BANFF – As the threat of wildfire continues to grow, Parks Canada has two prescribed burns on the books to help protect Bow Valley communities.
In a presentation to Banff town council Monday (Jan. 8), Parks Canada fire experts said two of four approved prescribed fires For Banff National Park include goals that would make it easier to fight or contain a future wildfire.
They said the prescribed fires include a major one on the Fairholme benchlands between Banff and Harvie Heights as well as completion of Compound Meadows adjacent to the Banff townsite – which was abruptly put on hold last year after pre-burning work got out of control.
“It is approved, but it will be pending weather conditions and resource availability and other factors,” said David Tavernini, a fire management officer with Banff National Park during his presentation on Parks Canada’s wildfire risk reduction program.
In May 2023, a prescribed burn at Compound Meadows got out of control, jumping to the east side of Banff Avenue and forcing evacuation of Banff Rocky Mountain Resort and Mount View Barbecue as well as several horses from Banff Light Horse Association corrals as a precaution.
An independent after-action review of Compound Meadows found the response was initially chaotic, there were equipment mechanical failures, confusion over chain of command and roles, and lack of information from Parks Canada to the public.
The consultants recommended using designated fire meteorologists and fire weather specialists to get more accurate information leading up to and throughout prescribed fires, stronger evacuation planning, and better communication – among many other recommendations.
Parks Canada said it accepted the recommendations of the independent after-action review, which was completed by Satya Inc., and was initiating necessary changes to its processes for future fire operations.
Council, however, pressed Parks Canada during the Jan. 8 presentation on communication protocols moving forward.
“I’m curious about communication strategies going forward, lessons learned,” said Coun. Barb Pelham.
“I am wondering what kind of live comms we can anticipate with Parks in terms of when prescribed burns are happening and how can we keep that dialogue going very cleanly and promptly.”
Tavernini said Parks Canada is regularly in communication with the Town of Banff regarding fire operations, but directed council to the manager of fire and vegetation or external relations team beyond that.
“They handle the communications process, but it is something if there are things to discuss we can make sure to connect,” he said.
In spring 2022, national park fire crews did a small 124-hectare burn at the base of Cascade Mountain north of the Trans-Canada Highway as part of the 300-hectare Compound Meadows unit – the first front-country prescribed fire in Banff since the Sawback was burned in 2014.
However, on May 3, 2023, as firefighters were pre-burning grasses to protect the wildlife fence along highway in preparation for the main prescribed fire on May 5 when cooler temperatures and rain were predicted, things went horribly wrong.
At the time, the fire danger rating was high, and temperatures were in the mid-20s Celsius. The weather forecast for the day indicated an increased risk of thunderstorms over the eastern slopes with winds forecast to be southwest at 10km/hr.
The wind quickly changed direction and increased from 10 km/hr to 28 km/hr.
At approximately 4 p.m., fast-moving flames jumped from Compound Meadows to the east side of Banff Avenue, where the fire grew about three hectares beyond the planned 82-hectare burn unit area. In all, 21 hectares burned.
Three sheds at the horse corrals burned down, including one that belonged to the Brewster family who lost several treasured family heirlooms, and the iconic Bill Peyto welcoming sign on Banff Avenue burned to the ground.
Fire experts say finishing off the burn will reduce the amount of pine and spruce trees within the meadows, stimulate growth of aspen and grass, and restore habitat for wildlife in an important wildlife corridor, including elk which use this area as important winter habitat.
In addition, Tavernini said finishing off the Compound Meadow prescribed fire will help to decrease the wildfire hazard to the Banff townsite by reducing build-up of flammable vegetation.
“That plan can be spring or fall, but again it will be pending weather conditions and resource availability and other factors there,” he said.
The other prescribed fire on the books to help protect Bow Valley communities is the Fairholme benchlands, a 4,469-hectare unit between the Johnson Lake area and the national park’s east gate down to the Trans-Canada Highway.
The Fairholme bench, considered an ecologically rich area, was previously burned in 2003, significantly burning dense forest following more than a century of fire suppression in the national park.
A minor burn to prepare a fireguard near Carrot Creek could potentially get off the ground this spring, depending on weather conditions and other factors, but the main prescribed fire would not happen until a fall season.
The goal is to reduce lodgepole pine regrowth, restore montane grasslands and open up forests to a more historical landscape and improve habitat for wildlife, such as grizzly bears, wolves and elk.
Importantly, Tavernini said this prescribed fire would create an important fuel break protecting local communities such as Harvie Heights and Canmore in the event of a future wildfire.
“In the Carrot Creek area, where it was mechanically logged prior to the 2003 fire, there’s really light fuels, so in the spring when the grass is cured and the forest still has snow around it, we can go and burn the guard and prepare it for the fall,” he said.
“But the main unit of the Fairhome II would not be conducted until the fall season, just because you have winter following afterwards.”
Last year, Canada experienced an alarming record-breaking fire season, putting residents across the country on high alert.
Fuelled by record high temperatures and widespread drought conditions across the country, more than 6,100 fires burned a record-breaking 17.5 million hectares.
To put that in perspective, that’s an area larger than Greece and more than double the 1989 record. Normally, an average of 2.5 million hectares of land are burned in Canada every year.
Unlike previous years, the fires last year were widespread, from the West Coast to the Atlantic provinces, and the North. By mid-July, there were 29 so-called mega-fires, each exceeding 100,000 hectares.
Mayor Corrie DiManno thanked Tavernini for the update on the plans.
“This topic is very important to residents and businesses and it’s certainly top of mind,” she said.
A national risk assessment rates Banff, Kootenay and Yoho national parks in the highest category – Level 1 risk and Level 5 consequence – based on the probability of fire and consequences to public safety, infrastructure loss, and disruption of critical services.
Level 5 consequence is defined as major potential for loss of life and serious injuries with long-term effects. It also means widespread displacement of people for prolonged duration, extensive damage to properties, serious damage to infrastructure causing significant disruption of key services for prolonged periods, and major long-term impacts on the environment.
Tavernini also highlighted several previous, ongoing and future efforts as part of the wildfire risk reduction plan, including forest thinning around the townsite to boost efforts to defend wildfires.
In addition to work at the Cave & Basin National Historic Site, Parks Canada administration building and Banff Light Horse Association corrals, Tavernini said Parks Canada is also in the early stages of revisiting work around the Middle Springs neighbourhoods.
“We’ve been doing a lot of maintenance around Middle Springs over the past few years and it’s getting to the point where we’re starting to get more regeneration coming in to those areas,” said Tavernini.
“We are maintaining it with regular brushing, but we’re looking to see whether or not there’s opportunities to enhance or other ways to improve the maintenance of these units with our updated research and science.”
Another area in the early stages of review is east of Tunnel Mountain campground, in what is referred to as the Tunnel Toe.
Tavernini said the plan does include a mix of mechanical and hand-thinning of trees and vegetation.
“The idea there is to create more continuous treatment of fuel along the east side,” he said.
“We’re looking to see what the best approach is for managing fuels in that area.”
Coun. Chip Olver thanked Parks Canada for the ongoing wildfire risk reduction work, particularly in the face of the recent fire seasons seen in Canada.
“We’re grateful for this protective and preventative work that’s being done,” she said.
