World · East Asia & Pacific · 4 hrs ago
Australian bushfires forecast to cost economy A$6 billion a year
A study forecasts bushfires will cost Australia A$6 billion a year on average over the next 30 years, nearly three times earlier estimates.
The modelling, commissioned by Emergency Leaders for Climate Action, says warmer temperatures have lengthened fire seasons by 21 per cent since 1979.
About 5.6 million Australian households face some bushfire risk, and the 2019–20 Black Summer fires caused almost A$30 billion in damage and other costs.
The study says health and wellbeing harms make up most of the projected costs, ahead of damage to businesses and homes.
Australia is preparing for summer as El Niño conditions are expected, while the report warns that longer, overlapping fire seasons and fewer volunteers put pressure on firefighting capacity.
Former emergency services commissioner Peter Dunn has called for early detection and at least 12 firefighting aircraft; the sources do not say whether Australia will adopt these proposals.
A national report says bushfires are forecast to cost the Australian economy an average of A$6 billion a year over the next 30 years.
The modelling was commissioned by Emergency Leaders for Climate Action and attributes longer fire seasons to global warming.
The report says fire seasons have lengthened by 21 per cent since 1979.
It estimates that 5.6 million Australian households face some bushfire risk.
Former fire and emergency services leaders are calling for improved detection and firefighting capacity as Australia approaches summer.
- Who
- Emergency Leaders for Climate Action commissioned the modelling. It estimates the economic cost of bushfires in Australia.
- What
- Bushfires are forecast to cost the economy an average of A$6 billion a year over the next 30 years.
- When
- The report was published in October 2026. The forecast covers the next 30 years.
- Where
- Australia.
- Why
- The report links rising costs to longer fire seasons and climate change, which it says make fires more damaging.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Australia's fire seasons have lengthened by 21 per cent, according to the report's modelling.
More than one million Australians lived within one kilometre of an active fire front, the report says.
The Black Summer bushfires burned about 45 per cent of the Snowy Valleys Council area.
The report warned that bushfires would cost the Australian economy an average of A$6 billion a year over the next 30 years.
- Annual forecast
- A$6 billion over the next 30 years
- Fire seasons
- 21 per cent longer since 1979
- Households at risk
- 5.6 million
- Black Summer cost
- Almost A$30 billion for major events such as the fires
- Snowy Valleys area burnt
- About 45 per cent in the 2019/20 bushfires
3 sources
What people are saying
The fire seasons are longer, they're overlapping between states and we're getting catastrophic fire weather.
Previous studies only looked at insured costs, which were far less, but costs across the economy are huge; in 30 years that's $180 billion.
There's still a number of houses that weren't rebuilt after the fire, so there's widespread impacts and recovery efforts still.
In the last three months since El Niño has been active, we've seen drier-than-average conditions along much of the eastern seaboard.