National Bushfire Extents - Near Real-Time

Full description

Lineage

Maintenance and Update Frequency: asNeeded

Statement: Versions 1 and 2 (2019/20): This dataset was first built by EMSINA, Geoscience Australia, and Esri Australia staff in early January 2020 in response to the Black Summer Bushfires. The product was aimed at providing a nationally consistent dataset of bushfire boundaries. Version 1 was released publicly on 8 January 2020 through Esri AGOL software. Version 2 of the product was released in mid-February as EMSINA and Geoscience Australia began automating the product. The release of version 2 exhibited a reformatted attributed table to accommodate these new automation scripts. The product was continuously developed by the three entities above until early May 2020 when both the scripts and data were handed over to the National Bushfire Recovery Agency. The EMSINA Group formally ended their technical involvement with this project on June 30, 2020. Version 3 (2020/21): A 2020/21 version of the National Operational Bushfire Boundaries dataset was agreed to by the Australian Government. It continued to extend upon EMSINA’s 2019/20 Version 2 product. This product was owned and managed by the Australian Government Department of Home Affairs, with Geoscience Australia identified as the technical partners responsible for development and delivery. Work on Version 3 began in August 2020 with delivery of this product occurring on 14 September 2020. Version 4 (2021/22): A 2021/22 version of the National Operational Bushfire Boundaries dataset was produced by Geoscience Australia. This product was owned and managed by Geoscience Australia, who provided both development and delivery. Work on Version 4 began in August 2021 with delivery of this product occurring on 1 September 2021. The dataset was discontinued in May 2022 because of insufficient Government funding to sustain the Project. Version 5 (2023/25): A 2023/25 version of the National Near Real-Time Bushfire Boundaries dataset is produced by Geoscience Australia under funding from the National Bushfire Intelligence Capability (NBIC) - CSIRO. NBIC and Geoscience Australia also partnered with the EMSINA Group to assist with accessing and delivering this dataset. This dataset was the first time where the jurisdictional attributes were aligned to AFAC’s draft National Going Bushfire Schema and Data Dictionary. Work on Version 5 began in August 2023 and was released in late 2023 under formal access arrangements with the States and Territories. Version 6 (2025/26) - Current Version A 2025/26 version of the National Near Real-Time Bushfire Extents dataset is produced by Geoscience Australia under project funding from the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, and the National Emergency Management Agency, with contributions to the National Bushfire Intelligence Capability.This dataset is built directly off Version 5, incorporating improvements from AFAC's finalised National Going Bushfire Schema and Data Dictionary. Work on Version 6 started in September 2025 and was finalised and released in mid-October 2025. This iteration of the dataset is funded until 30 June 2026.

Notes

Purpose
To provide nationally consistent near real-time bushfire and prescribed burn extents in an aggregated, and standardised format aligned to national standards.