now
communications and to limit the impact
and broad acceptance also that “hot” fires
changing the landscape and threatening
of fire on their clan estates. Burning was
are damaging to country.
the biodiversity of the rangelands and rivers
a normal pastime that was carried out
of the region.
12 months of the year and in response
The severity of fire is linked to a number of
to changes in seasons and the nesting
factors that include the fuel load, ambient
Successive fires from prescribed burning,
and breeding times for birds and animals.
temperature, moisture content of the fuel,
arson, mining exploration and lightning
Aboriginal occupation over 40-50,000 years is wind speed, slope of the country and
strikes are modifying the plant communities
also bound to have had a significant impact vegetation type and composition.
along the coast. Beautiful stands of
on the landscape.
Eucalyptus trees and Cyprus pine have been Natural fires from lightning strikes and
decimated over the past 10 years.
When European settlers occupied the land,
prescribed burns during and towards the
many of the traditional owners were moved
end of the wet season are quite often
These changes are not a response to
from their country. In modern times, severe
cool burns that have a minimal impact on
climate change but a response to changes
fires have raised community concerns about the country, and allow for an immediate
in fire managment practices. Shorter
how best to limit the impacts of fire on the
intervals between fires no longer allow for
recovery of the vegetation.
Mt Hart Station, wet season 2004
the regeneration of many of the tropical
into land management in the Kimberley,
woodlands along the coast.
so is being strongly supported by most political parties, the Kimberley Land Council
These changes in manangement are now
and the Department of Environment and
driven by a new savannah burning initiative
Conservation.
that provides commercial opportunities for land managers across the north of Australia.
This is promoted as the new economy for indigenous communities across the
No commercial incentives have been
Kimberley. The question remains as to
suggested to manage these tropical
how this will be managed and what will
savannal woodlands as carbon sinks by
be the ultimate cost to the biodiversity of
excluding fires in suitable areas or increasing
Kimberley’s rangelands?
the intervals between successive fires. Collaborative broadscale fire management Small pockets of woodland on the mainland
projects such as Ecofire in the Kimberley and
and islands have been overloooked by
the West Arnhemland fire abatement project
fire managers over the past 10 years, and
in the Northern Territory are providing some
provide us with a stark and refreshing
of the answers to these questions.
reminder of what the coastal vegetation should look like under natural conditions. The new Savannah burning initiative has the potential to inject millions of dollars
Fitzroy Bluff, wet season 2003
East Talbot Bay 4 th August 2011 Successive fires over the past ten years have destroyed Savannah woodland once dominated by Eucalyptus miniata along the shores of East Talbot Bay and in many other areas along the Kimberley coast.
Horizontal Falls fires 29th May 2011 Successive dry season fires around the Horizontal Waterfalls in Talbot Bay are changing the landscape.
Horizontal Falls fires 29th May 2011 Fuel reduction burning in May 2011 opened up the landscape for mining exploration around the Horizontal Waterfalls
The stark contrast between one of the Traverse Islands in the foreground and the mainland in the background reflects their different fire histories over the past ten years.
The Traverse Islands (foreground) and the adjacent mainland (background) in this photo have the same soill type, aspect, climatic conditions, rainfall and cyclone history. Changes in vegetation composition and structure are clearly evident and are the direct result of completely different fire regimes over the past ten years.
East Kingfisher Island 6th September 2012 East Kingfisher Island is another jewel of the Kimberley coast which hardly ever gets burnt. Old stands of Eucalytpus miniata and spinifex dominate the landscape. Cyclonic winds strip the trees of all their leaves every 2-3 years but they recover in a short period of time.
Sale River, Storr Island 22nd August 2011 Fire-scorched landscape around the Sale River. Industrial burning practices along the Kimberley coast using helicopters and fixed wing aircraft to drop thousands of incendiaries every year are changing the landscape. Most of the Kimberley coast is inaccessible by road so there is no opportunity for any on ground fire control. Dry season fuel reduction burns become wildfires that can burn for weeks. The intensity of these fires varies, but strong easterly winds at this time of year ensure that many of these destructive fires are hot burns.
Augustus Island
Augustus Island, satellite image Augustus Island is the largest island on the Kimberley coast. There are 2,633 islands which have been recognised by the WA Conservation Commission as comprising “the least impacted part of one of the world’s last and largest tropical wilderness areas”. The Commission has also recognised “their varied and often spectacular landscapes and eco-systems which include sandstone and volcanic escarpments, rainforest patches, mangrove forests, freshwater creeks and swamps, savannah woodlands and beaches, harbour a wide variety of animals and plants including some that occur nowhere else and that are threatened with extinction on the mainland. These islands should be regarded as the jewels of the Kimberley coast. The Commission has recognised that the “conservation of biodiversity on Kimberley Islands deserves a much higher priority by government than has been the case in the past”. The Commission has recognised that “there is an opportunity to include all or almost all of the Kimberley islands in the State’s protected area system using mechanisms such as conservation reserves that are jointly managed by the state and Tradional Owners.
Tern and Frigate Bird The Kimberley coast is a rich marine environment that supports a diverse fish and bird population. The adaptations that have enabled corals and molluscs to survive in this unique environment are poorly understood and need further investigation. Current fire management practices in the Kimberley may be having serious unintended consequences on the biodiversity of the marine environment.
Fire scar map of the Kimberley (refer previous page) Source - Landgate. Fire scarring January to October 2012. Fire has been part of the Kimberley landscape for millions of years. This landscape has been modified by traditional burning for the past 40,000 to 50,000 years. Fire management practices have changed dramatically since European occupation. Land managers in modern times are aware of the need to reduce the impact of fires. In 2012 fires primarily from prescribed burns modified at least 10,352,500 ha of the Kimberley rangelands between January and September. The 2012 fire scar map for the Kimberley clearly demonstrates a desire by land managers to conduct fuel reduction burning in the early dry season. The total area burnt for 2012 could be more than 12 million hectares, greatly reducing the region’s capacity to store carbon during the dry season, and making a substantial contribution to Australia’s Greenhouse emissions. Many of these dry sesaon fuel reduction burns are hot fires that burn out of control for weeks at a time.
Average annual rainfall iin Australia In the tropical north of Australia in areas that receive more than 600mm of rain per annum (long term average), land managers will be able to claim carbon credits for reduction of greenhouse gases through early dry season Savannah burning. These credits can then be sold to the big industrial polluters. Scientific studies in the Northern Territory have shown that early “cool” dry season burning will reduce methane and nitrous oxide emissions released by fire into the atmosphere compared to hot fires. No baseline studies have been conducted along the Kimberley coast. Australia’s big polluters such as the offshore oil and gas industry will now be able to offset their carbon emissions by investing in “approved” Savannah burning schemes across the Top End of Australia. This high risk approach may have serious unintended consequences for Australia’s Greenhouse gas emissions and the biodiversity of the native flora and fauna of northern Australia.
Poulton Creek, Horizontal Waterfalls, Talbot Bay
Poulton Creek, Horizontal Waterfalls, Talbot Bay The biodiversity of the Kimberley coast and islands is unique and deserves high priority protection underpinned by rigorous science. The commercialisation of Savannah burning practices in the Top End of Australia could shift the focus away from the protection of biodiversity. Photographic evidence suggests that current practices are already having a devastating impact on the country. In 2006 the WA EPA recommended that there should be a precautionary and adaptive approach to fire management in the Kimberley. There needs to be an urgent review of currrent and planned fire management in the Kimberley. The new short interval fuel reduction fire regime that is being imposed on the Kimberley rangelands is promoted as based on traditional, low impact fire stick farming. Industrial burning practices that rely on aerial incendiaries cannot replicate the historic fine scale fire management by Aboriginal people. All images Š Richard Costin & Annbelle Sandes | Kimberley Media 2012 Fire scar mapping and information Š Landgate 2012