Environmental events in Australian forests are considered in this article as falling into orders of prominence. Major events which attract national attention, mark the development of public policy, and are discussed in the professional and academic literature are termed “first order” events. Those which occur at a local scale, attract only local attention, are usually concerned with implementing rather than making policy, and are not discussed in the literature are termed “second order” events. They can have significant effects on people's lives and livelihoods.