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CRAIG COMMENTS |
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The fires in Wilson’s Promontory National Park have been described as an environmental disaster. DSE and Parks Victoria have been pilloried for their failure to contain the fire in arbitrarily declared containment lines. The real disaster is that the area declared for the prescribed burn within the Wilson’s Promontory National Park near Tidal River has not seen fire for over 40 years. It is in areas of coastal tea tree and heath lands, vegetation types that arguably need fire on a maximum of 5-10 year rotation, much more frequently than most hinterland and upland forest types, just to maintain the ecological function of these special ecosystems.
Most Australian plants and animals thrive on fire. Many plants and animals contained in heath land environments have evolved with fire and require fire to survive. Some are struggling to adapt to the new post European fire regimes. The endangered ground parrot nests on freshly burnt ground.
Heath lands have been replaced with tea tree scrub. Species diversity and abundance have been changed by a lack of understanding of the role of fire in Australia’s natural environment. There is ample documentation of these facts.
In 1889, A. W. Howitt drew attention to changes to Gippsland’s forests over the previous 30 years as a result of the absence of “the annual bush fires” that kept the forest open and parklike. Early settlers drove cattle and sheep through forests that a drover’s dog finds difficult to penetrate these days.
The tendency to want to ‘blame’ someone causes over caution among those responsible for caring for the forests. Everyone dealing with nature knows that weather conditions are unpredictable. Fires can smoulder unnoticed for weeks or even months. The only way to avoid periodic devastating hot fires is to have regular burns that prevent the build up of under-story and keeps the forest relatively open.
One can only hope that the fire - through poor management and removal of natural fire regimes - has not been too hot and intense.
The “Prom” will be re-born after this fire with an extraordinary array of new life including plants which have lain dormant waiting for the fire. Native birds and animals which have all but disappeared will be seen again or increase in numbers.
Instead of the current public outcry at the fire disturbing our new found desire for weekend recreation and peaceful enjoyment uninterrupted by wood smoke and other disturbances, we should remember back to the 2002/03 fires and the devastation that they caused not only to property and the environment, but also to Gippsland’s tourism industry which closed down for months when the common view was that all of East Gippsland was in flames.
The biggest threat to our national parks is that land managers will be forced by unhelpful political comments and political grand standing placing another layer of restrictions on protective burning.
