News and Media

QFES Commissioner to open 2020 Fire Science Seminar Series - Facing Fire in a Changing Climate

An exciting 3-day fire seminar series for Queensland is being opened tomorrow by the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner Greg Leach.


The first of three seminars, tomorrow is being delivered as part of the Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium’s online Seminar Series, showcasing the latest science and information on fire preparedness, fire management and climate, and looking at last season’s devastating bushfires.


Drawing on his extensive career with the Victorian Country Fire Authority and the Metropolitan Fire and Emergency Services Board, Commissioner Leach will be sure to engage attendees with his first-hand experience and understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing adaptive bushfire management and planning. With over 30 years’ experience in the emergency services sector, Commissioner Leach brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to share with attendees.

QFBC recognised in Queensland Resilient Australia Awards

A novel Queensland approach to be better prepared for future fire seasons has been recognised in the 2020 Get Ready Queensland Resilient Australia Awards.

The Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium has been highly commended for the lead role it has played in coordinating and providing much needed information and support on bushfire preparedness and property planning.

The Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium was recognised for its Fire Management Planning workshops in the community award section at the recent 2020 Get Ready Queensland Resilient Australia Awards. It received the high commendation for its highly tailored workshop series, which arms landholders with locally relevant information and supports them to work together with their local Rural Fire Brigade, local government and other landholders in their neighbourhood to develop practical fire management plans for their properties.

“With the devastation of last year’s fire season still vivid in people’s minds, it is particularly pleasing to see the strong demand for information to better prepare for future fire seasons,” says Julie McLellan, CEO of Healthy Land and Water - the natural resource management group for South East Queensland and home to the Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium.

“The strength of the workshops is that they are interactive, collaborative, and held locally,” says Ms McLellan.

 “We’ve had great feedback from participants who reported much improved knowledge and confidence about planning for this natural threat to their livelihoods.”

Ms McLellan says she believes the key to the success of the workshop series is the collaborative model, with each workshop delivered in partnership with key stakeholders, including the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services, local government, Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service and utility providers.


During the award ceremony, the fire workshop series was recognised not only for its provision of regionally focused information, but also for its power in bringing stakeholders together to develop plans for fire preparedness within their region that recognise a balance between bushfire risk, agriculture and environmental values. “Each area is unique, and this brings a unique set of challenges to fire management, which needs to be considered for the strongest approach across the region,” explains Ms McLellan.

“Knowledge builds confidence - the confidence needed to undertake preventative action and to act in a crisis.”

Ms McLellan says that a resilient community is one that works together to assist and support each other during and after a disaster. “The beauty of the workshops is that they provide local community members an opportunity to get to know their neighbours, identify strengths and weaknesses across their local areas, and practice working as a collective. The provision of knowledge, tools and support to the community acknowledges their role as part of the solution to building resilience,” she says.

“The success of the approach all comes down to the many partners who have proactively collaborated to deliver the workshops and the knowledgeable team leading the Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium, including the manager of the Consortium, Dr Samantha Lloyd and workshop lead, Craig Welden. The expertise behind the scenes help us to realise our mission of translating science into practice for improved fire management and biodiversity conservation,” said Ms McLellan. 

For more information: https://hlw.org.au/newsroom/queensland-fire-preparedness-recognised-in-queensland-resilient-australia-awards/

Added 31 October 2020 

For a full list of winners: 

https://www.qra.qld.gov.au/news/queensland-resilience-recognised-awards

Introducing the Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium

After 20 years of operation, as the result of a comprehensive strategic planning process, and with the support of our partners and Healthy Land and Water, the South East Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium has broadened its delivery to become the Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium (QFBC), thus reflecting an increased demand from landholders and stakeholders for the high-quality products and services provided by the QFBC.

Read more here: http://www.fireandbiodiversity.org.au/news/fire-and-biodiversity-consortium-to-expand-reach-across-queensland

Encouraging women into fire and biodiversity science

The 11th of February marks the 5th International Day of Women and Girls in Science and this year’s theme is Investment in Women and Girls in Science for Inclusive Green Growth.
International Day of Women and Girls in Science provides a platform that recognises the critical role women and girls play in the fields of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM).
At the SE Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium, we work with a many intelligent, innovative and dedicated women. To celebrate, we asked a small portion of the Women SEQFBC work with about what has inspired them to pursue careers in STEM and what has been the most rewarding part of their careers.
Here is what they had to say. 

Added 11 February 2020

Registrations NOW OPEN for the SEQFBC Fire Science Forum 2020 - Facing Fire in a Changing Climate 

SEQFBC Research Student Scholarship Program 19/20 - Applications NOW OPEN 

The SEQFBC are pleased to announce the SEQFBC Research Student Scholarship Program for the 2019/2020 financial year.  The Scholarship Program aims to provide financial assistance and research support to an Honours, Masters or PhD student undertaking applied research into fire ecology and/or fire management (e.g. integrated fire and weed or fire and soil management) in the SEQ bioregion.  The Scholarship Program will favour applied research that contributes to our understanding of fire ecology or best practice fire management.  The scholarship/s are valued between $1000 and $3000.  Applications will be judged on merit by a panel of three people from the SEQFBC partners.  

For more information click here: http://www.fireandbiodiversity.org.au/research.html

Interested students are encouraged to contact Dr Sam Lloyd, /Manager of the SEQFBC via email:  Samantha.L@hlw.org.au or mobile: 0438 008 668.  

Applications close COB Friday 24th February 2020.

Added 17 December 2019 | Updated 29 Jan  2020 

The SEQ Fire & Biodiversity Consortium: Celebrating 20 Years

On a perfect Brisbane winter day, over 200 people gathered together at the Mt Coot-tha Botanic Gardens to celebrate 20 years of the SEQ Fire and Biodiversity Consortium.  With the theme Fire, Research and Partnerships, this anniversary forum showcased applied fire ecology and onground fire management projects and programs that highlight the value of partnerships and longevity in applied fire ecology and onground management. As always, there was a focus on translating science into practice, with a session dedicated to local fire research and student projects. With an impressive line-up of engaging and skilled speakers, post-presentation question time was busy and there was much chatter and swapping of business cards and numbers during break time.

In a time of ever-increasing pressure on resources and people’s time, it is a remarkable achievement for the SEQ Fire and Biodiversity Consortium to have reached 20 years.  It is illustrative of not only the dedication and expertise of partners, but also the importance of the outcomes to the people and organisations involved and the strength of the relationships supporting those outcomes.

With 17 presentations, delivered by 30 presenters from 21 different organisations the program was a living example of collaboration, partnerships and applied fire outcomes.  It is not possible to do justice to all the great presentations, so instead we highlight key messages from each presenter....Read more: 

Added 19 July 2019 

Fire Ignites Ecology Conference

Dangerous bushfire weather is set to worsen with climate change according to climate scientists.  This places landholders directly in the firing line, with the majority of bushland in Australia in private ownership and not managed by state or federal agencies. 

In the last week of November, over 700 ecologists met in Brisbane for the annual conference of the Ecological Society of Australia (ESA), which showcases the best and most innovative ecological science in the nation.  HLW’s long-term fire program, the South East Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium (SEQFBC) was invited by ESA to host a fire forum in conjunction with the conference.  ESA aims to help close the gap between scientists and practitioners by supporting events that provide opportunity for collaboration, sharing of stories and networking.  The ESA sponsored event provided SEQFBC partners and associates with subsidised attendance, which was very well received with over 160 SEQFBC registrations. Read more:

What about the other 70% of the landscape? Addressing fire management on peri-urban private land

The lack of fire, too frequent fire, lack of skills, lack of resources, lack of coordination are but some of the issues that are associated with the use of fire by private landholders across SE Queensland that have been identified by Susie Fifoot a PhD Candidate from the School of Earth and Environmental Science, The University of Queensland who is researching the private use of fire across the landscape in SE Queensland.
Susie recently presented her current research findings at the SEQFBC Fire Science Forum 2018, that was held on the 26th November 2018 as part of the ESA18 Conference in Brisbane. Below are some excerpts from that presentation. 

added, 20 December 2018 

SEQFBC Fire Science Forum 2018 

Monday 26 November 2018 – Brisbane Showgrounds
The South East Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium (SEQFBC) are thrilled to be partnering with the Ecological Society of Australia (ESA) to offer this specialist forum at the ESA annual conference this year in Brisbane.  The SEQFBC Fire Science Forum (the Forum) is squarely aimed at connecting fire scientists, ecologists and students with onground fire operators, land managers and other fire professionals.  With a focus on local research, collaborative fire programs and the relationship between fire and private land conservation, the Forum will showcase applied fire ecology and management research and private land partnerships that translate science into practice for beneficial onground outcomes. Read more: 
added 20 Sept 2018 

The chemical signature of fire regime: implications for plant growth and nutrient demand

During his PhD studies, Orpheus Butler  resolved to understand how fire regimes affect the levels of nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, etc.) in soil, and how these effects in turn influence the growth, chemistry, nutrient demands of plants. Orpheus found that fire consistently increases the levels of phosphorus (P) relative to nitrogen (N) and carbon in topsoil and leaf litter . This effect was consistent across a range of ecosystems around the world but is of particular significance in Australia, where many soils have very low levels of P. Read more.

Does fire play a role in the Northern BristleBird Recovery?

Recent research by Zoe Stone of the University of Queensland has found that a loss of fire, particularly increased periods of individual fire absence strongly influenced habitat extent, and northern bristlebird persistence was more likely at sites with increased fire frequency. With reduced fire, this important grassy habitat is being lost to rainforest and weed encroachment. Read more.

added 20 September 2018 

Fire a hot topic at the Private Land Conservation Conference

Richard Geddes, Bush Heritage’s National Fire Program Manager will lead a field trip to Queensland Trust for Nature’s 2000 ha, working cattle property called Aroona as part of this year’s Australian Land Conservation Alliance Conference, PLC18, being held in Brisbane between 24-26 October 2018. Read more. 

added 20 Sept 2018

Record low level of transmission network fire events 

To Rake or not to Rake? – study into the effectiveness of prescribed burn preparation around trees

Fire Research in Australia’s fire-prone heathlands

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