Wildfires of unprecedented scale have ravaged parts of Canada, surpassing the size of the state of Virginia. In Quebec, the largest wildfire in its history has spread across an area 13 times the size of New York City. These mega fires are too vast and fierce to be fought conventionally, leading experts to suggest that traditional firefighting methods are no longer adequate. Instead, proactive measures must be taken to prevent fires from igniting and spreading in the first place.
New strategies are crucial given the increasing difficulty of combatting wildfires in Canada, as they occur more frequently and grow larger due to the hot and dry conditions resulting from climate change. “We need a paradigm shift from viewing the role of wildfire agencies as putting out fires to protecting human society,” says Yves Bergeron, an expert at the University of Quebec.
Historically, Canadian wildfire agencies and provincial governments have reacted to outbreaks by attempting to suppress or prevent them from spreading. However, the simultaneous outbreak of wildfires across multiple provinces overwhelmed these agencies, necessitating the closure of forests to prevent further damage. Despite these efforts, nearly 28 million acres of forests have already burned this wildfire season, five times the annual average.
It is clear that a more proactive approach is required. Closing forests when conditions are highly prone to wildfires and increasing patrols to detect smaller fires early on are effective measures. Moreover, forests should be closed before dangerous conditions escalate, and human activities that can spark fires, such as camping and the use of all-terrain vehicles, should be restricted. These closures can be lifted relatively quickly once the risk subsides.
Canada should follow the example of Australia, where forests are automatically closed during certain weather conditions that pose a high fire risk. Political leaders must consider an automated and apolitical approach to forest closures. Cordy Tymstra, a wildfire management consultant, emphasizes the importance of closing forests early, as the fires that occur under extremely hot, dry, and windy conditions tend to cause the most destruction. Similarly, patrols in areas prone to lightning-caused fires should be increased on risky days to spot fires quickly.
To mitigate and prevent future fires, Canada should prioritize making communities and infrastructure more resistant to fires. This can be achieved by creating buffers of less flammable trees and plants and reducing or eliminating power lines running through forests. Managed burns and mosaic patterns in logging could also help slow down the spread of fires. However, implementing these changes necessitates negotiation with the powerful logging industry and reforms at the provincial level.
It is clear that Canadian wildfire agencies must move away from solely focusing on extinguishing fires. As Michael Flannigan, a fire management expert, states, “The model of fighting all the fires all the time, we lose.” With the increasing impact of climate change, Canada’s wildfire season is starting earlier and lasting longer, while fires are becoming larger and more destructive. These changes highlight the urgent need to manage Canada’s forests as the country and the rest of the world face rising temperatures.
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