Queensland

Between 1950 and 2018, Queensland saw an overall pattern of increased severity in the fire-weather season due to climate change, except in small pockets of the north and west. Severe Queensland bushfire seasons since 2018 have continued this trend.

Bushfires have had severe impacts in Queensland, encompassing loss of life (human, other animal, forest), ecological damage, and large economic costs. Climate change is having an impact on the frequency and severity of dangerous fire-weather conditions.

An analysis of the long-term changes in fire-weather conditions for Queensland between 1950 and 2018 confirms higher temperatures, less rain in most parts of the state and longer, earlier fire seasons.*

• Annually averaged maximum temperatures have risen for most of the state.
• While annual rainfall has risen over most of Queensland’s far west and far north, it has declined elsewhere, particularly on the east coast.
• Days with predicted very high fire danger conditions are increasing across the state, particularly in the south.
• Fire seasons start earlier and, in some cases, finish later.
• Changes have been more rapid in recent decades (1989–2018).

Climate change projections suggest that these observed trends are likely to continue.

Due to the diversity of Queensland’s climate regions, state-wide trends must be treated with caution when using them to describe the trends within any one climate region, e.g. for the state as a whole, the in-active period of the year for fire weather appears to be narrowing, but this is representative of the active period starting earlier in some regions and ending later in others.

*Based on an assessment of the Forest Fire Danger Index (FFDI) and other relevant climate variables, such as rainfall and temperature, between 1950 and 2018.

Understanding the hazard

Bushfires are a natural part of the Australian environment. The bushfire risk level and the bushfire season’s timing varies from region to region and year to year.

The primary drivers of bushfire behaviour are fuel, topography and weather. Bushfires also require a source of ignition, which can occur naturally, such as a lightning strike, or because of human activities, intentionally or otherwise.

Topography

The landscape’s topography significantly influences bushfire behaviour, particularly where it includes a slope greater than 10%. For every ten-degree increase in slope, a fire will double in speed.

Fuel

Fires can burn more intensely with abundant and dry fuel. Extended hot and dry periods, such as heatwaves or droughts, can increase dry and highly flammable fuel loads, making fires easy to start and harder to control.

Weather

Dangerous fire weather days are characterised by strong winds, low relative humidity, and high temperatures, often in combination.

Other factors

Patterns of land use and population growth influence bushfire risk. As the population grows, so does the urban footprint. resulting in more people residing in the urban/rural interface zone (I-Zone).

Climate change also strongly influences the hazard, with more intense fire weather projected in the future.

The Queensland context

While Queensland generally sustains more damage from flooding, tropical cyclones and thunderstorms, bushfires are a major hazard for the state. Bushfires occur annually in Queensland, with differing intensity levels based on weather and fuel loads leading up to the bushfire season.

Traditionally, the bushfire season in Queensland commences in the north of the state in August. Many factors can influence the bushfire season’s length and severity, including the timing and nature of the previous wet season and the current climate outlook. Fires can happen any time of the year, with climate change driving longer and more intense fire seasons.

Recent major bushfire events

• The September 2011 fires burned across 42 local government areas statewide
• The November-December bushfires in 2018 across the state, but especially around Gladstone, Rockhampton, and Mackay, caused one fatality and destroyed nine homes. Queensland recorded catastrophic fire danger for the first time.
• The Black Summer bushfires in 2019 affected the Sarabah/Scenic Rim, Stanthorpe and Peregian Springs. Fire destroyed twenty-nine homes and caused approximately $69.9 million in insurance costs.
• The K’gari bushfire in 2020 posed a significant threat to townships, tourist facilities, and important cultural sites for the Butchulla people.
• Major fires were experienced in the state’s southwest during September to November 2023, then in the north from November 2023. Significant fires in the Darling Downs, Western Downs and some neighbouring areas during the 2023-24 bushfire season resulted in the use of more than 40 aircraft, approximately 1,000 evacuations and serious loss of structures as the season progressed.

Hazard management

Bushfire risk management is a shared responsibility. All Queenslanders are responsible for reducing the potential for and the impact of bushfires.

The Queensland Fire Department is the hazard-specific lead agency for bushfires, working with stakeholders and partners to reduce the impact of fire on communities.

Rural Fire Service Queensland (RFSQ) provides various services to help keep communities safe and build resilience. The RFSQ services include incident management, firefighting, fire prevention, community education, issuing ‘Permits to Light Fire’, undertaking deployments and other assistance during disasters.

Queensland facilitates and coordinates the shared responsibility of bushfire risk management through various arrangements characterised by partnerships. Responsibility is shared at a regional and state level between:

• land managers
• the community
• service providers
• fire management groups
• disaster management groups
• committees.

The government shares responsibility at the local, state and Commonwealth levels.

Under the Queensland Bushfire Plan (QBP), bushfires are managed differently from other hazards.

In addition to the existing Local Disaster Management Groups (LDMGs) and District Disaster Management Groups (DDMGs), the QBP establishes a dedicated structure of Fire Management Groups and Committees, outlining how these entities collaborate with LDMGs, DDMGs, and the State Disaster Coordination Group.

The QBP clearly defines the roles and functions of each group within this network. Moreover, the QBP details responsibilities and best practices for each phase of bushfire management: prevention, preparedness, response and recovery.