Dei technical college

Diploma in electrical
engineering 2 year

DHA-05
Australian Bushfires
What is it ?

Bushfires in Australia are a widespread and regular occurrence that

have contributed significantly to moulding the nature of the continent over
millions of years. Eastern Australia is one of the most fire-prone regions
of the world, and its predominant eucalypt forests have evolved to thrive
on the phenomenon of bushfire.[1] However the blazes can cause
significant property damage and loss of both human and animal life.
Bushfires have killed approximately 800 people in Australia since
1851[2] and millions of animals.
Picture of Australian bushfire
Cause of bushfire in Australia

The most destructive fires are usually preceded by extreme high

temperatures, low relative humidity and strong winds, which combine
to create ideal conditions for the rapid spread of fire.Severe fire storms
are often named according to the day on which they peaked, including
the five most deadly blazes: Black Saturday 2009 in Victoria (173
people killed, 2000 homes lost); Ash Wednesday 1983 in Victoria and
South Australia (75 dead, nearly 1900 homes); Black Friday 1939 in
Victoria (71 dead, 650 houses destroyed), Black Tuesday 1967 in
Tasmania (62 people and almost 1300 homes); and the Gippsland
fires and Black Sunday of 1926 in Victoria (60 people killed over a two
month period.[4] Other major conflagrations include the 1851 Black
Thursday bushfires, the 2006 December bushfires, the 1974-75 fires,
and the ongoing 2019–20 bushfires.In January 2020, it was estimated
that over 1.25 billion animals have died in the 2019-2020 Australian
bushfire
Ignition

• In recent times most major bush fires have been started in remote
areas by dry lightning or by electric power lines being brought down
or arcing in high winds. Many fires are as a result of either deliberate
arson or carelessness, however these fires normally happen in
readily accessible areas and are rapidly brought under control. Man-
made events include arcing from overhead power lines, arson,
accidental ignition in the course of agricultural clearing, grinding and
welding activities, campfires, cigarettes and dropped matches,
sparks from machinery, and controlled burn escapes. They spread
based on the type and quantity of fuel that is available. Fuel can
include everything from trees, underbrush and dry grassy fields to
homes. Wind supplies the fire with additional oxygen pushing the fire
across the land at a faster rate.
Impact on wildlife

• Bush fires kill animals directly and also destroy local habitats, leaving
the survivors vulnerable even once the fires have passed. Professor
Chris Dickman at Sydney University estimates that in the first three
months of the 2019–2020 bushfires, over 800 million animals died in
NSW, and more than 1 billion nationally.This figure includes
mammals, birds, and reptiles but does not include insects, bats or
frogs. Many of these animals were burnt to death in the fires, with
many others dying later due to the depletion of food and shelter
resources and predation by feral cats and red foxes. Dickman adds
that Australia has the highest rate of species lost of any area in the
world, with fears that some of Australia's native species, like the
Kangaroo Island dunnart, may even become extinct because of the
current fires.
Impact on humans
• Bushfires produce particulate-matter pollution – airborne particles that are small
enough to enter and damage human lung tissue. Following the Hazelwood fire in
2014, Fay Johnston, an associate professor of public health at the University of
Tasmania's Menzies Institute for Medical Research, says young children exposed
to smoke either as infants, toddlers or in the womb develop changes to their lung
function. She says: "Unborn babies exposed to the Hazelwood smoke were more
likely to experience coughs or colds two to four years after the fires.” Otherr
studies conducted in Australia show an increase in respiratory diseases among
adults stemming from air pollution caused by bushfires.
• As a result of intense smoke and air pollution stemming from the fires, in January
2020 Canberra measured the worst air quality index of any major city in the
world. The orange-tinged smoke entered homes and offices buildings across the
capital making breathing outside very difficult, forcing businesses and institutions
to shut their doors. Studies show that residents of highly polluted cities also have
an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, and diabetes. Professor Jalaluddin, a
chief investigator with the Centre for Air Pollution, Energy and Health Policy
Research, says: "There is increasing evidence around air pollution and (the
development of) neurological conditions, for example, Parkinson's disease and
Alzheimer's.
Official inquiries
• After many major bushfires, state and federal governments in Australia have
initiated inquiries to see what could be done to address the problem. A
parliamentary report from 2010 says that between 1939 and 2010, there have
been at least 18 major bushfire inquiries including state and federal parliamentary
committee inquiries, COAG reports, coronial inquiries and Royal Commissions.
Anotherr report published in 2015 says there have been 51 inquiries into wildfires
and wildfire management since 1939. The authors note that: "The fact that
catastrophic events continue to recur is evidence either that the community is
failing to learn the lessons from the past, or the inquiries fail to identify the true
learning – that catastrophic events may be inevitable, or that Royal Commissions
are not the most effective way to identify relevant lessons from past events".
• In January 2020, in the middle of the 2019–2020 bushfire season, Prime Minister
Scott Morrison raised the prospect of establishing another royal commission.
Morrison told Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that any inquiry into the
crisis would need to be comprehensive and investigate climate change as well as
other possible causes.
Pray for Australia