Experts Make Case for Letting Canada's Wildfires Burn

As climate change is fingered as a catalyst driving the early rash of forest fires across northern and western Canada, experts say the most prudent approach at this stage is to, whenever possible, let the fires burn.

Western Canada is now enduring one of the worst wildfire seasons on record, with hundreds of people fleeing homes in B.C. and more than 13,000 evacuations across Saskatchewan. But those studying the issue say the human costs of wildfire need to be balanced against research that suggests vulnerable forests are going to burn either way -- especially given the mounting pressures presented by climate change.

Fire agencies in the Northwest Territories and British Columbia explicitly name climate change as a factor driving heightened fire risks. The federal ministry that oversees development of the oilsands predicts the amount of area burned by forest fires in previous decades could double during this current one.

''The question becomes, if we've got areas where fire can burn, the most responsible thing to do ecologically, fiscally and for long-term health is to let those fires burn,'' said Toddi Steelman, executive director of the School of Environment and Sustainability at the University of Saskatchewan.

''If we don't let them burn, we have to pay that account down the line… the forest will burn eventually.''

When boreal burns, less flammable trees grow back

Jill Johnstone has spent several years investigating the effects of wildfire on the boreal forests in Alaska and the Yukon and the Northwest territories. One of her discoveries is that in areas where forest fires burn severely and frequently -– a growing phenomenon in a warmer, drier climate -- the typical black spruce trees that characterize much of the boreal are replaced by leafy deciduous species such as aspen.

''As the climate is warming, we're having more frequent extreme fire weather that leads to big, active fire years. And the fires that burn under those conditions seem to trigger parts of the landscape to shift to this less flammable vegetation type,'' Johnstone, an associate professor at the University of Saskatchewan, told DeSmog Canada.

While black spruce are described as ''born to burn'' due to species adaptations -- including cones that only release seeds after a blaze -- fire moves less easily through broad-leaf forests.

Allowing forests to burn naturally could fundamentally change the boreal ecosystem, from the types of plants that grow there to the animals that call it home. A forest dominated by deciduous trees could be less prone to fire and, according to separate research, play an important role in helping cool the planet.

''If large fires are actually a mechanism for resetting the landscape to be less flammable… we need to let large fires burn because they are catalysts of change,'' Johnstone said.

University of Alberta professor Mike Flannigan expressed skepticism that the solution is as simple as allowing more fire-tolerant aspens to overtake the boreal forest. But he echoed Johnstone's prescription to let fires burn as naturally and freely as possible.

Which fires should be allowed to burn?

In fact, several provinces and territories have taken this approach in recent years, following what Flannigan describes as a ''monitor and manage'' strategy of selectively intervening in fires that threaten people and developments, resources or species of value.

Fire officials in British Columbia call their strategy a ''modified response'' approach, according to Lyle Gawalko, B.C.'s manager of fire prevention. Their policy is to protect, in this order: human health and safety, communities and critical infrastructure, cultural values, watersheds, high value habitat and timber values.

If a fire starts in an area that's deemed safe or beneficial to burn and doesn't threaten these values, officials will simply monitor it to make sure the situation doesn't become dangerous.

Officials in Saskatchewan have also created a policy that explicitly outlines where they will fight fires versus where they will observe and assess as a blaze progresses.

''All our battles are decided based on our established priorities of importance to the province,'' Steve Roberts, executive director of Saskatchewan's Wildfire Management Branch, said Friday. Fires within 20 kilometres of a settlement, for example, top the province's priority list. ''Public safety is number one and that includes communities and individuals. Public infrastructure is number two and these are receiving almost all of our attention at this time.''

The problem comes in places like Alberta where there's very little territory that doesn't have a value on it, Flannigan said.

''It's almost impossible to let a fire burn without it impacting an oil and gas development, community, or other operation. That's the problem with co-existing development and fire -- it's hard to let fire take its natural course.''

Politics vs. science

Deciding which fires pose a risk is not a simple task for many reasons. Community members as well as local officials in northern Saskatchewan have criticized the government's policy for leaving remote communities vulnerable.

''If I'm a mayor of a small town, of course I'm going to be doing my job as mayor to lobby to get more resources on my fire. But they need to remember is that they may be one of many, many places that need those resources,'' Steelman said.

''The politics is different from what the science would suggest and that's not unusual in these kinds of debates.''

Given that climate impacts are already influencing the strength and spread of wildfire in Canada, Johnstone highlights the urgent need for a different conversation about how to approach the problem and possible solutions.

''If we acknowledge that we can't suppress every fire in the landscape and then take that one step further and come to terms with the idea that fire may actually be beneficial in terms of long-term landscape resilience, there needs to be a better dialogue with the public about what our plan is about how we’re going to fight fires.''