Population growth, perpetual population transfer and sprawling urban boundaries are just some of the key challenges for emergency managers in Australia. Victoria has experienced some of the fastest population growth in Australia, with most of this change occurring around Melbourne and in particular, its fringe regions.

Development has seen the boundary of the city extended twice. Recent bushfire events in these areas have highlighted the extreme challenges of rapid development and sprawl. More people, some with fewer skills or expectations of these hazards, are becoming increasingly faced with disasters on their doorstop. Further, lifestyle is often impeded by lagging transport infrastructure and long commute times as populations seek full time employment in main cities. 

The Victorian Fire Services commissioner has undertaken a program of research to examine the intersection of landscape, population and climate trends. The 2021 Research Program explores a range of drivers across the state to better inform strategy, investment and planning. 

This presentation outlines the 2021 Research Program, beginning with a discussion of the three comprehensive environmental scans across Victoria (including metropolitan Melbourne, peri-urban areas and regional Victoria). This work and other projects in the program form the framework to better understand changes across the State. Furthermore, the program works toward finding meaningful pathways adapt to creeping transformations, such as climate change. In other words, making climate change adaptation a priority, today.

The research outcomes identify opportunities for adaptation and focal points of collaboration between planning and the emergency services to better plan and respond to rapidly growing societies. The ways in which fire agencies and land management agencies can work together in the future to deal with these challenges.