Bushfire Research Update: Selected Papers 2025 - Part 1

The Interagency Bushfire Operations Committee (IBOC) Bushfire Research Subcommittee has completed its review of the Selected Papers of Interest for 2025 Part 1.

The subcommittee continuously reviews new bushfire research and publishes plain-language summaries to ensure the latest findings are accessible to fire managers, partner organisations, decision‑makers and the broader community.

Between January and August 2025, the subcommittee reviewed recent peer‑reviewed bushfire research and selected six papers related to fire management in Western Australia (WA).

The selection was guided by the Western Australia Bushfire Research Priorities and aligns with the following research priority themes:

• Theme 1: Managing bushfire risk and supporting planned burning
• Theme 3: Information and people

Key themes in these papers include:

• A new fuel‑sampling method showing improved accuracy, although it currently requires more time in the field. Further refinements are planned to make the approach faster and more practical for operational use.
• Effective bushfire risk reduction needs stronger emphasis on land‑use planning, appropriate building standards and targeted fuel treatments around homes, infrastructure and other key assets.
• Clear lessons and guiding principles for building effective, respectful partnerships to support cultural fire practices.
• Supporting Indigenous ranger groups to undertake planned burning in spinifex desert landscapes may help reduce the scale and severity of large wildfire events.
• Growing evidence shows the impacts of bushfire smoke on the health of emergency services personnel, highlighting the need for improved protection and monitoring.

The Selected Papers of Interest are available under Bushfire Research on the Bushfire Centre of Excellence webpage.

For more information, contact bcoeresearch@dfes.wa.gov.au.

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