Reducing the overall number of deliberate bushfires not only reduces the amount of damage they cause, it frees up resources to fight and investigate the most serious fires.

Based on previous research undertaken by the Australian Institute of Criminology it seems that approximately half of all vegetations fires - some 20,000 to 30,000 each year - are deliberately lit, and that arson in all forms costs the Australian community $1.6 billion annually. Although it can be very difficult to identify whether a fire...

This paper reports on data obtained on 1,232 arson defendants (133 of whom were known to be appearing for a bushfire arson offence), who appeared before NSW courts between 2001 and 2006. Diversity in known offending highlights the need for treatment programs that focus not just on fire setting but wider behavioural issues.

This report examines intervention programs for young people who show an unhealthy interest in fire and fire services and calls for program evaluation.