2020-03-01_Australian_Geographic

44 Australian Geographic

A black summer

D

URING THE SPRING and summer of

2019-2020, Australia experienced a

catastrophic bushfi re season with tragic

loss of life and extensive destruction of and damage

to property, natural landscapes and native and

domesticated animals. The full economic losses are yet

to be calculated but the timing of the crisis, during the

traditional Australian summer break, has had a serious

impact on domestic and international tourism.

On the following pages is a visual explanation and

summary of the causes and eff ects of the bushfi re

emergency as it was in early February 2020 and with

some weeks of the usual annual bushfi res season in the

southern states of Australia yet to go.

We look at some of the record-

breaking statistics and put this year’s

fi re season in the context of major fi re

emergencies and events throughout the

past 100 years. We describe the forces

and systems that drive weather and cli-

mate in our own region and place them

into the context of warming climate

trends globally. We show the processes

in which large intense bushfi res create

their own weather, which in turn exacer-

bates their intensity and size, and how,

in this season, such events have been

witnessed in numbers never seen before.

Amount of CO 2 released by Australian bushfi res

Total annual CO2

emissions

in the space of

3 MONTHS

2334

PROSPECT, NSW

19 Nov 2019

306 million tonnes

568

CANBERRA

2 Jan 2020

540

SYDNEY

19 Nov 2019

Good

Moderate

Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups

Unhealthy

Very Unhealthy

Hazardous

Orange

Red

Purple

Maroon

Green

Yellow

0 to 50

151 to 200

201 to 300

301 to 500

51 to 100

101 to 150

Air Quality Index Levels of Health Concerns Colours

AIR

QUALITY

Indicates

areas burnt

2019/2020 BUSHFIRE CRISIS