Fighting Forest Fires Who, How and Why? - Learn Forestry

Forest Fires~ The Good, The Bad and The Ugly ~

Plant Regeneration‣ Many plants have adaptations that allow them to eitherwithstand fire or regenerate quickly after a fire:Physical Characteristics - thick bark (e.g Douglas fir)Vegetative Sprouting - regenerationfrom buds found on roots(e.g. Aspen, Willow)Fire Stimulated Seed Release- seedswhich need extreme heat to be released(e.g. Lodgepole pine)Fire Stimulated Seed GerminationFire Stimulated Seed Germination – seeds that requireheat or smoke to stimulate germination

What Happens to theAnimals?During the Fire:‣ Large animals are able to run from the fire‣ Small animals often escape by moving into rock cliffsor underground boroughsAfter the Fire:After the Fire:‣ Many animals return to aburned area looking for thenew abundant vegetation thathas regenerated

Fighting Forest Fires~ Who, How and Why? ~

British Columbia Forest ServiceProtection ProgramOverviewThe BCFS Protection Program is a division of the British ColumbiaMinistry of Forests, specializing in wildfire suppression and prevention

British Columbia Forest ServiceProtection ProgramOverviewIn 1994 the Protection Branch of the Ministry of Forestswas re-engineered to improve the following:‣ efficiency‣ productivity‣ cost effectivenessStaff and crews were taken out of administrative centres andstationed at attack bases in regions of BC with higher wildfire risk:‣ Smithers‣ Prince George‣ Williams Lake‣ Kamloops‣ Castlegar‣ Nanimo

How BC Fights Forest Fires‣ Early Detection‣ Fast Aggressive Initial Attack‣ Aggressive Mop-up‣ Every Forest Fire, regardlessof cause, will be brought undercontrol within 24 hours‣ If a fire isn’t under control in the first burning period, a FireAnalysis Strategy must be completed by the Incident Commanderin consultation with the Land Manger

Types of Fire Suppression CrewsInitial Attack: access fires by either truck or helicopter1. Rappattack: Utilize helicopters to access fires in steep remote areas‣ 3 person crew (self sufficient for 24 hours)‣ Access is by rappelling from a hoveringhelicopter‣ Provide emergency medical assistance toinjured persons in isolated areas‣ Helicopters are equipped with hoists forextraction

Types of Fire Suppression Crews2. Parattack: Utilize fixed wing aircraft and parachute deployment toaccess remote initial attack fires‣ Crew consists 18 Parattack personnel and 1 Command Spotter‣ Crew and fire equipments are deployed by parachute‣ Used mostly in Prince George, Northwest and Cariboo fire Centres‣ Limiting factors will be terrain, tree height, and canopy closure

Types of Fire Suppression CrewsUnit Crew: 20 person crew utilized forsustained action on larger fires‣ Crew consists of 1 Crew Leader, 4 Squad Boss’sand 15 Crew Members‣ Self sufficient for 72 hours‣ Used for mop-up andinitial attack on large fires

Other Fire SuppressionResourcesHelitankers: these medium-sized helicopters with a belly tankattached are suited for direct bombing on fires‣ Helitankers generally have a belly tank capacity of 300 gallons‣ Helitanker operations are coordinated by the Rapattack DutyOfficer who maintains communications with fire centres and thehelicopter operations technicians on board

Other Fire SuppressionResourcesAir Tankers: These aircraft are primarily used for Initial Attack‣ Air Tankers can carry between 700 and 2500 gallons ofretardent depending on the type‣ Retardent is not designed to put the fire out, but rather is usedto buy time for the ground crews to get in and complete controllines

Prevention Through FireManagementDecades of practicing “fire exclusion”, have caused many fireecosystems to build up fuel loads beyond their capacityFuels Management is now the focus:‣ the planned manipulation of forest vegetation whetherliving or dead to decrease the intensity and rate at which aforest fire spreads‣ this is a proactive way to reduce thethreat of catastrophic wildfire to people,property and natural resources

Prescribed BurningDefinition: Intentionally starting a fire to reduce excess fuels onthe forest floor (fuels management or fighting wildfires)Fall Burning:Winter Burning:Waiting for the fall allows enough timefor the the dead vegetation to dry out foreasy ignition. The weather is also cooler,therefore reducing the chance of ignitingsurrounding vegetation.If there is very dry conditionsduring the fall or if large slash pilesare being burned, snowy conditionsdecrease the chance of the firegetting out of control

For more information please visit:http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/protect/