Hundreds of native animals are believed dead and a rare species of bird may be bound for the "extinction radar" after massive bushfires in Western Australia swept through the world's biggest temperate woodland.

Key points: Covering almost 16m hectares, the Great Western Woodlands is the largest temperate woodland left on Earth, but vast swathes have been burnt

Covering almost 16m hectares, the Great Western Woodlands is the largest temperate woodland left on Earth, but vast swathes have been burnt More than 300 emergency personnel from across WA were deployed to fight the state's bushfires at a cost of about $5 million

More than 300 emergency personnel from across WA were deployed to fight the state's bushfires at a cost of about $5 million The biggest of nine separate fire fronts in the region was called Norseman West, which had a perimeter measuring 430km

Authorities have finally given the all-clear after the blazes, started by lightning near the small town of Norseman on December 16, tore through more than 550,000 hectares of the Goldfields region.

No homes or lives were lost, but the destruction of vegetation and wildlife has devastated the traditional owners, the Ngadju people, who have been trying to grow the local population of malleefowl over the past six years.

"We've had a survey program for a few years now where we monitor the malleefowls, check their nests, monitor their young," senior Ngadju ranger James Schultz said.

"That local species is going to be on the extinction radar now.

"The malleefowl was already facing the threat of foxes and feral cats."

The ground-dwelling birds, known colloquially as "bush chooks", already had a "vulnerable" conservation status in the region, and Mr Schultz said 10 nests being monitored have been burned out.

Traditional Ngadju water trees and hunting grounds have also been impacted, as well as some sacred sites which included century-old rock carvings.

A rare malleefowl near Norseman. ( Supplied: Ngadju Aboriginal Corporation )

'Won't be the same'

Mr Shultz said the land had been affected by drought, which had provided dry fuel for the fires.

"When we had bushfires before, real hot fires which burnt everything in its path, the rains came at the right time and the land has revegetated itself naturally," he said.

"But because there's no rain, the germination process will struggle to get back to its former beauty.

"All the big trees, the canopy, are gone … they're finished.

"It's going to be very difficult … it will repair itself, but it won't be the same."

An aerial view of the Great Western Woodlands after the bushfires. ( Supplied: Lynn Webb )

Mr Schultz said traditional owners want to be more involved in fire mitigation work, and what he called "cool burn-offs" during milder conditions.

He said 12 Ngadju rangers have been trained as firefighters but have no machinery.

"We need to get back to the old ways because that's been working for thousands of years," he said.

"We need to get in and get our hands dirty and do what the elders used to do."

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New tourist attraction to open this year

The bushfires occurred just months before the official opening of Norseman's $2.1 million Woodlands Community Centre in a bid to bring more tourists to the region.

Landscape photographer Lynn Webb, who owns a professional gallery in Norseman, has been capturing the beauty of the woodlands and the Lake Cowan salt lake for the past 40 years.

Many of his favourite spots in the area have been destroyed.

"The fires have been devastating, there's no doubt," Mr Webb said.

"But there is still a large portion of the woodlands which has survived, and we need to make sure it is managed much better in the future."

Peter Fitchat addresses a public meeting in Norseman during the height of the emergency. ( ABC News: Jarrod Lucas )

Cost of response more than $5m

The Shire of Dundas is now calling for a multi-agency review of how the bushfires were fought and what funding should be put towards mitigation work.

The fires were classified as a level three emergency — the highest category for the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES).

More than 300 emergency personnel from across WA were deployed at a cost of more than $5m, including a mobile command centre stationed at Kalgoorlie-Boulder's State Emergency Service headquarters.

Shire of Dundas CEO Peter Fitchat said the Ngadju rangers could make a difference in reducing the severity of future fires if they were engaged for bushfire mitigation work.

"The expenditure on this fire fight over the last 28 days, just in our shire, has been $5 million-plus out of DFES pockets," he said.

"For $2.5 million you could supply the equipment — that would be a one-off cost every 10 years — and the rest would go on staffing."

Bushfires burning near Norseman blanketed the remote town in smoke for weeks. ( Supplied: Lynn Webb )

Mr Fitchat estimates the damage bill for local government infrastructure at around $80,000, which he said would not qualify the council for Federal Government relief.

"Everybody walks away saying, 'oh the road's open, we've got a bit of rain, it's all back to normal,'" he said.

"The fire went to the stage it did because of a lack of mitigation work and the drought.

"It's going to happen again if we don't fund people to do the mitigation work — and not just anyone, but people who understand what they're doing and who have an interest in that bush."

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Work to 'fireproof' highway

Meanwhile, WA's Regional Development Minister Alannah MacTiernan said discussions with the Federal Government are underway to develop alternative routes to the Eyre Highway.

The only sealed road between WA and South Australia was closed for 12 days.

Hundreds of tourists and truck drivers were stranded until the highway reopened on January 10, with the lengthy closure believed to have cost the transport industry up to $10m for every day it was closed.

Ms MacTiernan said several options are being considered, although local authorities in Norseman have expressed concerns about the town's future if sealed roads bypassing the town are built.

"A lot of these issues are of strategic importance," she said.

"What has happened has caused us to have a look at that Eyre Highway and to start a dialogue with the Commonwealth about how we might fund an alternative here, because it affects businesses in the eastern states as well."

She said the State Government will consider ways to "fireproof" the Eyre Highway.

"I understand that [Transport Minister Rita Saffioti] is also looking at ways in which we can … give it a bit more fireproofing to reduce the prospects of such long delays," she said.