BaDL was successful in applying for a grant under the 2021 Federal Led Bushfire Recovery Grants program for our project: Enhancing bushfire recovery and resilience through collaborative, community engagement in the principles and practices of indigenous cultural burning.
Project aims
- Protect the natural assets of the western section of the Scenic Rim by reducing fire loads, managing weed infestations and promoting the health of native vegetation and habitat through the effective use of fire as a management tool.
- Better manage our natural assets by promoting a collaborative working relationship between the Traditional Owners, local landholders, Rural Fire Services personnel, local Council officers, Healthy Land and Water and other interested groups through a shared understanding of the cultural burning principles and practices.
- Develop an appreciation of the unique burning needs of landscapes by conducting workshops (*using Firesticks Alliance) to familiarise participants with cultural burning considerations and practices.
- Develop collaborative relationships among participants to support on-going learning and effective management into the future.
Project activities
A series of hands-on workshops, facilitated by Firesticks Alliance and Wirrinyah Conservation Services on Scenic Rim properties. While walking on country, workshop participants will learn about the principles of cultural burning and get hands-on involvement in lighting and managing slow burns.
Why does this work need to be done?
The Boonah district encompasses National Parks, forested private land, native refuges and pastoral land. It is an identified high-risk bushfire area. The bushfires in 2019 highlighted the need for better management of fuel loads to avoid intense summer fires that destroy habitat and wildlife and threaten lives and property.
This project is essential to:
- Provide an opportunity for local Traditional Owners to take a leadership role in land management.
- Begin to fill the void of knowledge of principles and practices of cultural burning in our district.
- Develop partnerships and common understanding between Traditional Owners, landholders (many want to preserve habitat and wildlife and encourage regeneration of native flora but lack skills and experience in effective burning), RFS personnel, Council officers and others to create a culture of effective burning that promotes biodiversity, reduces fuel loads and manages weed infestations.
- Support participants to develop skills to manage landscape and provide a positive example throughout the district.
- Better manage fuel loads and weed infestations on private properties to reduce the threat of future bushfires.
- Promote natural regeneration of native flora.
- Reduce the threat of wildfire to lives, property, habitat and wildlife.
