Thinning forests doesn't reduce bushfire risk and could make some blazes worse, study finds

Across most forest types and ages, thinning had little impact on the severity of Black Saturday fires in Victoria, ANU study suggests

Removing trees to thin out forests is unlikely to cut the risk of severe bushfires despite the claims of forest industry groups, according to the authors of a new study.

Analysis of forests that burned in Victoria's Black Saturday fires in 2009 found in most cases areas that had been thinned did not see less severe burning and, depending on the type of trees, such intervention sometimes made fires more intense.