BC urgently needs to change forest strategies or face more wildfire disasters: report

Strategic shifts are urgently needed to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires in British Columbia’s forests that threaten to decimate ecosystems and communities, according to an independent forest watchdog report.

The BC Forests Practices Board is calling on the county government to make a “paradigm shift” in how it manages forests, saying wildfire risk mitigation currently focuses on areas close to communities, but the broader forest landscape is “seriously vulnerable”.

The report comes as the largest wildfire in county history, the Donnie Creek Wildfire, continues to burn out of control in the remote northeast.

“The key is that this is urgent,” board chairman Keith Atkinson said in an interview.

“We are clearly experiencing perhaps our toughest year ahead.”

The fire in Donnie Creek, about 90 miles southeast of Fort Nelson, is an example of a catastrophic wildfire that affects few people but will cause lasting damage, he said.

“It’s not in an open area that directly affects people, but it’s such a big fire that it will affect resources, habitat and ecosystem in quite a damaging way if it gets to that intense level.”

Build forest power

The report recommends BC develop a long-term fire management vision and action plan that includes all levels of government to support landscape resilience in forests.

“Unless BC is willing to accept a future of increasingly frequent catastrophic wildfires and their associated costs and impacts, it is time for a paradigm shift in land management,” the report says.

Atkinson said BC is doing the work needed to fight wildfires and protect communities, but the government should consider measures to make forests stronger and reduce the risk of major wildfires.

“What we’re asking for is to sit down and think about the wider landscape level that’s still in the forest and think about how we can restore resilience to the really big fires that are building up,” he said.

A shift to landscape fire management would create more resilient forest areas less vulnerable to catastrophic wildfires, Atkinson said, adding that there was a need for more collaboration with Indigenous peoples on fire and forest management.

Landscape fire management through practices such as creating fuel breaks, increasing the diversity, density and age of trees, and greater use of cultural and prescribed burns in forest areas can protect the landscape from wildfires, he said.

“It returns the forest to its own innate resilience,” Atkinson said.

“The fire will burn out, but the grandstand will still go on and keep growing.”

Province on track for record season

The BC Wildfire Service says the wildfire in Donnie Creek has scorched more than 5,700 square miles of forest since it was sparked by lightning on May 12, and it could continue to burn into winter.

It is one of more than 80 wildfires burning in the province. More than 9,600 square kilometers of land have been set on fire since April 1, putting the province on a record-breaking season.

“These really big fires that we’ve been experiencing in recent years are reaching a catastrophic level where they’re doing serious damage to the ground,” Atkinson said.

“They really change the nature of the soil in some places, and of course they impact communities and infrastructure.”

The report says BC experienced its three largest wildfire seasons in 102 years in 2017, 2018 and 2021, affecting 34,000 square miles of land.

Government data shows that 45 percent of BC’s public land, estimated at 390,000 square miles, is at high to extreme fire risk.

According to the report, BC spent about $800 million on firefighting in 2021, but indirect costs associated with the wildfire season could have been as high as $24 billion.

Report reinforces need for improvement: minister

Forest Minister Bruce Ralston said in a statement that the report was a call to action to prevent wildfires.

“I appreciate this work by the Forest Practices Board, and in recent years we have taken actions in line with their recommendations, including doubling down on prevention programs, expanding prescribed and cultural burning and launching new forest landscape plans,” he said.

“The Forest Practices Board report confirms that we must continue to work with our partners and take crucial steps to
strengthen and expand wildfire planning, preparedness and response.”

He pointed to recent government investments to strengthen BC’s wildfire preparedness and response, including the introduction of a year-round BC Wildfire Service and expansion of the FireSmart program to help homeowners and communities build resilience to wildfires.

The independent Forest Practices Board reports its findings and recommendations directly to the public and government.

It monitors forestry and forestry practices on public lands and the adequacy of government enforcement, and may do so
recommendations for improving practices and legislation.