Hazard reduction burns increase severity of Australian bushfires: study

STORY: Hazard reduction burns increase severity of Australian bushfires: study SHOOTING TIME: Jan. 23, 2024 DATELINE: Jan. 24, 2024 LENGTH: 0:01:41 LOCATION: Canberra CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENT SHOTLIST: 1. various of prescribed burning during Australian bushfires STORYLINE: Prescribed burning programs aimed at reducing the impact of Australian bushfires are making forests more flammable, research has found. In a study published on Monday, researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) and Curtin University called for a major rethink of Australia's fire prevention strategies. Researchers, led by David Lindenmayer from ANU's Fenner School of Environment and Society, reviewed existing analyses of bushfires in Australia as well as Brazil, the United States and Spain, concluding that forests that had been thinned, logged or previously burned faced a higher risk of high-severity fires. They found that logging and hazard reduction burns -- a common practice across Australia outside of fire seas