Hi everyone, Mark Iype in Edmonton today.
From the moment the record 2023 wildfire season came to a close, it seems like there have been warnings about what might happen this year.
Much of Western Canada has been mired in a drought with snowpacks at historically low levels sparking fears that 2024 could see thousands more acres of woodland burned and thousands more people forced to flee their homes.
Alberta has held several briefings on drought and wildfire season over the last month, and on Monday, British Columbia offered its warnings for the season.
“Obviously, we’re seeing almost 20 C weather right now, so there’s a bit of heightened concern,” said Cliff Chapman, director of provincial operations for the BC Wildfire Service. “We are doing this earlier than we have ever done it before – we are providing information to, ideally, all of B.C. very early ahead of what we would call the core wildfire season.”
Chapman was speaking at a press conference with provincial and federal officials as they prepared B.C. for wildfire season.
While the province spoke of streamlining training for people looking to volunteer to help provide emergency assistance, the most interesting announcement was B.C. urging people to preregister for emergency support now to avoid long wait times in case they are forced from their homes.
Last year’s fire season was the most destructive recorded in Canada. More than 180,000 square kilometres were burned by the end of September, with major fires and evacuations in nearly every province and territory. This includes more than 28,000 square kilometres of land in B.C., where hundreds of homes were destroyed in the Okanagan and Shuswap regions.
Bowinn Ma, the Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness, said mass evacuations created long lines at Emergency Support Services stations, which is why the province is hoping to have people pre-enroll for help – before they may need it.
“We have to be ready to support more people than ever before,” said Ma. “We want people to be able to access the supports that they need quickly during an emergency.”
By creating an online profile, people could receive financial support more quickly through Interac e-transfers.
Currently, the snowpack in B.C. is 66 per cent of normal, which is tied with 2001 for the second-lowest amount in the past 50 years. And with several holdover wildfires that have smouldered through the winter under the snow, when the melt comes and the land dries out, moderate winds will be enough for them to start burning again.
Officials said Monday that 40 to 60 millimetres of precipitation are needed in the next two weeks for conditions to return to normal.
In Alberta, dealing with conditions similar to B.C., the province previously moved its official fire season 10 days earlier this year, into February. The season typically kicks off March 1, but after wildfires scorched a record 22,000 square kilometres in the province last year, the government said it wanted to get a head start.
On Tuesday in Calgary, the city warned of restrictions on outdoor water use by May 1 if conditions don’t improve. While there is an expectation of snow this week, it likely won’t be enough to make a real difference.
This is the weekly Western Canada newsletter written by B.C. Editor Wendy Cox and Alberta Bureau Chief Mark Iype. If you’re reading this on the web, or it was forwarded to you from someone else, you can sign up for it and all Globe newsletters here.
Wendy Cox