Extended wildfire seasons across the globe could cause major problems in Australia, experts have warned.

As previously reported by insuranceNEWS.com.au, more than 80 winter fires were blazing across NSW earlier this month as the state was hit by the worst conditions for a decade.

Meanwhile, California is experiencing its second consecutive horror summer as more than a million acres burn.

Bushfire and Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre CEO Richard Thornton tells insuranceNEWS.com.au longer fire seasons will make traditional sharing of resources much harder to achieve.

Almost 200 firefighters from Australia and New Zealand went to California at the end of July, and the sharing of water-bombing aircraft is routine.

“[Extended fire seasons] is a worldwide phenomenon,” Dr Thornton says.

“Australia has significant numbers of firefighters deployed in the US and Europe at the same time as we are seeing fires here. We are also limited in how we can share resources state to state as the fire seasons expand.”

Dr Thornton is calling for further research into how we should respond to the growing threat.

See Analysis.