More funds needed for disaster research
Australia's chief scientist has called for more funding into long-term disaster research on top of a multi-million dollar package for a new bushfires and natural hazards centre announced last week.
Doctor Alan Finkel told the bushfires royal commission more investment was needed into researching the long-term cause and effects of natural disasters, including climate change.
His statement comes after the Morrison government on Thursday announced $88.5 million in funding for a body to replace the current Bushfire and Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre.
Dr Finkel said Australia performed well when it came to sharing data and cross-collaboration on research, both at an institutional and international level.
However, he criticised the lack of a national, climate change framework to assist both the public and private sector with developing natural disaster resilience.
Counsel assisting Dominique Hogan-Doran asked Dr Finkel if funding for future disaster-proofing was a priority as the economy struggled through the coronavirus recession.
"As a nation we would be poorer if we only focused on the immediate and not the medium and the long term," he told the inquiry on Monday.
Federal government programs are already in place which could be adapted to encourage the development of technologies to help in future disasters.
However, Dr Finkel is wary of taking funding from those existing projects for longer-term research.
"We have to avoid the false dichotomy between worrying about the immediate responses to the economic impact, versus worrying about the long-term benefits of research. We just need to manage both."
He called for a national monitoring system for bushfire smoke which could be used to calculate risks to health in both the short and long term.
About 445 deaths in the aftermath of the recent bushfire season were attributed to bushfire smoke.
According to researchers from the University of Technology Sydney, the full impact of prolonged smoke inhalation is still unknown, with more research needed into long-term adverse health effects.
