About Fire and Biodiversity WA (FaBWA)
FaBWA is a community-led, science-informed movement working for smarter fire management in Western Australia — solutions that protect people, health and biodiversity.
Our Work
FaBWA is powered by volunteers and professionals who bring knowledge, lived experience and care for Country.
FaBWA’s endeavour is to end destructive, quota-driven burning and replace it with strategic risk-based fire management.
We stand for
- Protecting people and property with smarter strategies.
- Safeguarding biodiversity for future generations.
- Respecting and supporting Aboriginal cultural fire knowledge, values and practices.
- Reducing health impacts from smoke.
- Responding to climate science with evidence-based solutions.
FaBWA supports the use of fire that is smart, safe, and targeted. We oppose quota-based targets and industrial-scale prescribed burning.
Our Origin Story
FaBWA was born out of shock and grief.
Community members and scientists stood in the ashes of forests, woodlands, granites and peatland habitats after prescribed burns that should never have burnt them so severely — and realised the same thing: this is not working!
Our work brings awareness to the issue of industrial scale prescribed burning regimes that are causing systematic environmental harm.
- In Denmark, peat wetlands that had taken millennia to form were left smouldering and decimated and tree canopies scorched over an area of 8,600 hectares.
- In Perup east of Manjimup, the habitat of dozens of endangered numbats was destroyed and many feared dead and displaced in a single high severity prescribed fire.
- In Walpole-Nornalup National Park, a “controlled” burn felled over 100 ancient tingle, karri and marri trees within less than 100 hectares during a prohibited burning period.
Our Core Values
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Evidence first
Backed by science, on-ground monitoring and first-hand accounts. -
Respect for Country
Indigenous cultural knowledge, values and experience at the heart. -
Balanced solutions
Protect people and biodiversity. -
Transparency
Open about funding, research, and partnerships. -
Collaboration
Working with communities, scientists, Aboriginal Elders, Traditional Custodians, land management practitioners and policymakers.
Our Network
FaBWA collaborates with
How We Work
Conduct independent and collaborative research and communicate science in plain language.
Share the lived experiences of residents, scientists, students, practitioners, Aboriginal Elders and Traditional Custodians.
Propose constructive approaches and strategic input to policies, procedures and practices.
Host forums, rallies, field trips and workshops.
Monitoring & Evaluation
On-ground monitoring, evaluation and site visits to areas on teburn programs before and after fires.
Promote rapid fire detection and suppression, and ecologically sustainable and culturally responsible fire management practices.
