The Effects of Rehabilitation Treatments on Landscape Function Within a Softwood Plantation After Fire: Implications for Catchment Management

There is global interest in enhancing the ecosystem services provided by landscapes and catchments dominated by plantation (monoculture) forestry. Partial reversion of plantations to locally native species (reforestation) is one option. However, the ecological outcomes of this kind of plantation reversion are poorly known. The partial reforestation of a pine plantation (Pinus radiata D. Don 1836) in the Australian Capital Territory with native species following a wildfire provides a rare case study of the environmental consequences of such a reversion. We estimated changes in landscape functionality by measuring indices of water infiltration, nutrient cycling, and soil surface stability across five landscape-scale treatments after the 2003 Lower Cotter Catchment bushfire: (1) natural regeneration of a native forest burned in 2003, (2) burned pine plantation replanted to pines, (3) burned plantation replanted to native trees and shrubs, (4) burned plantation allowed to naturally regenerate, and (5) forest roads rehabilitated by planting native trees and shrubs. At 14 years after the fire, we found that the regenerating native forest had the highest indices of water infiltration, nutrient cycling, and soil surface stability. The burned pine plantation that was replanted to pines in 2005 had indices of functionality that were higher than the burned plantation areas that were either allowed to naturally regenerate to native eucalypt forest or were planted with native forest species. These two types of native forest rehabilitation treatments had only minor differences in functionality. The rehabilitated closed roads were the least functional. We found that a pine plantation at the closed canopy stage can supply regulating services of water infiltration, nutrient cycling, and soil surface stability comparable to a native forest at a similar stage postfire; however, a significant limitation of the plantation was its low ecosystem resilience. It required massive soil disturbance to replant postfire and long-term maintenance of an extensive unpaved road network. The active or passive rehabilitation of native forest is justified to improve the natural resilience to wildfire. However, this rehabilitation of a native forest following use as a pine plantation is a multidecade process in this relatively low-rainfall environment. Study Implications The 2003 Canberra bushfire destroyed the entire pine plantation at Lower Cotter Catchment, a water catchment in Australian Capital Territory, but also provided an opportunity to examine and quantify changes in ecosystem functions with different restoration treatments. Landscape Function Analysis, including three indices (water infiltration, nutrient cycling, and soil surface stability), was used in this study. Findings suggest that both native eucalyptus forests and pine plantations recovered to relatively high levels of functionality within just 15 years after the bushfire, compared with all other restoration treatments, but plantations of Pinus radiata are not resilient to wildfire from a commercial perspective. These results help to justify the controversial decision to restore the majority of the catchment with native species in 2005. However, long-term monitoring is needed to determine how long it will take for the replanted and natural regeneration treatments to approach the functionality of the native forest.

Physical and Mental Health Effects of Bushfire and Smoke in the Australian Capital Territory 2019–20

The 2019–20 bushfire season in south-eastern Australia was one of the most severe in recorded history. Bushfire smoke-related air pollution reached hazardous levels in major metropolitan areas, including the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), for prolonged periods of time. Bushfire smoke directly challenges human health through effects on respiratory and cardiac function, but can also indirectly affect health, wellbeing and quality of life. Few studies have examined the specific health effects of bushfire smoke, separate from direct effects of fire, and looked beyond physical health symptoms to consider effects on mental health and lifestyle in Australian communities. This paper describes an assessment of the health impacts of this prolonged exposure to hazardous levels of bushfire smoke in the ACT and surrounding area during the 2019–20 bushfire season. An online survey captured information on demographics, health (physical and mental health, sleep) and medical advice seeking from 2,084 adult participants (40% male, median age 45 years). Almost all participants (97%) experienced at least one physical health symptom that they attributed to smoke, most commonly eye or throat irritation, and cough. Over half of responders self-reported symptoms of anxiety and/or feeling depressed and approximately half reported poorer sleep. Women reported all symptoms more frequently than men. Participants with existing medical conditions or poorer self-rated health, parents and those directly affected by fire (in either the current or previous fire seasons) also experienced poorer physical, mental health and/or sleep symptoms. Approximately 17% of people sought advice from a medical health practitioner, most commonly a general practitioner, to manage their symptoms. This study demonstrated that prolonged exposure to bushfire smoke can have substantial effects on health. Holistic approaches to understanding, preventing and mitigating the effects of smoke, not just on physical health but on mental health, and the intersection of these, is important. Improved public health messaging is needed to address uncertainty about how individuals can protect their and their families health for future events. This should be informed by identifying subgroups of the population, such as those with existing health conditions, parents, or those directly exposed to fire who may be at a greater risk.

Phialophora americana. [Descriptions of Fungi and Bacteria].

A description is provided for Phialophora americana (Herpotrichiellaceae, Chaetothyriales) found on decayed wood. Some information on its morphology, habitats, dispersal and transmission, conservation status and economic impacts is given, along with details of its geographical distribution (Antarctica, China (Changbai Mountains), Iran, Taiwan, Australia (Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia), Austria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, UK, Canada (New Brunswick, Northwest Territories), Mexico, USA (Minnesota, New York, Virginia, Wisconsin), Chile, Brazil (Parana, Pernambuco, Sao Paulo) and Uruguay) and associated organisms (man, woody plants and other wood-inhabiting fungi).

Capronia pilosella. [Descriptions of Fungi and Bacteria].

A description is provided for Capronia pilosella, found on unidentified, very rotten wood. Some information on its morphological characteristics, associated organisms and substrata, dispersal and transmission, habitats and economic impacts is given, along with details of its geographical distribution (Asia (China, Xinjiang Autonomous Region, Taiwan), Australasia (Australia, Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Northern Territory, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, New Zealand), Europe (Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, UK), North America (Canada, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, USA, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York), Pacific Ocean (Fiji), South America (Argentina, Brazil, Amazonas)).

Spatial Signatures of Road Network Growth for Different Levels of Global Planning

We compare the statistical distributions of the geometrical properties of road networks for two representative datasets under different levels of planning: the cities comprising Metropolitan Manila show the conditions under bottom-up self-organized growth, while Brasilia and the Australian Capital Territory centered at Canberra represent the case of strict top-down planning. The distribution of segmented areas of the cities shows a dual power-law behavior, with the larger areas following the ∼1.9 scaling exponent observed in other cities, while the smaller areas show a lower exponent of ∼0.5, believed to be due to practical considerations. While all cities are found to favor the formation of straight road segments, the planned city roads have a preponderance of sinuous roads, with sinuosities approaching π. A simple model based on a nearest-neighbor directed branching coupled with sectional grid formations is proposed to capture the nontrivial statistical features observed.

1478Extreme daily numbers of general practice encounters of asthma and allergic rhinitis in Australia

Background Asthma affects approximately 11% of Australia’s population and allergic rhinitis 19%. Grass pollen is associated with asthma and allergic rhinitis exacerbations. This study tested the hypothesis that days with extreme numbers of general practice (GP) encounters for asthma and allergic rhinitis aligned with grass pollen season. Methods The MedicineInsight GP database contains longitudinal data on persons attending a sample of Australian GPs. We created time series of daily counts of asthma and allergic rhinitis encounters by state and territory to identify extreme encounter days; days with counts above the 99th percentile. Results Of 3,036,678 attendances during the study period, 2.4% were for asthma. There were 83 extreme encounter days during April to December, across Australia. Victoria and South Australia had the highest increase in attendances on extreme days. Allergic rhinitis encounters represented 0.9% of attendances. Of the 69 extreme allergic rhinitis encounter days across Australia, Victoria and Australian Capital Territory had the highest increase in attendances. Allergic rhinitis extreme days were clustered between mid-October and early December (72%), compared to 22% of the asthma extreme days. Conclusions Extreme asthma GP encounters were not as strongly associated with grass pollen season compared to allergic rhinitis encounters. Victoria had a high number of encounters on asthma and allergic rhinitis extreme days, many associated with thunderstorm asthma. Key messages Extreme asthma encounter days can be associated with cooler months, grass pollen season and school holidays. Extremes allergic rhinitis presentation days were aligned with grass pollen season.

What Are the Restraint Practices, Preferences, and Experiences When Australian Parents Travel with Their Children in a Rideshare Vehicle?

This study aimed to explore the preferences, experiences and restraint practices of Australian parents travelling with their children in rideshare vehicles. Six hundred and thirty-one participants completed an online survey (M = 39.2 years, SD = 10.5, Range = 18.0–70.0 years; Female: 63.4%). Most participants (59.1%) reported that they had not travelled in a rideshare vehicle with their youngest child (M = 7.2 years, SD = 5.2, Range = 0.0–17.0 years; Male: 54.2%). Participants who reported that they have travelled with their youngest child in a rideshare vehicle tended to: be younger, identify as male, have completed an Undergraduate or Postgraduate degree, reside in the Australian Capital Territory, earning a higher yearly household income, and were involved in an at-fault crash in the past two years. In addition, these participants were: less likely to have a ‘younger’ youngest child, less likely to ‘always’ wear a seatbelt while travelling in their private motor vehicle, and also less likely to ‘always’ restrain their child in an appropriate restraint while travelling in their private motor vehicle. Prohibitive reasons for not travelling in a rideshare vehicle included: cost (29.3%), concerns over driver safety (27.5%), concerns over travelling with children in a rideshare service (24.8%), or inconvenience (24.3%). Participants who reported that they had travelled in a rideshare vehicle with their youngest child reported lower rates of appropriate restraint use within the rideshare vehicle (57.3%) than when travelling in their private motor vehicle (85.6%). Reasons associated with inappropriate restraint use within the rideshare vehicle included: unavailability of a child restraint (39.6%), travelling a short distance (33.0%), were not required to use one in this situation (33.0%), or the parent did not have a restraint with them (26.4%). Given the increasing popularity of rideshare services in Australia, and globally, the urgent adaption of rideshare-specific policy, legislation, education, and design in relation to child restraint requirements is needed to ensure the safety of child occupants.