Canada’s fire forecast for June is calling for a difficult season ahead for B.C., the Northwest Territories and the prairie provinces.
“Last year, Canadians faced the most destructive wildfire season in our history, and forecasting shared by NRCan (Natural Resources Canada) in recent months shows that 2024 may follow the recent trend of hot, dry weather,” said said Canada’s Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Jonathan Wilkinson.
Forecasts said the fire risk is highest in northern parts of the province.
“While spring wildfire activity has been relatively normal this year, several communities in the west such as Fort Nelson have experienced evacuations,” said Wilkinson.
“The risk of further intense wildfires remains high in areas that have experienced prolonged, multi-year droughts including northeastern B.C., Northwestern Alberta and the southern part of the Northwest Territories.”
However, that risk is expected to intensify and expand across most of B.C. through the summer.
The province has prepared for wildfire season by increasing funding to firefighting services and conducting controlled burns.
“Through legislation, we have increased the amount of prescribed burns and cultural burns we conduct with Indigenous people,” said B.C.’s Forest Minister Bruce Ralston.
“They require careful preparation so they are safe, but we have the guidelines to support that.”
Ralston said this approach has been effective so far, noting that the 2023 St. Mary River fire could have been much worse if not for a large controlled burn earlier in the year.
“[Last year’s controlled burn near Ê”aqÌ“am] is a very good example of the value and importance of prescribed burns,” said Ralston.
“When a fire comes to an area where we’ve had a prescribed burn, there’s no fuel left for it to advance, so it’s largely stopped.”
The provincial and national governments will continue to use prescribed burns under their newly launched Wildland Fire Prevention and Mitigation Strategy.
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