Lightning strikes. Photo courtesy Michael Bath.

Lightning strikes have the ability to take a huge toll on the 2.8 million hectares of plantation and native forest that Forests NSW manages across the State.

This is why Forests NSW lightning strike display system is so important to the organisation and the people of New South Wales who ultimately own this very valuable resource.

The man in charge of the lightning strike display system, Forests NSW acting manager Geographic Information Systems, Wayne Mackey, said it was uneconomic for the organisation to insure against fire in the forests.

“In an effort to counter the risk of fires caused by lightning strikes, Forests NSW began work on the detection system in 1999 and it has undergone a number of upgrades since,” Wayne said.

“The system can now be used to identify the coordinates of a lightning strike within 200 metres, which is more accurate than could be estimated from a fire tower.

“It can also be in use when fire towers have limited visibility and when aircraft cannot fly or are restricted.”

Wayne said the system has allowed Forests NSW to facilitate more efficient use of detection resources, such as aircraft that can cost from $260 to $1400 an hour to operate.

“Using the system, storm activity may be viewed long before a storm arrives in an area, and fire fighting and surveillance resources can be moved accordingly,” he said.

Modified versions of this system are now being used by 100 users including Forests NSW, Department of Environment and Conservation and NSW Rural Fire Service. The system allows fire managers to view near real-time lightning strike information on a web-based mapping interface.

Wayne said the lightning strike information was displayed together with data including tenure boundaries, roading and drainage. Information from the system may also be used to determine if a fire was started by lightning for the purposes of fire reports and fire-cause investigations.

The system was extensively studied to determine that the Kosciuszko fires were caused by lightning in January 2003. Wayne said long-term lightning strike data collection could enable lightning strike prone areas to be identified, thereby providing information to fire managers when developing risk management strategies.

“One of the most powerful aspects of this system is the ability to view lightning data in relation to tenure to assess the risk of each strike causing a fire  that could encroach onto a State forest, national park, Crown reserve or nearby private property,” he said.

“The system is near real-time because the radar image is updated every 15 minutes.

“The radar image can be used to determine the intensity and spread of the rain, temperature, wind, fire danger index and humidity. These are all measures that provide background information and indicate if conditions are favourable for wildfires.”

Wayne said the interactive display enables users to access detailed information about each lightning strike as required, such as time of strike and coordinates. There can be instances of more than 200 000 strikes in one day.

“Maps can be easily generated and supplied to fire crews using software that is user-friendly. In many cases, the crews are then able to reach the fire and contain it before it spreads and becomes a major threat to property and assets,” Wayne said.

This article appears in the Winter 2006 edition of Bush Telegraph Magazine.