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How was the Snowy Mountains Region affected by the 2019/20 bushfires?
● 33.5% of Kosciuszko National Park (KNP) was burnt, translating to approximately 330,000 hectares of land
● The Dunns Road fire, impacting the Snowy Mountains region, began on the 28th of December 2019 and was ignited by a lightning strike. KNP experienced extensive loss of vegetation in subalpine bogs, which are important for maintaining water quality and flow into waterways
● On 3 January 2020, the Dunns Road fire burnt from Batlow into Kosciuszko National Park, burning much of the northern part of the park. The fire caused significant damage, almost completely destroying the heritage-listed precinct (and the birthplace of skiing in Australia) of Kiandra.
Kiandra's historic former courthouse was left with only its walls standing after a fire so hot that the glass and aluminium in the windows melted
● By 11 January three fires had merged – the Dunns Road fire, the East Ournie Creek, and the Green Valley fire – and had created a 600,000-hectare "mega-fire", burning south of the Snowy Mountains
● The mega-fire was contained on the 2nd of February 2020, with the Dunns Road fire then extinguished on the 15th of February after destroying 182 homes and 333,940 hectares of land. The Green Valley fire was then extinguished three days later after claiming 208,275 hectares of land.
How was the Rocky Plain Bog affected?
● The Rocky Plain Bog was severely impacted by the Black Summer Bushfire Season.The catchment of Rocky Plain bog was intensely burnt, with sediment running onto the bog and water channelling with the first heavy rain after the fire.
● Sphagnum bogs, such as the Rocky Plain Bog, are valuable landscapes with unique plant and animal species and filter water for water catchment downstream. Bogs are very vulnerable when exposed to extreme temperatures, and are easily damaged by hard-hooved pests or fire. After fire when there is no plant cover, rain moves sediment off surrounding slopes and into the bog system, burying remaining plants and causing water to channel.
● Regeneration efforts concentrated on the slopes immediately above the bog, preferring to use organic material like bales of rice straw and coir logs which are
light and flexible.
● Coir logs were used to slow the flow of water and reduce sediment movement from the bare slopes above the bog. Straw bales were placed within bog areas to act as water holding sponges whilst sphagnum and vegetation recover.
● Bogs are easily damaged by hard hooved pests, such as wild horses, which are causing significant damage in the region - the wild brumby population in KNP increased from 5,000 in 2014 to 20,000 in 2020 following a contentious ‘Brumby Bill’ passed to protect the wild horses.
Who contributed to the funds to support regeneration efforts?
● 14,000 volunteer Polish firefighters raised over $150,000 AUD for the recovery of KNP. The funding was donated to the Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife, the trusted charity partner of Australia’s National Parks.
● The funds came as part of the Polish Aid for Australia’s ‘think globally, act locally’ initiative.
● Funds from the FNPW (Polish Fire Fighting Fund) assisted a number of natural recovery actions in areas of northern Kosciuszko National Park that were severely burnt in early 2020. These included:
o Fauna Surveys
o Bat Boxes
o Recovery of threatened species
o Erosion control in the sub-alpine region of Kiandra and installation of water holding structures at Rocky Plain Bog
● The gesture was in recognition of Polish-Australian relations, considering the Australian national park named after 18th-century Polish military leader, General Tadeusz Kościuszko.
How were the funds spent?
● The funding made available to National Parks by the FNPW and Polish community fundraising were some of the first to be delivered to the alpine regions impacted by fires for on-ground works.
● Funding was allocated by FNPW in April 2020 to enable works to commence before winter snow began to fall.
● FNPW allocated the funding to four major projects in support of the bushfire recovery efforts in the region.
Fauna Surveys
● Funding has been allocated to the survey of birds and insectivorous bats over a total of 28 heavily burnt sites. FNPW is pleased to report that insectivorous bats were present at all 15 bat sites.
● When compared to previous data, these surveys suggest an extreme drop in the bird population.
● Funding was allocated to re-survey these areas over summer, providing valuable information on how species are recovering and indicating long term impacts on species populations and status.
Bat Boxes
● Bats are a critical part of healthy, functioning ecosystems – small ‘micro’ bats control insect populations and large ‘macro’ bats pollinate and spread the seed of
native vegetation.
● Thanks to the funding from the Polish firefighters, 200 bat boxes have been installed using a methodology to develop knowledge on the effectiveness of two box
designs.
Recovery of Threatened Species
● The regeneration of the threatened Mountain Pygmy Possum’s habitat was supported by planting approximately 3,500 plants.
● In addition to erosion control, water holding structures, such as native grass and sphagnum, provide a habitat for many rare native flora and fauna, such as the endangered Broad Toothed Rat.
● The seeds of vulnerable vegetation and species were collected from sections of unburnt forest to create a seed bank for future planting.
Erosion Control
● The eroding slope in the sub-alpine zone of Kiandra was stabilised to assist the natural recovery process by reducing the impact of winter conditions on the exposed landscape. Water holding structures were installed at Rocky Plain Bog to combat the extensive loss of vegetation caused by the recent bushfire season.
Future Opportunities for Support
● FNPW has begun its Bushfire Recovery Nursery project that will support the ongoing restoration of ecosystems impacted by the Black Summer fires across Australia.
● KNP & alpine regions remains a high priority area for bushfire recovery works for FNPW with potential to support ongoing revegetation. Including the potential to support living seed banks of tree species such as the Alpine Ash.
Source:Key Messages - Rocky Plain Bog | 
