112 resources found

The Association for Fire Ecology is an international organization dedicated to improving the knowledge and use of fire in land management. The Association is made up of scientists, educators, students, managers, practitioners, policymakers, and interested citizens helping to shape the emerging profession and growing field of fire ecology.

FESBC, in partnership with the Province of British Columbia, is a catalyst that unifies people around helping communities with sustainability, climate action, increasing First Nations participation in the forest economy, jobs for workers, abundant wildlife and healthy forests. The Forest Enhancement Society of BC continues to play a key role in the forests of B. C. , working with our partners to create healthier, more productive forests for the future. Through funding and direction from the government of BC, FESBC is able to support innovative projects throughout the province, delivered by Indigenous groups, communities, and contractors; projects which ensure value is generated from residual forest waste while reducing the risk from wildfires, improving wildlife habitat, and generating economic activity. The purposes of the Forest Enhancement Society of BC are: 1. To advance environmental and resource stewardship of British Columbia's forests by: Preventing and mitigating the impact of wildfires; Improving damaged or low value forests; Improving habitat for wildlife; Supporting the use of fibre from damaged and low value forests; and Treating forests to improve the management of greenhouse gases. 2. To advocate for the environmental and resource stewardship of British Columbia's forests 3. To do all such other things as are incidental and ancillary to the attainment of the foregoing purposes and the exercise of the powers of the Society.

The Fire Chiefs' Association of British Columbia is a non-profit organization that serves as an essential source of information, education, and community for its members. It proactively engages with the government and standards organizations on issues relating to fire services, resulting in effective and supported fire departments across the province. The FCABC was formed in 1931 and is recognized today by the government and public as a trusted representative of BC's fire service. As a representative of over 300 fire departments across British Columbia, the Association works to improve safety and fire service delivery through advocacy, member support and services, and strategic partnerships at various levels.

Prescribed Fire Training Exchanges and cooperative burns provide experiential training that builds robust local capacity for fire management and offers fire practitioners a more holistic perspectivea?\"while implementing treatments that support community and landscape objectives. TREX provides a unique cooperative burning model that services the needs of a variety of entities, including federal and state agencies, private landowners and contractors, tribes, academics, and international partnersa?\"while incorporating local values and issues to build the right kinds of capacity in the right places. Most TREX events take place in the spring or fall, when conditions are mostly likely to be good for safe and effective prescribed burning.

The International Association of Wildland Fire mission is to facilitate communication and provide leadership for the wildland fire community. The IAWF was formed to promote a better understanding of wildland fire, and built on the belief that an understanding of this dynamic natural force is vital for natural resource management, for firefighter safety, and for harmonious interaction between people and their environment. The Association is dedicated to communicating with the entire wildland fire community and providing a global linkage for people with a shared interest in wildland fire and comprehensive fire management.

The Wildland Firefighting Silviculture Training is an 8-week, field-based program designed to introduce participants to various career paths in natural resources, including field-based forestry work. It provides valuable skills and 16 industry certifications relevant to forestry roles such as Silviculture, Forest Operations, Tree Planting, and Danger Tree Assessing.

This paper synthesizes the disparate groundwater responses to wildfire, noting that post-fire effects range from significant increases to decreases in water fluxes like recharge and baseflow. The authors evaluate this variability across five primary categories: climate, vegetation, hydrogeology, fire characteristics, and the cryosphere, focusing on both short-term and intermediate recovery periods. A critical finding is that post-wildfire responses often align with hydroclimatic settings where water input and evaporative demand are out of sync, while the pre-wildfire groundwater regime significantly influences the expected outcome and recovery trajectory. This paper provides a collection of testable hypotheses and identifies key areas, particularly the influence of snow dynamics and cryospheric processes, for future monitoring and modeling efforts to improve the prediction of groundwater recovery after fires.

The Good Fire Podcast explores the concept of fire as a tool for ecological health, cultural empowerment, and Indigenous stewardship. The term good fire refers to intentional, controlled burns used by Indigenous communities to maintain healthy landscapes and cultural traditions.

This webinar examines how legal objectives for mule deer winter range and old growth management affect the Stswecem'c Xget'tem First Nation's ability to reduce wildfire risk, adapt to climate change, and restore ecocultural values in their south-central BC forests. Despite the impacts of settler-colonial policies, SXFN has long stewarded their territory using fire. In partnership with the University of British Columbia, they assessed crown fire risk, fuel loads, and potential treatments, highlighting both current stewardship efforts and the importance of Indigenous sovereignty in land management.

This document introduces the Mitigating Wildfire Initiative, an effort to address catastrophic wildfires in British Columbia through dialogue and collaboration among diverse groups, including Indigenous Peoples and local communities. The MWI has four key objectives: strengthening relationships, improving understanding of wildfire issues, creating a shared agenda for mitigation, and achieving real-world impact. The document delves into the complex concept of resilience in the context of wildfire, differentiating between ecological, social, and social-ecological perspectives, and emphasizes the importance of place-based and context-specific discussions for effective strategies. Finally, it outlines five interconnected categories of progress being made toward wildfire resilience in BC including planning, operations, networking, research and knowledge generation, and public engagement, highlighting the need for an all-of-society approach and proactive, dynamic management.

This paper investigates how wildfires influence the upward migration of tree species in California's subalpine forests, a phenomenon often linked to climate change. Researchers examined post-fire tree regeneration across various fire severities, focusing on the contrasting responses of shade-tolerant and shade-intolerant conifer species. While overall montane species regeneration decreased in burned areas, shade-intolerant Jeffrey pine showed increased success in severely burned plots, aligning with predictions of higher climatic suitability. Conversely, shade-tolerant red fir regeneration declined significantly with higher fire severity, suggesting that the specific regeneration niche of a species, its ideal post-fire conditions, is critical in determining whether fire facilitates or hinders its range expansion.

This extension note explores the critical role of fire in the dry interior forests of British Columbia, which historically experienced frequent, low-intensity surface fires that maintained ecosystem health and biodiversity. The authors explain how human fire exclusion over the past 60 years has dramatically altered these forests, leading to increased fuel loads, higher tree density, altered species composition, and a greater risk of intense, large-scale crown fires. The documen then outlines four management options for these sites: continued fire suppression, controlled prescribed burns, mechanical fuel reduction, or a combination of these strategies, emphasizing the need to balance ecological, social, and economic considerations. Finally, the document highlights various ongoing research initiatives aimed at understanding fire regimes and developing integrated management solutions for these fire-adapted ecosystems.

This document outlines best management practices for fuel treatment within British Columbia's interior-dry fire weather zone, a region characterized by dry ecosystems like Interior douglas fir, ponderosa pine, and bunchgrass zones. It emphasizes how wildfires significantly influence these forest ecosystems, historically maintaining biodiversity and grasslands through low-intensity burns. The guide details fuel management strategies for surface, ladder, and crown fuels, including thinning, pruning, and species conversion, all aimed at reducing the risk and intensity of high-severity wildfires. Additionally, it provides recommendations for mitigating impacts on forest health from treatments and includes case studies illustrating effective fuel management practices.

This document outlines best management practices for fuel treatment in the Boreal Fire Weather Zone, characterized by the Boreal White and Black Spruce BEC zone. This document emphasizes that this zone experiences large, intense wildfires often started by lightning, which significantly impact forest succession. The text details how fire suppression has increased flammable older forests, making communities more vulnerable, and classifies the predominant fuel types according to the Canadian Forest Fire Behaviour Prediction System. Finally, it provides comprehensive recommendations for fuel management, including surface, ladder, and crown fuel reduction, along with strategies for maintenance and mitigating impacts on forest health, all aimed at reducing wildfire risk.

This document outlines best management practices for fuel treatment within British Columbia's coastal fire weather zone, encompassing the Coastal Western Hemlock and Coastal Douglas Fir biogeoclimatic zones. It details the ecology of this temperate rainforest, noting that while mature stands typically resist widespread fires due to high moisture and closed canopies, disturbed areas and specific drier zones are more prone to fire, especially with the presence of invasive species. The core purpose is to guide fire management through specific interventions, focusing on surface, ladder, and crown fuel reduction to prevent canopy fires, alongside recommendations for forest health mitigation to prevent pest outbreaks after treatment. The document also references established Canadian Forest Fire Behaviour Prediction System fuel types to characterize fire risk and includes practical examples of post-treatment characteristics from various locations.

This document from the BC Wildfire Service provides comprehensive guidance for developing Fuel Management Prescriptions, specifically for projects aimed at wildfire risk reduction funded by various government programs. It outlines the purpose and core principles of effective fuel management, emphasizing the need for specific and measurable targets for fire behavior reduction and site-specific considerations tied to WRR objectives. The document details the required sections and content for a FMP template, covering everything from project identification and descriptions of fuel treatment units to intricate details about soil characteristics, legal and non-statutory considerations, and precise fuel loading and treatment specifications. This document aims to equip qualified professionals with the necessary framework to design treatments that reduce fire intensity, support suppression efforts, and balance wildfire mitigation with other ecological and social values.

This technical report introduces Landscape Fire Management as a crucial, integrated approach to addressing escalating wildfire risks while restoring ecosystem health. LFM is presented as a paradigm shift, moving beyond localized efforts to encompass broader landscapes by coordinating various land management activities and setting complementary wildland fire objectives across different land-use zones. The document outlines six core principles for effective LFM practice: defining the landscape, understanding current and future conditions, assessing risks to values, setting cohesive objectives, coordinating interventions, and continuously learning through adaptive management. This report aims to guide diverse land managers in British Columbia towards a more resilient coexistence with fire by detailing strategies like fuel breaks, fire-tolerant stands, and managing fuel loads.

This report outlines the Lower North Thompson Community Forest Wildfire Risk Management Plan, a comprehensive strategy developed to address the increasing threat of wildfires in British Columbia. Initiated in 2018, the plan identifies and evaluates wildfire risks, considering factors like ignition probability, fire intensity, and values at risk such as human life, infrastructure, and environmental assets. It proposes five key management strategies including wildfire management zones, silviculture, strategic harvesting, prescribed fire, and collaborative planning aimed at enhancing wildfire resilience and mitigating negative impacts, while also exploring potential ecological opportunities associated with fire. The plan emphasizes a proactive and adaptive approach, recommending annual progress reports and a five-year renewal cycle to adjust to changing conditions.

This document outlines best management practices for fuel treatment within British Columbia's Interior-Subalpine Fire Weather Zone, a high-elevation region dominated by coniferous forests like Engelmann Spruce-Subalpine Fir and Montane Spruce zones. It details the ecology of this fire zone, highlighting how fires historically occur less frequently but with high severity, often leading to stand-replacing events that favor species like lodgepole pine. The document also explains how these areas are classified within the Canadian Forest Fire Behaviour Prediction system for fuel types, providing specific guidelines for managing surface, ladder, and crown fuels to reduce wildfire risk. Finally, this document offers recommendations for mitigating impacts on forest health, including strategies to prevent pest outbreaks and maintain stand resilience after fuel treatments.

This document outlines Best Management Practices for fuel treatment within British Columbia's Central Plateau Fire Weather Zone, a region historically shaped by frequent, stand-destroying wildfires. It details the zone's diverse ecosystems and vegetation, highlighting how species like lodgepole pine thrive in fire-prone areas, while others like Douglas-fir develop fire-resistant bark. The guide also classifies common fuel types using the Canadian Forest Fire Behaviour Prediction system, emphasizing management strategies for surface, ladder, and crown fuels, including techniques like thinning and encouraging deciduous species to reduce wildfire risk. Finally, it provides examples of past fuel management projects and discusses considerations for forest health, such as preventing pest outbreaks and maintaining stand integrity.