Action hazard reduction measures and traditional land and fire management practices must be taken sooner rather than later to ensure the nation is better placed to withstand future challenges of a changing climate, according to the Institute of Foresters Australia and Australian Forest Growers. Source: Timberbiz
Kevin Tolhurst and Gary Morgan of the IFA and AFG said their organisations were delighted to see hazard reduction measures and traditional land and fire management practices of Indigenous Australians specifically cited in the Terms of the Commission of the Royal Commission into the most recent bushfires.
“The Institute of Foresters Australia and Australian Forest Growers have long advocated for common national standards and reporting in terms of hazard reduction measures and it is encouraging to see prescribed Government action on this front,” Mr Tolhurst and Morgan said in a joint statement.
“Fire as a management tool of the landscape has been used since ancient times in Australia and the Institute of Foresters Australia and Australian Forest Growers are strong supporters of the need for policy to better understand and incorporate the learnings and knowledge of Indigenous Australians, who have looked after this land for millennia.
“But the reality is that we need to act now to ensure the devasting loss of life, property, flora and fauna experienced across Australia over the past months does not become the norm.”
They said countless inquiries had taken place before and “we are still where we are now – looking back at a devasting bushfire season which was unprecedented, but not unforeseen”.
“We encourage governments not to wait to act on the recommendations of this Royal Commission, but to start acting on the recommendations of previous commissions and inquiries,” Mr Tolhurst and Morgan said.
The pair also noted that for Australia to respond to the key findings and recommendations from this Royal Commission, if the findings of past commissions and inquiries was anything to go by, there is a gap in the necessary skills and knowledge to deal with the solutions.
“This skills gap of appropriately trained and resourced forest and land management experts will need to be addressed along with proper resourcing of organisations involved in land management if we are to ensure we are best prepared for the challenges of future bushfire threat in Australia.’’
