Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Nearly 30 per cent of the forested land base in the Prince George Fire Centre, which covers BC's northeast, is likely to burn by the end of this year, according to the province. Forest Minister Ravi Parmar says the region has already seen nearly 7,000 square kilometres burned by wildfires since June. That's by far the most of any of BC's six fire centres, with the second highest being the Northwest Fire Centre, where just under 40 square kilometres have burned. "People in the area have endured not just the physical threat of fires, but the emotional toll of displacement, smoke and uncertainty" ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

The most urgent takeaway? Neither BC nor LA has enough firefighters to meet the demands of increasingly extreme wildfire seasons ... ... with close to 2,000 firefighters stretched thin in LA, including personnel from across the state and even out-of-state teams, José Martí, a professor of computer and electrical engineering at UBC, warns that a similar crisis could unfold in BC unless the province strengthens its wildfire management strategy. “We do not have enough firefighters, and we’re seeing larger and larger fires, going uncontrolled in BC and now LA" ... CLICK HERE for the full story

On warm summer afternoons in southern British Columbia, thunderclouds bloom over high plateaus and towering mountain peaks. A flash of light. A sharp crack. And a blast of electricity is delivered to another remote hillside. A new wildfire has started. It won’t be detected for hours or days. But when it is finally discovered, a pivotal decision will have to be made. Should the fire be immediately put out? Or can it be allowed to clear away brush on the forest floor, potentially reducing the intensity of a future blaze while making room for wildlife? The question, which lies at the heart of BC’s wildfire crisis, isn’t new. But the answer has never been muddier ... CLICK HERE for the full story

As we begin this new fire season it’s important to look back to see what is occurring in our forests, and evaluate what can be done to limit the devastating impacts of uncontrolled wildfires. B.C. is a large area (double the size of California), and 64 per cent of our land base is forest. Unfortunately, this also represents the amount of fuel that can burn during a dry summer. Fire is nature’s way of renewal, yet large high intensity uncontrolled fires are destroying forest areas that will take many generations to reforest. It is also bringing about recurring environmental damage with additional water runoff, sedimentary deposits in streams, and a host of other challenges because of the intensity of the fires. Since the adoption of Forest Practices Boards and Codes (B.C. 1995) many different countries, governments and jurisdictions have tried to maintain a balance between conservation and production of a renewable commodity. I say ‘renewable commodity’ because a forest is a living, bre...

Fire crews across much of Canada are already on high alert for the coming wildfire season, only months after the conclusion of the worst season on record . . . . . . . . Alberta also declared last month that its wildfire season had started, 10 days early, and BC issued a notice saying it was monitoring holdover fires from last year. The BC Wildfire Service has since announced a number of prescribed burns, in an attempt to reduce dried vegetation and protect communities against wildfires. More than 100 fires are still burning in BC and Alberta after unusually dry conditions in both provinces . . . . CLICK HERE for the full story

  BC says controlled burns can save communities; but bureaucracy and inaction has hobbled efforts to clear forests of fuel Of all the ways to protect BC communities from increasingly furious wildfire seasons, few have been as widely endorsed as the tactical, controlled use of fire.   Both experts and provincial officials say fire is one of the best ways to clear forested areas of dangerous (and unnaturally large) amounts of dead underbrush and dry vegetation. But by all measures, BC’s governments are failing to meet the moment, leaving the province’s forests increasingly vulnerable not just to fire—but to intense, quick-moving firestorms that can overwhelm firefighters and destroy hundreds of homes ... CLICK HERE for the full story

MLA John Rustad -- Nechako Lake riding The 2018 BC wildfire season has already been declared the worst on record. Firefighters have done an amazing job and we are all thankful for their work. The most import thing to keep mind is how much did we learn from the 2017 wildfire season, and did we put that knowledge to good use this year? Unfortunately, we have been seeing a similar pattern to the provincial response as we saw last summer. In particular, the way communities have been managed, coordination between different levels of government, engagement with First Nations and in some cases and unwillingness to embrace new technology. An independent review of the 2017 wildfire season was conducted, yet the terms of reference ignored the calls by many experts who were telling the government to focus more on forest management, new technology and proper response.   As a result, we are now seeing an eroding of confidence in BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) management an...