South-east Australia is set for an “abnormally early” bushfire season, with firefighters calling for substantially more resources to tackle fires that are predicted to become fiercer and last longer in the years ahead.



The New South Wales rural fire service has said the danger period for bushfires, which normally begins on 1 October in most areas of the state, has already begun statewide, and is urging residents to reduce fire risks around their houses.



The RFS dealt with more than 90 bush and grass fires last weekend alone, with a fire in the Clarence Valley this week burning through 9,500 hectares and requiring 150 firefighters, aided by eight aircraft, to contain it.



The National Firefighters Union of Australia has warned that parts of NSW and Victoria are primed for widespread bushfires due to a warm winter that saw the growth of vegetation, which can fuel fires.



According to the Bureau of Meteorology, July was 0.29C warmer than the long-term average, with rainfall 32% below average.



Longer-term trends, driven by climate change, have seen the duration and frequency of Australian heatwaves increase markedly since the 1970s, making the landscape more prone to bushfires.



The firefighters’ union estimates that it will need to double the number of professional fire fighters by 2030, from 2010 levels, to deal with lengthening bushfire seasons.



Jim Casey, from the NSW branch of the Fire Brigade Employees Union, said this would mean an extra 3,500 firefighters would need to be added in NSW alone.



“We are seeing more extreme fires, on top of that there is storm damage, flooding and concerns around the increasing medical role played by firefighters,” he told Guardian Australia.



“So, in the short term, the question around more resources is pivotal. But we are a Band-aid on a gangrenous stump on this issue. We need a concerted effort both in Australia and internationally to tackle climate change. Unfortunately, with the repeal of the carbon price, we are swimming against the tide of history a bit.”



Casey said firefighters were noticing earlier bushfire seasons, as well as more dangerous fires.



“The kicker is that the fires are becoming more difficult to control,” he said. “We are seeing a move towards fire acting more unpredictably, moving very quickly and destructively. There’s only so much you can do with a fire engine if there’s a 10km wall of flame heading towards you.”



Casey said firefighters were expecting a bushfire season “every bit as bad” as last year, when fires tore through the Blue Mountains and the central coast.



NSW has introduced new measures in the past week to help deal with the risk of bushfires.



Fines for a range of fire-related offensives have been raised, with the throwing of a lit cigarette from a car now incurring a $660 fine. Failing to comply with a fire hazard reduction notice will cost an offender $2,200.



Residents are now able to clear trees on their property within 10 metres of their home, without seeking approval. Other vegetation, other than trees, can be cleared up to 50 metres from the dwelling.



Professor Lesley Hughes, of the Climate Council, said as the climate warmed, Australia would have to get used to more ferocious periods of bushfire.



“The south-east of Australia is in a drying trend, so the bushfire seasons are getting earlier and lasting longer,” she said.



“The indications are that it’s likely we’ll see something like the Blue Mountains fires again this year.



“The global question is how to reduce carbon emissions. What we’re doing now will affect the second half of the century, so we can’t just turn off the warming switch. We need to fix the root of the problem but in the meantime we need to adapt to the growing risk of fire in many parts of Australia, particularly NSW, Victoria and parts of Western Australia.”



Last year, Tony Abbott, who regularly volunteers for fire fighting duty, said the executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, Christiana Figueres, was “talking through her hat” for suggesting there was a link between global warming and bushfires.



“Fire is part of the Australian experience … it has been since humans were on this continent,” he said.



“Climate change is real … but these fires are certainly not a function of climate change, they are just a function of life.”