"It's a slow burn": combining Aboriginal cultural practices with western techniques to manage bushfires

Last week, 15 members of the Bunyah and Birpai communities completed firefighter training, leaving the course with accreditation to use traditional burning methods to help manage wildfires on the Mid North Coast.

Part of a three-year pilot program – Fire, Country and People –  jointly funded by Forestry Corporation and the Federal Government, will see Local Aboriginal Land Councils (LALC) work with government agencies to combine traditional cultural burning with modern firefighting techniques.

So, what is cultural burning? 

The Mid North Coaster was a guest at the training, and spoke with CEO of Bunyah LALC and community Elder, Uncle Amos Donovan.

“[It’s] a low intensity burn. Not a hot burn. That’s what cultural burning is all about. A lot of it is common sense.” Uncle Amos said.

“You do a small burn that just trickles along…it’s a cool burn.

“The old people used to do it so the grass and vegetation would regrow…and for safety reasons as well.”

Participant and Birpai man, Josh Wright, said “fire can easily take a life as well as give new life.”

“When we do cultural burning, essentially what we’re doing is promoting regrowth for our Country, so [it’s] getting the cleansing that it needs.”

Kathy Lyons, Senior Manager Country and Community, said cultural burning is about having a very low flame height so animals can get away, and low white smoke levels so animals in trees, like koalas, aren’t impacted.

“It’s very safe, people can stand around and watch it.”

Lyons said the practice is difficult at the moment due to the non-traditional understory (the vegetation layer, especially the trees and shrubs, between the forest canopy and the ground cover) with its thick fuels due to a lack of ongoing land management.

“That’s why we have to use a combination of Western and traditional techniques to restore that back to traditional understory first…it’s not until we get to that stage that we can have true traditional fire which is safe and where the communities can easily manage the land again.”

She said a goal of the program is teaching the wider community about traditional management of forests.

The program brings together knowledge of cultural burning with government bushfire management, while training Aboriginal community members in firefighting so they have the skills to help in an emergency.

“If ever there is a wildfire and RFS [Rural Fire Service] or State Forestry need us, we’re there for our community,” Uncle Amos said.

What’s next?

Robert Potter, Aboriginal Partnerships Supervisor at Forestry Corporation, said the program could open doors for participants. 

“There’s room to move on and do further training as part of the course…[to be] brought in as professional firefighters during fire seasons,” he said.

Potter said it’s “very valuable” to have local knowledge and more skilled boots on the ground for upcoming fire seasons.

“It’s a resource that up until recently hasn’t really been available, but working with communities so that they have more skills on protecting… their land from the big bushfires all works together really well.”

Josh Wright said that while he will stick with his current career rather than pursuing professional firefighting, he’s willing to use his new knowledge and skills to help his community.

“Now that we’re actually qualified, and able, and have the knowledge, we can have the courage to put our hand up to support,” Wright said.

“Personally, I’m gaining this knowledge so that when our community needs to do a cultural back burn I can put my hand up and say I know how to do it, I’m happy to support, not just in Aboriginal communities, but our local community as well.”

The Fire, Country and People program  will also help to build the scientific evidence base behind cultural burning. A research program will look to understand the effect that traditional Aboriginal fire practices have on the intensity and extent of bushfires.