Australia's tall, wet forests were not open and park-like when colonists arrived—and we shouldn't be burning them

Some reports and popular books, such as Bill Gammage's Biggest Estate on Earth, have argued that extensive areas of Australia's forests were kept open through frequent burning by First Nations people. Advocates for widespread thinning and burning of these forests have relied on this belief. They argue fire is needed to return these forests to their "pre-invasion" state.