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What are the ecological costs of this summer’s fires?

In late November, fires started in East Gippsland as a result of lightning strikes. As noted by Peter Gardner, these went on to become major blazes. On new year’s eve, lightning storms started fires across the Victorian mountains and fire season came to the Alps with a vengeance.

Since then, huge areas of the Victorian Alps and Snowy Mountains have burnt. As at January 14, many of these are still going and, of course, the key priority is containing them.

But once it’s all over, we will need to count the ecological cost of these fires. Some areas in the Alps have now burnt three times in about 15 years. There is no doubt that longer fire seasons, driven by climate change, are already impacting on mountain and foothill environments.

The short answer at this stage is that we just don’t know what the full ecological impacts of these fires will be.

The following is a fairly random collection of reports on local impacts of the fires on mountain areas. It focuses on ecological values and impacts. Of course, this does not mean that human and economic impacts don’t matter. The narrow focus here is simply to try and share some information about what the impacts will be on natural systems, as the other stories are already being told widely in mainstream media. It will be added to as areas are re-opened to the public. I would welcome your reports for inclusion: please email text and stories to cam.walker@foe.org.au

Continue reading “What are the ecological costs of this summer’s fires?” →

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2020 fires: get into the mountains and spend up big (when you can)

Up until Christmas, there hadn’t been a lot of fires in the High Country, either in Tasmania or on the mainland. That all changed on New Years Eve. Lightning storms triggered fires across Tasmanian, Victoria and NSW. What followed has been nothing less than an absolute disaster as huge areas of the mountains have burnt – and continue to do so.

With large areas evacuated, the economic impacts on local economies has been devastating. This is peak tourism season, yet entire areas are under evacuation orders, businesses are closed and events are being cancelled. The flow on effects on many people’s income will continue for months. 

I am seeing many people who are struggling because their region or business is closed. Even where a town is open, the ever present smoke in many places is not very enticing to tourists.

So once the fires are under control, please have a think about doing a trip to the High Country. Aim to head off with your wallet full and your stomach, esky and food basket empty.

Continue reading “2020 fires: get into the mountains and spend up big (when you can)” →

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Big fire day across the mountains

[WED Jan 1 – UPDATE: I am away with the CFA at present and not in a position to update this page until further notice so please don’t rely on it for updates – please check the relevant government agency websites which you will find if you scroll down. Thanks]

There are some links on how to support recovery and emergency efforts available here.

And I’m still doing some updates on the Mountain Journal facebook page, mostly around park and road closures.

[Monday December 30 2019]

Here we go. We have a long, hot, scary day ahead of us, with extreme fire risk across all mountain areas.

In Victoria, authorities are calling on all people in East Gippsland (east of Bairnsdale) to leave the area, in case the Princes Highway needs to be closed. Mountain communities like Goongerah are at imminent risk of being hit by fires. The W Tree Yalmy fire is still not yet under control, nor is the Ensay Ferntree fire. Firefighters and aircraft are responding to four new fires north-west of Gelantipy which were started by dry lightning earlier his morning.

In NSW there has already been at least one small fire started by dry lightning in the Snowy Mountains (it is under control).

In Tasmania, today is a Day of Total Fire Ban, but authorities warn that tomorrow could be even worse, and that people in bushland areas should consider leaving for urban areas.

Continue reading “Big fire day across the mountains” →

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Low carbon backcountry is the New Black

If you love winter, then chances are you love a good ski or snowboarding film. This year’s batch of new films have been released over the last couple of months (pre Northern winter). One thing that’s really obvious in the ski/ riding genre is the ever growing number of films that are focused on human powered adventure. It’s great to see this tradition continue this year with a number of films focused on low carbon adventures.

Here’s an introduction to a few of them:

Continue reading “Low carbon backcountry is the New Black” →

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A new year, time for new campaign issues?

We still have a long hot dry summer ahead of us. And fires that threaten the mountains that we love so much. But we are also moving towards New Years Eve, when people often make their plans for the coming year.

For me a big part of my planning for the year is to lock in my backcountry trips (here’s my favourite 3 backcountry adventures). Obviously it’s good to have a long think about life, the universe and everything. And then there is activism. 

Sadly, on the activist front there will be lots to do in 2020. Here’s a few ideas on where you may want to put your shoulder to the wheel.

Continue reading “A new year, time for new campaign issues?” →

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A winter traverse of the Alps – you can be involved

Climb8 will be a long distance snowshoe expedition which is being planned for the winter of 2020.

It aims to travel from Namadgi in the ACT to Walhalla in Victoria via the Australian Alps Walking Track. It will cross 36 summits, visit 8 ski resorts and carry out climate change research along the way. It will start on June 6.

Organiser Terra Roam has announced that there are now opportunities to be involved in the expedition.

Continue reading “A winter traverse of the Alps – you can be involved” →

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Wildfires in remote Tasmania

It’s been an absolutely brutal fire season around the country, and we are not even into full summer yet. Among the horror list of lost lives, homes and other infrastructure, millions of animals killed, damage to water catchments and farmland, there has also been devastating impacts on wild places.

Rainforest that ‘is not meant to burn’ has been on fire in northern NSW and QLD, the World Heritage listed Blue Mountains have been hammered, the Budawang Ranges in NSW have been badly burnt, and there are enormous and ‘not yet under control’ fires in the mountain foothills of East Gippsland.

While there were devastating fires in Tasmania last summer, so far, the mountains in that state have been spared fires. Perhaps the situation is now changing, with four fires in remote areas recently started through lightning strike. 

Continue reading “Wildfires in remote Tasmania” →

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Finding the Good News in the grim reality

We’re facing heatwaves, drought and mega fires. Fire season started early right along the eastern seaboard and while the mountains have largely been spared so far, its going to be a long summer.

The updated Australian Seasonal Bushfire Outlook which has just been released shows that extended area of Gippsland and the mountains of North East Victoria are forecast to experience above-normal bushfire potential over the summer.

Global leaders (including our own federal government) have comprehensively failed to agree on how to tackle climate change during the recent UN negotiations in Spain. Horse numbers are sky rocketing in the Snowy Mountains because the NSW government is in thrall to political forces who refuse to accept the ecological costs of having large feral horse populations in alpine and sub alpine environments.

The list could easily go on. When you look at the state of the world, it’s hard not to get depressed. So here is some outdoors related ‘end of year’ good news for you.

Wherever you are and whatever you do, I hope you have a wonderful, relaxing, and fire free, summer.

Continue reading “Finding the Good News in the grim reality” →

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Old Growth ‘verification’ threatens forest protection

In November, the Victorian government announced that logging native forests will end in 2030. The government also committed to state-wide protections for 90,000ha of old growth forests, and 96,000ha of new protected areas, 48,500 of which are in East Gippsland. An action statement for the threatened Greater Glider was also finally released.

An ongoing issue has been the question of how and when the Old Growth would be protected. The state government has now provided details on how this will occur, and this has confirmed fears by environmental groups that protection will be watered down through the methodology that will be used.

East Gippsland based activist group Goongerah Environment Centre (GECO) has issued a call for members of the public to engage in the process around Old Growth modelling. 

Continue reading “Old Growth ‘verification’ threatens forest protection” →

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Fire season frontline in VIC: East Gippsland and North East Alps

In the Australian Seasonal Bushfire Outlook produced in August, it was clear that East Gippsland and the Alps were facing a long and difficult fire season. Even though it is only early December, there have already been a series of large fires on both public and private land in both these sections of the state.

The ABC reports:

There have been six fires of significance over the past two weeks in East Gippsland.

Authorities were most concerned about fires near Gelantipy, Bruthen, and Ensay.

The fires were caused by dry lightning that ignited dozens of fires along the Great Dividing Range.

Incident controller Andy Gillham said the Country Fire Authority and DELWP were not caught off-guard by the fires.

“With all the modelling that has been done by the fire researchers, they said it would be an above-average season for East Gippsland,” he said.

“Because the landscape is so dry we had lightning and fires. We did have an early start to the season, but we weren’t caught off-guard”.

Check the Emergency VIC website for updates on fires.

 

 

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A long solo walk. 660 km across the Alps.

The Australian Alps Walking Track (AAWT) is the premiere long distance mountain trail in Australia. It crosses the Victorian Alps from Walhalla to the NSW border, then passes through the Snowy Mountains before finishing in the ACT.

AAWT2Anthony Sharwood has just started the AAWT from the southern end. He is doing the 660 km trip solo, walking from Walhalla, Victoria to Tharwa, A.C.T. This trip is made more challenging by the fact that two sections of the track are currently closed because of bushfires.

Anthony has been posting images and updates as he goes.

You can follow his journey on twitter here.

Background info and links on the AAWT available here.

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More ‘helicopter tourism’ in Tasmania?

The long running attempt by developers to establish a helicopter accessed ‘eco lodge’ on Halls Island in Lake Malbena in Tasmania’s Central Plateau is part of a larger agenda to open up areas of wilderness and World Heritage to new commercial tourism operations.

The proposal is disturbing on it’s own – it would allow the developer to have exclusive use of the island. But according to Fishers and Walkers Against Helicopter Access Tasmania, there are plans underway to allow larger areas that could be opened up to ‘helicopter tourism’. They say:

“This (map) is the world heritage zoning for the Western Lakes. All the orange and yellow is fair game for helicopter tourism. The zones were amended to suit development proposals”.

The map comes from the World Heritage Area management plan.

This is incredibly disturbing.

Please follow FAWAHAT to find out more and get involved in the campaign against private tourism developments in wild places in Tasmania.

 

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