Bushfires and Koalas

Australian bushfires are not new. They have been raging in years before, but the fires of 2019 have devastated not only humans, but also the fauna and flora of that land. Not much is mentioned about what it has done for the animal kingdom.

For 1000’s of years indigenous Australians have used fire to foster grasslands for hunting and to clear tracks through dense vegetation. Thus manmade “bushfires” in the Outback have been a common occurrence.

In recent times as early as 1967 we learned about the Tasmanian natural bushfire disaster which occurred on 7 February 1967, known in Australia as Black Tuesday which killed 62 people and 900 injured and nearly 7000 homeless.

In 2003 the Canberra bushfire caused severe damage to the suburbs of the National Capital. This took place around 18-22 January 2003. Almost 70% of the area’s pastures, pine plantations and natural parks were severely damaged.  Mount Stromio Observatory was completely destroyed, with 4 people dead, 490 injured and 470 homes destroyed or severely damaged requiring repairs and reconstruction.

On 7 February 2009 some ten years before the recent bushfire in September 2019 a further bushfire occurred in the State of Victoria and some 173 people died.

Now in 2019, we are told already 5,900,000 hectares of land is destroyed over 2500 buildings and at least 18 people have lost their lives including some volunteer firefighters.

                                                                      

What are some of the effects of the Australian bushfires?

Bushfires have an intensive effect and impact extensive areas and cause property damage and loss of human life. But no one talks of the extensive damage, which as many will agree, is caused to the animal and bird life, which is difficult to quantify.

We are reliably informed that half a billion animals are feared dead in these bushfires and it is estimated at least 8,000 koala bears have already been wiped out.

Many will also agree that the firefighters cannot search for animal life including search and rescue koalas, kangaroos, camels and other animals, not to mention the varied species of birdlife.

                                      

According to researchers at the University of Sydney, some 480 million mammals, birds, reptiles are estimated to have perished since the fires started in New South Wales, Australia in September 2019. We are further informed that some 8000 koala bears alone are thought to have been killed, a third of the entire koala population of the region.

What are some of the effects of the bushfires in far away South America? 

Yes, we all agree that bushfires in Australia are a regular feature of life in Australia.

But the recent blaze in the two states of Australia, New South Wales and Queensland and perhaps even in the state of Victoria, have not previously occurred on such a scale.

The European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) offices in Reading, Berkshire, United Kingdom, has been able to monitor the bushfires in Australia since September 2019 and states that smoke particles from these bushfires have reached South America as satellite imagery shows atmospheric pollution created by the fires across New South Wales has travelled more than 10,000 kilometres to Chile and Argentina. No one knows whether they will make a claim for air pollution to a Climate Court in the years to come?

                                                  

Reading between the lines, we see messages on Twitter stating what it really is like in New South Wales: “the sky was just black, the Sun was red, and we saw men beating back the flames………”.

Clamour for Climate Change

From tomorrow 3 January 2020, two Australian States of New South Wales and Queensland have declared a State of Emergency as the bushfires are a serious threat to heavily populated areas in their states.

The Volunteer Firefighters who up to now have been a volunteer force will from now on be paid for their firefighting work.

The Security Services, the Australian Army and Navy have also been recruited to help in the operation.

Citizens of towns and cities in the devastated areas are fleeing to the beaches in search of refugee.                                            

This has led many around the world to seek answers whether the bushfires in Australia can be linked to Climate Change?

As many know or may know, the science around Climate Change is complex. It is not the cause of bushfires, according to some scientists.

But what we know for sure is that the average temperature in Australia now is running about 1 degree centigrade above the longterm average. Seasons are starting earlier according to Richard Thornton, Chief, Bushfires and National Hazards Cooperative Research Centre in Australia. Is it any wonder for us who are ordinary citizens?

Australia’s Climate Change commitment under the Paris Agreement – the global deal to tackle rising global temperature is a 26-28 % per capita reduction in emissions by 2030 and a 64-65% reduction in the emissions intensity of the economy between 2005 and 2030.

Will it be practical to scale this reduction in the years ahead?

Victor Cherubim