THE latest Australian Seasonal Bushfire Outlook has been released for the July to September period, indicating ‘normal fire potential’ is expected for most of the country.

The Bushfire Outlook is produced quarterly to assist fire and land management agencies in making strategic decisions, such as resource planning and prescribed fire management to reduce the negative impacts of bushfires.

The latest outlook is particularly relevant for parts of northern Australia which is now in the dry season and officially their fire season.

The Bushfire Outlook considers the impacts of recent fire seasons and the weather conditions expected in coming months.

Key messages for specific regions from the latest outlook include:

• In Western Australia, rainfall from tropical cyclones has led to above normal fire conditions in parts of the Kimberley.
• In Queensland, normal fire potential is expected, however there is a risk of grass fires due to good grass growth in some areas.
• The fire season started early in Northern Territory, but normal fire potential is expected.
• The south coast of NSW expects higher than normal fire potential for this time of year due to long-term dry conditions in areas that did not burn in the 2019/20 fire season.
• All other areas can expect normal fire potential from July to September.

The report notes it is important to remember that areas designated as normal or below normal fire potential may still experience bushfire – normal or below normal risk does not mean there is no risk.

It also points out that it is unclear at this stage what the fire risk across Australia will be later in the year.

This will depend on rainfall and whether predictions of La Niña conditions eventuate, which could bring above-average rainfall across much of Australia.

Download the full July to September Bushfire Outlook here