Gippsland Environment Group Inc

Rebutting a recent Victorian bushfire myth
The Victorian Naturalist

Volume 143(4) 2026  112–121

By Ian Penna

Abstract

Recent publications assert that implementation of the 1970 Victorian Land Conservation Act precipitated catastrophic bushfires in East Gippsland from the early 1970s. This argument, presented as evidence-based, rests on three key propositions: (1) the Act prohibited forest burning by settler land holders, (2) catastrophic bushfires occurred in the Buchan–Snowy River region following the Act’s passage, and (3) forest burning by settlers/graziers mimicked Aboriginal practices until soon after 1970, when stopped by the introduction of the Act. This paper examines each proposition and finds that none withstands scrutiny. The resulting conclusion is that the ‘curse of conservation’ narrative is not supported by empirical evidence.

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Keywords: Conservation, curse, LCC, bushfire, palaeoecology