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The Latest Breaking News from Black Summer

Koala park census sparks fresh survival hopes

After the Black Summer bushfires ravaged NSW's koala population, analysis has found a proposed national park area contains around 12,000 of the native animals.

AAP

Unburnt wildlife refuge to be sacrificed for homes

A forested haven for species in danger of extinction will be turned into a housing estate after escaping the Black Summer bushfires.

AAP

Forestry Corporation fined $360k for cutting down trees

New conditions imposed following the Black Summer bushfires did not stop the felling of 53 trees, with a court accepting a pattern of environmental offending.

AAP

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The ‘Black Summer’ blazes scorched more than half of this wildlife-rich, rugged Australian outpost, but James Litston finds a place where the green shoots of recovery are blooming

The Independent UK

'Buried in the ice': Black Summer conditions found seven times in the past

Song of fire and ice in Antarctica sparks bushfire warning.

Newcastle Herald

Ice cores point to grim picture of future bushfire risk

Data elicited from Antarctic ice cores point to future bushfire conditions being worse than the deadly Black Summer blazes.

AAP

Of ice and fire: what sea salt in Antarctic snowfall reveals about bushfires worse than the Black Summer

Australia has a long history of bushfires. The 2019-2020 Black Summer was the worst in recorded history. But was that the worst it could get?

The Conversation

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Changing native vegetation laws to allow burning on private land is good fire management

Bushfires cause catastrophic biodiversity loss across Australia. In the Black Summer of 2019–20 alone, 103,400 square kilometres of habitat went up in flames.

The Conversation

Cameras reveal wombat burrows can be safe havens after fire and waterholes after rain

Australia’s unprecedented Black Summer bushfires in 2019–20 created ideal conditions for misinformation to spread, from the insidious to the absurd.

The Conversation

'Significant effect': bushfire smoke hits the heart, lungs and brain

The Black Summer caused widespread hazardous air pollution.

Newcastle Herald

Wildlife hospital gets boost for koala conservation

A dedicated koala care centre will open after 17 per cent of the marsupial's NSW population was lost in the Black Summer bushfires.

AAP

RFS not supportive amid calls for emergency oversight

A coronial inquiry into the Black Summer bushfires has been finalised, as the head of the Rural Fire Service resists calls for another emergency body.

AAP

Burney welcomes ‘circuit breaker’ – as it happened

This blog is now closed.

The Guardian - AU

'Remarkable' more did not die in Black Summer: coroner

The report of a two-year Black Summer coronial inquiry has made numerous recommendations but left some impacted residents feeling ignored.

AAP

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AAP

Black Summer victims in 'dilemma' over $4.5m payout

Bushfire victims won $4.5 million in damages over a Black Summer blaze, but up to 70 people will have to split what is left after hefty legal costs.

Crikey

Unprecedented Black Summer showed us what needs to change to keep Australians safe

The 2019-20 bushfire season was not a one-off event. But are we ready for the next time disaster strikes?

The Canberra Times

Wood-fire heaters cause up to 63 deaths in Canberra a year, study finds

Study finds annual smoke pollution impact comparable to Black Summer.

Crikey

Traumatised Canadian firefighters may not be able to help Australia this summer

There aren’t enough Australian firefighters to protect us from a possible Black Summer season, but a burnt Canada warns it’s exhausted.

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AAP

Children who lived through fires fear the summer ahead

Rural children's charity Royal Far West says there is a spike in anxiety among children who lived through Black Summer, prompting calls for better care.

The Conversation

Queensland's fires are not easing at night. That's a bad sign for the summer ahead

This week, dozens of fires have burned across Queensland. More homes have burned in the state than during the 2019–2020 Black Summer – 57 so far this year, compared to 49.

AAP

App to help Aussies prepare homes for bushfires

A free app will allow people to assess and take steps to improve their home's bushfire resilience following the Black Summer disaster.

The Conversation

Even platypuses aren't safe from bushfires – a new DNA study tracks their disappearance

When the Black Summer bushfires swept across eastern Australia in 2019–20, thousands of animal species lived in the path of these megafires.

The Guardian - AU

Australia ‘better prepared’ for bushfires than ahead of black summer as government considers national community service

Emergency services minister says service would likely be voluntary as government ‘wouldn’t want to commit to obliging people or forcing them’

The Conversation

3,200 deaths a year: 1 of many reasons air pollution in Australia demands urgent national action

Australia is holding its collective breath ahead of a bushfire season that may bring a return of the smoke linked to 400 deaths and 4,500 hospitalisations and emergency department visits during the 2019–20 Black Summer fires.

The Conversation

Yes, climate change is bringing bushfires more often. But some ecosystems in Australia are suffering the most

Black Summer, Black Saturday, Ash Wednesday: these and so many other bushfire disasters are regular reminders of the fact Australia is among the most flammable continents on Earth.

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