17/06/2005 - Sixty of
Australia's top fire and biodiversity experts
met in Albury this week to discuss the 2003
Alpine fires and their impact on high country
biodiversity.
The aim of the two-day forum, which was held
at the Lake Hume Resort on June 15 and 16,
was to learn from the events of a major bushfire,
and communicate the messages to fellow researchers,
managers and the broader public.
According to one of the organisers, DSE North
East Biodiversity Team Leader, Sue Berwick,
20 speakers presented their findings on diverse
topics such as fire extent and intensity,
and the impact on plants, animals, land and
streams.
CSIRO fire ecologist, Dr Malcolm Gill, gave
the keynote address and expressed the view
that there were some positive outcomes from
the alpine fires and new information was learnt
as to how different plants regenerate.
"Opportunity knocks, both for species
in the wake of these fires, and for the community,
to learn about how the bush deals with fires
such as these," he said.
Alpine ecologist Dr Dick Williams pointed
to the breadth and depth of research carried
out as a response the fires.
"We have an excellent platform from
which to learn about fire and the high country
over the coming decades. Fires of such intensity
and scale, as in 2003, are rare events in
the high mountain environments. Although there
are ongoing concerns for many of our threatened
species, recent studies have reinforced Australia's
native flora and fauna's ability to survive
and rebound from fire." he said.
