Australia's Urban Areas at Risk of Severe Wildfires

This report, released on Tuesday by the Climate Council and Emergency Leaders for Climate Action (ELCA), highlights the growing risk of an urban fire disaster akin to the devastating wildfires that struck Los Angeles in January 2025.

The findings indicate that the urban fringes surrounding major cities such as Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, and Canberra possess similar traits that contributed to the destruction seen in LA.

Since 2001, the population in the outer suburbs of these cities has surged by 65.5%, now exceeding 6.9 million residents. Alarmingly, up to 90% of homes in high-risk fire zones were constructed before the implementation of modern bushfire-resistant standards, according to reports from Xinhua.

Previous studies have shown that 10% of all fires account for 78% of fire-related deaths, predominantly occurring in areas where flammable landscapes intersect with urban environments.