South West Western Australia is one of the most fire-prone regions in the world

Recently the Climate Council produced a report "The Heat is On' describing what effect climate change would have on WA, especially the South West region.

"Western Australia has the fastest growing population of all states and territories in Australia and is home to a diversity of plants and animals found nowhere else on the planet. Climate change, driven by emissions from fossil fuels like coal and oil, is driving up the likelihood of extreme events such as heatwaves and bushfires in the state.'

(Climate Council)

WA has faced six major bushfires in the past eight years, including Northcliffe; the 2007 Boorabbin national park fire, in which three people died; the 2009 Toodyay bushfires; the 2011 and 2014 Perth Hills bushfire; and the 2011 Margaret River bushfires.

The total economic cost of bushfires, a measure that includes insured losses as well as broader social costs, is estimated to be $337 million per year in Australia (2011$), a figure that is expected to reach $800 million by around 2050 (Deloitte Access Economics 2014).

One of the report authors, Professor Will Steffen Climate Councillor, said the trends of a hotter and drier climate meant bushfire season in southern WA was stretching into spring and autumn, narrowing the window for fire management authorities to safely conduct prescribed burns. But he said that bushfires were not the only risk.

The report said the number of heatwave days in WA had increased by 50% since 1950 and were occurring earlier in the summer. It also said the average intensity of the peak heatwave day had increased by 1.5C.

There were 20 heat-related deaths a year between 1994 and 2006, and the report warned that number would double if maximum temperatures increased by 2C.

The number of days hot enough to be considered “unsafe” for outdoor workers is expected to increase 20 fold by 2070, which Steffen said could affect productivity and profits in the Pilbara, the centre of WA’s mining industry.

The report made a number of key findings including the fact that WA would need to double the amount of professional firefighters by 2030 and that the traditional concept of fire season would need to be altered to fit in with the changing climate.