Alice Springs community leaders are calling for urgent federal intervention on buffel grass, warning the invasive grass is creating an escalating bushfire, environmental, cultural and economic threat across Central Australia.
The warning comes after heavy rainfall triggered an explosion of buffel grass growth across the Red Centre, creating huge fuel loads that could become increasingly dangerous as the landscape dries out.
A strong El Niño is already established and intensifying, while a positive Indian Ocean Dipole is likely to develop during spring. The last time the two climate drivers coincided strongly in 1982, they contributed to exceptionally dry conditions ahead of the devastating Ash Wednesday fire season.
NT Shadow Minister for Health Chansey Paech said:
‘Buffel grass is no longer just a weed management issue – it is a growing threat to the safety, wellbeing and future of Central Australian communities.
‘Territorians have been raising the alarm about buffel grass and its impact on Country for years. We know what is happening on the ground, and we know the risks will only grow as our climate becomes hotter and drier.
‘This is about protecting people, protecting Country and protecting the places that make Central Australia home. Buffel grass is changing our landscapes and increasing the danger communities face when fire takes hold.
‘The people of Central Australia deserve to know that when we raise the alarm, governments are listening – and acting.
‘We need national leadership, sustained investment and a coordinated response across governments.’
Alice Springs Mayor Asta Hill said:
‘People in Alice Springs are living with buffel grass every day. It is spreading through our town, along our roads and across the landscapes that make Central Australia such a special place to live and visit.
‘Our Council is doing an enormous amount of work to manage buffel grass, but this problem is now far beyond what local ratepayers can reasonably be expected to fund alone.
‘Every year, the burden on our community grows as we spend more time and resources managing fire risk and protecting the places people love, while buffel grass continues to spread.
‘This is also a tourism issue. People come to Central Australia to experience our extraordinary landscapes, and we cannot stand by while those landscapes are transformed and increasingly exposed to destructive fires.
‘Alice Springs needs the federal government to recognise the scale of what is happening here and help fund a long-term, coordinated response.
‘Our community is calling for help. Ratepayers cannot continue to shoulder the cost of managing an issue of this scale. We need governments working together now, before the next major fire shows us once again what is at stake.’
Invasive Species Council Voice of Country campaign lead Taigen Ryan said:
‘Central Australia has been sounding the alarm on buffel grass for years. What we have lacked is national leadership and a response that matches the extraordinary scale of the problem.
‘Volunteer firefighters here are telling us buffel grass is already fuelling the majority of the fires they are being called out to fight. After the extraordinary growth we’ve seen following recent rain, people are deeply worried about what happens when all of that fuel dries out.
‘We need a federal inquiry into buffel grass to put the full scale of this crisis in front of parliament – the bushfire risk, the damage to Country and culture, the threat to native wildlife and tourism, and the growing cost being pushed onto communities.
‘We need buffel grass listed as a Weed of National Significance, but a listing on its own is not enough. It needs to unlock national coordination, sustained funding and a serious plan to stop its spread.’
Background:
- Buffel grass was declared a weed in the Northern Territory in 2024 and the NT Government has committed $750,000 annually towards its management.
- A recent economic assessment commissioned by the NT Government found the costs of buffel grass to society dramatically outweigh its benefits, with researchers estimating costs of about $6,216 per hectare each year compared with benefits of about $112 per hectare under the modelled scenario.
- Buffel grass has also been nominated as a Weed of National Significance, with the nomination backed by more than 80 organisations spanning Indigenous, conservation, health, tourism, arts and community groups.
- The national assessment process subsequently found buffel grass causes nationally significant environmental and cultural impacts and that feasible actions exist to reduce those impacts. A final decision was delayed in August while further work is undertaken, with advice due back to the National Biosecurity Committee by December.
- At Tjoritja, buffel-fuelled fires have burned more than 100,000 hectares of country, damaging biodiversity, infrastructure and places of profound cultural significance.
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