B.C. failed to reduce wildfire risk, despite warning, communities say
VANCOUVER — The fire in Logan Lake started like so many others in British Columbia’s worst wildfire season on record — a smouldering campfire, not fully extinguished, sparked flames that spread across the forest floor.
But unlike other blazes that have grown catastrophically, engulfing homes, forests and farmland, the Logan Lake fire in June was kept to a half-hectare. The reason, a local official says, is because the town has conducted extensive wildfire mitigation, in spite of a provincial system he describes as under-funded, burdensome and unfair.
“Had (the fire) been in that area when we did not mitigate that area, we would’ve had a severe fire on our hands,” said Fire Chief Dan Leighton. “That’s proof that the work we’re doing will work.”
In the wake of the 2003 wildfire crisis, which destroyed more than 300 homes and businesses, the British Columbia government asked former Manitoba premier Gary Filmon to conduct a thorough review. In his report, Firestorm 2003, he warned that unless action was taken to reduce fuels such as seedlings, shrubs and wood debris in forests near communities, there would be more severe wildfires.