In the News – Wildfire/Extreme Weather

New Page, Dec 11, 2024

Related webpage: Ecol. forestry & Conservation/Fire Management

Sep 25, 2025:
-From https://cwfis.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/interactive-map, today

From https://weather.gc.ca/en/location/index.html?coords=44.745%2C-65.511

– Drought, wildfire restrictions disrupt forestry work across Guysborough County
Chloe Hannan, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Guysborough Journal, reproduced in the Penticton Herald ““The landowners I’ve spoken with voluntarily complied with the ban despite the fact that many activities and permits were not required for private forest landowners or their forest managers, though the contractors we work with who were able to continue work took extra precautions and made every effort to reduce risks, including working through the night and monitoring after in compliance with regulations,” Peruniak said. But beyond the restrictions, the long-term effects of drought are now a pressing concern.“Landowners are also very concerned about the potential future impacts of fires and actual impacts of extended drought on their lands, which has a significant impact on trees and could make them more susceptible to fires and invasive species or weaken them at the time of year when Nova Scotia is typically prone to powerful windstorms and hurricanes,” Peruniak said. “Many of the impacts won’t be known until next year or beyond, but landowners, like farmers (many of whom also have active woodlots), have serious concerns about the future, and how to manage their forests under these sorts of extremes. It’s a major goal of ours to try to help adapt to future conditions and address these concerns.”

Sep 22, 2025:
What led to Maine having its worst August for wildfires in 20 years
By Emmett Gartner Bangor Daily News “..What made the landscape more susceptible to wildfires might seem counterintuitive: a wet spring. Plenty of rain in May sprouted the growth of fine fuels such as grasses and shrubs. Then three months of severe drought dried them out, turning the Maine landscape into a tinderbox…Maine is historically one of the least wildfire-prone states in the country, said Barton, who studies wildfires. But Maine has been experiencing fluctuations between periods of severe drought and record precipitation, a pattern that can lay the groundwork for wildfires to spread.”

Sep 18, 2025:
– Woods Restrictions Lifted Except in Annapolis County
NS Gov/DNR News Release “..decisions on restricting woods access are based on data modelling that measures how much dry, flammable material has built up that could easily start a fire”.
– Mixing tree species does not always make forests more drought-resilient
UNIVERSITY OF FREIBURG on eurekalert.org “Increasing tree species diversity is widely suggested as a way to help forests withstand climate change – especially prolonged droughts. But a new international study [available at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/gcb.70394]led by the University of Freiburg, published in Global Change Biology, shows that simply mixing more tree species does not always boost forests’ resilience to drought. In fact, the effects of diversity on tree growth can shift from beneficial to negative as droughts drag on.”

Sep 17, 2025:
– Long Lake, N.S., wildfire still being held at 8,468 hectares
CTV News “The Long Lake, N.S., wildfire is still being held at an estimated 8,468 hectares, but crews are concerned with the ongoing dry conditions.”
– Stopping Wildfires to Protect the Planet: The Environmental Case for Fire Retardant
by AerialFire Staff, News Release. “The USDA Forest Service and other fire management agencies around the world have used phosphate-based fire retardants for more than 60 years to prevent the spread of wildfires. Over that time, fire retardant has proven to be an effective tool, helping firefighters to protect thousands of structures from destruction and to save countless lives. It has also helped to protect the environment from the far-reaching and sometimes irreversible damages caused by wildfires. In this article we will examine more than 80 years of scientific research that has determined that phosphate is the safest, most effective fire retardant available. We will also explore the potential environmental consequences of not using fire retardants, and why tools like PHOS-CHEK® are more important than ever as we face longer, more intense wildfire seasons.”
RELATED: Wildfire retardants help stop fires — but also impact ecosystems
By Drew Anderson for The Narwhal, Sep 2, 2025 “In the rush to put out wildfires, hundreds of millions of litres of fire retardant are dropped on forests across North America. New research shows the effects they can have on water and ecosystems — especially when accidents happen”

Sep 16, 2025:
– Building to the forest’s edge fuels fire danger
By Cloe Logan Rory White for the National Observer “…Smoke billowing from the forest near their house outside of Halifax this August was déjà vu for Emma Palumbo, who a couple of summers ago, saw clouds and smoke become one, darkening the sky. That wildfire in 2023 was part of the province’s most devastating season on record. It forced more than 16,000 people from their homes, 150 of which were destroyed, about half an hour away from the downtown core of the provincial capital…A paper released in November 2024 states that the “unprecedented expansion of global urbanization” has led to huge expansion of the WUI globally — by nearly 36 per cent since 2000, with 85 per cent of that growth occurring between 2010 and 2020. The study concludes that its findings show “the rising wildfire risk to human society and highlight the urgency of implementing tailored fire management strategies in WUI areas…However, there are no up-to-date figures on WUI in Canada, though Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) notes, “In the coming decades, the risk of WUI fire is expected to increase both in regions of Canada with a long history of wildfires and in those with no such history…” The wildfire danger where homes meet forests is rising worldwide. Using new data, we built a detailed map of Halifax’s fire-prone forest edge — and explain what it says about the state of the wildland urban interface in Canada…Halifax is expanding into wildland areas (interactive) The Halifax region has an estimated wildland-urban interface of 220,000 hectares. The area has faced several major fires since 1972, including the recent 2023 Upper Tantallon Wildfire.”

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Sep 11, 2025:
– Commentary: Glyphosate: The hidden fuel in Nova Scotia’s forest fire crisis
By Geoffrey V. Hurley, Contributed in PNI Atlantic News “As Nova Scotia grapples with one of its most severe wildfire seasons, a controversial decision by the provincial government has flown under the radar: the approval of aerial glyphosate spraying on 3,577 acres of drought-stricken, fire-prone forest. This move not only risks human health and ecosystems but also exacerbates the very wildfires it claims to mitigate.”

Sep 10, 2025:
– Halfway through hurricane season, where do we stand?
Ryan Snoddon · CBC News “Sept. 10 marks the climatological peak of the Atlantic hurricane season, meaning that historically it’s the day with the highest probability of finding a tropical cyclone in the Atlantic basin. Yet here we are and things are strangely quiet in the tropics. Between strong upper-level wind shear and a large amount of dry Saharan dust, it’s been tough sledding for any tropical systems trying to develop over the past couple of weeks and it appears this will remain the case for at least the next seven days. However, as we enter into the second half of September, there are a few signs pointing to the fact that conditions will become more favourable for tropical systems.That would make this the quietest start to September in the tropical Atlantic since 1992.
Historically, hurricane season peaks on September 10th in the Atlantic.”

Sep 9, 2025:
– Officials insist there’s no evidence timber practices worsen wildfires
John Chilibeck for Telegraph Journal “But Progressive Conservative MLA says it seems obvious that pure pine forests burn easier and faster than the natural Acadian forest mix” (Subscription required) Intro from Treefrog: “Michelle Conroy says she appreciates all the work the province’s firefighters have put into protecting Miramichi, as wildfires raged out of control. But the Progressive Conservative MLA for Miramichi East also wonders if their employer, the Department of Natural Resources, might have unintentionally made conditions in the forests worse by encouraging herbicide spraying so that New Brunswick’s powerful timber industry could have softwood plantations. …The idea that the ecosystem could had been thrown “out of balance,” was addressed by Deputy Minister Cade Libby. “Your comment is one we’ve heard quite a few times,” Libby said. “Yes, herbicides target broad-leafed plants. …But a working forest is a great way to mitigate forest fire risk.” The deputy minister said timber cutters use forestry roads that act as fire breaks and that they work on forests of various types and age classes that have less fuel load than virgin, old-growth forests do.”

Sep 8, 2025:

Photos From Wildfire Response in Long Lake Area, Annapolis County – September 8
NS Gov/DNR News Release

Sep 7, 2025:
Firefighters gain ground on Long Lake wildfire
CBC News “Firefighters battling the Long Lake wildfire are advancing inward from the perimeter, according to Nova Scotia’s Department of Natural Resources. In an update on social media Sunday, the province says the fire in Annapolis County remains out of control at 8,468 hectares. However, the update says crews have been able to set up barriers around the entire perimeter. That’s helped firefighters push inward, in some cases up to 100 metres. There is rain in the forecast for the area. A light rain is expected in the afternoon with higher amounts in the evening.”

Sep 4, 2025:
– Activists question why Nova Scotia no longer disclosing glyphosate spray locations
Luke Ettinger · CBC News “…“I don’t understand how we can justify spraying a substance that’s continuing to dry things out even further, when we clearly are seeing the driest conditions that we’ve had in many, many years,” said Callison of the current wildfire risk in Nova Scotia. [Savanna Callison submitted a freedom of information request for the spray site locations in Augus] [Forest NS executive director] Burgess said there is a short-term risk, but said a managed forest is a lower fire hazard over the course of decades. “If we’re going to go through the effort to plant trees so we can manage our forest, we want to make sure those trees are healthy and they remain healthy their entire lives,” he said.”
– The largest structure protection operation in Nova Scotia’s history
By Natasha O’Neill in Halifax City News. “…The blaze is still active, but as time progresses with cooler weather conditions and days getting shorter, officials sound more hopeful that good news could follow. The blaze forced hundreds of people from their homes, leaving in its wake a path of barren, blackened forest and several ruins of structures. However, even with 20 houses and 11 other buildings lost to the blaze, fire crews from the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) are now sharing that they thought the casualties would be much higher…“We were looking at 200-foot flames peaking over the ridge,” Rockwood said. “Quite frankly, it’s amazing that there are structures still there with the fire behaviour that we’ve seen.”…“This was the largest structure protection operation ever conducted in Nova Scotia,” Rockwood said. “We had equipment stretched out over approximately 10 kilometres. It’s never been done to this scale in this province.” Lines of sprinklers stretched through 88 homes, and only three were lost entirely in those sections. Rockwood said that three-quarters of a million gallons of water moved through the small community in the 24-hour period.”

Sep 3, 2025:
– Parts of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick saw the driest summer on record
CBC News Video “From wildfires to wells going dry, to farmers’ crops struggling, this summer’s lack of rainfall is a huge story in the Maritimes. CBC meteorologist Ryan Snoddon looks at rainfall totals across Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.”

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Sep 3, 2025:
Canada’s out-of-control wildfire crisis in six charts
By Barry Saxifrage in the National Observer. “Fossil fuel pollution is overheating Canadian forests, spawning an out-of-control wildfire crisis. Wildfire is now incinerating four times more forest carbon than during the 1990s… Canada’s continent-spanning forest is especially vulnerable to this rising heat. Its billions of trees, spread across hundreds of millions of hectares, are overheating at two to three times the global pace. This is one of the planet’s largest terrestrial-carbon reservoirs. And the rapidly rising heat is cooking ever larger swaths of it into explosive tinderboxes. Wildfires have responded with increasing fury from coast to coast”. “Let’s look at some charts” says Saxifrage. I found his Chart 5 most revealing. View chart with text comments here. He cuts to the chase under the heading “Our peers have cut emissions. Canadians can too“: “Canada is one of the world’s all-time top-10 climate polluters. We’ve been promising to reduce our oversized climate impact for 36 years. But, as my last chart shows, Canada releases even more planet-heating gases now — 14 per cent more… Canada is one of the world’s all-time top-10 climate polluters. We’ve been promising to reduce our oversized climate impact for 36 years. But, as my last chart shows, Canada releases even more planet-heating gases now — 14 per cent more. Fortunately, we can learn from our many peers who have reduced their emissions. In fact, every one of our peer nations in the Group of Seven (G7) advanced economies has reduced their climate-destabilizing emissions since 1990.They did this using climate policies that reduced emissions across every sector in their economies. That’s what has to happen. But in Canada, we’ve allowed most of our sectors to increase emissions… Perhaps the single most effective climate policy I’ve ever come across is the U.K.’s landmark Climate Change Act of 2008. I’ve written about it many times over the years. Since they enacted that law, the British have reduced their emissions by 40 per cent. Canadians have run out of excuses for our sky-high emissions. And now our exploding fossil-fuelled wildfire crisis means we are rapidly running out of time as well. The climate beast is waking up. When will we?”

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Aug 29, 2025:
– Increase in wildfires shows forestry practices need to change, experts say
Katherine Del Salto · CBC News. Subtitle: “Researcher, environmentalist say softwood monocultures, such as tree farms, increase the risk of fire” From the text.”More than 300 wildfires have been recorded in New Brunswick so far this year, up from 226 in 2024. Even more striking is the amount of land that has been burned. Last year, it was about 187 hectares. This year, it’s already more than 2,506 hectares. Anthony Taylor, a professor of forest ecology at the University of New Brunswick, said practices that promote the cultivation of only softwood trees, such as spruce and pine — known as monoculture — might be making our forests more vulnerable to fires. “If you have a landscape like New Brunswick, and you are doing more spraying [of herbicides] to promote more conifers, in essence you’re creating a landscape that’s more vulnerable to fire if you had the right weather,” said Taylor…” Read more extracts and some comments made on the Healthy Forest Coalition website here.
– Rescinding the Roadless Rule to fight fires doesn’t make any sense! (Video)
Ross Reid on nerdyfornature “Back in 2001, the Roadless Area Conservation Rule was enacted to protect over 58 million acres of national forest in the States from industrial development and extraction, from notable areas like the Tongass National Forest in Alaska down to countless forests and ecosystems in the lower 48, many of which are surely very close to where you live. Yet today, the Trump administration has begun to rescind the Roadless Rule under the guise that having roads in these remote areas will help us fight extreme wildfires better, and I’m sorry, that is just so far from the truth it’s laughable. This reasoning uses misinformation and fear tactics to ignore the science and clear the way for billionaires and extractive industries to do even more harm to the lands and waters we all share – let me explain…”

– Woods ban lifted for parts of Nova Scotia
Anjuli Patil · CBC News “Restrictions on entering the woods have been in effect since Aug. 5. Houston said Friday that a province wide ban would end for some areas at 4 p.m., but the ban remains for several counties…”The professionals have determined that for some areas of the province, the [fire] index is no longer extreme and no longer expected to reach extreme numbers again and anytime in the near future,” Houston said…he woods restrictions are ending in the following counties: Cape Breton, Richmond. Victoria. Inverness. Guysborough. Antigonish. Halifax.”

Aug 28, 2025
– N.S. businesses that rely on traffic from trails struggling
CBC News (video) “A café said its revenue has been reduced by 50 per cent as a result of Nova Scotia’s woods ban. Karsten Greene has the story.”

– NS Gov Wildfire Update
On Facebook: “We unfortunately need to report that 20 homes were lost on August 24 when the Long Lake wildfires complex advanced through the community of West Dalhousie and doubled in size. On other properties, 11 outbuildings were destroyed or damaged. Our hearts go out to these residents. All the homes that were lost were on West Dalhousie, Morse, and Thorne roads. Not all were primary residences…The Long Lake wildfires complex is still out of control. The current size estimate is 8234 hectares. Crews had a very productive day yesterday working on flanks, aiming to limit the growth and spread toward communities as drier conditions return. Air resources include 11 helicopters, six planes plus bird dogs. Ground resources include 12 Department of Natural Resources (DNR), 89 Ontario, and 70 local firefighters, with over 70 heavy equipment operators. Next update this afternoon.”

Aug 27, 2025:
– An overview of the fire near Paradise Lake
Pics on NS Gov Facebook post, Aug 13, 2025, cc’d here
– Bev W Map of Fire
“This is this evening’s updated map from the NRCAN Canadian Wildland Fire Information System website… You can see quite clearly where the main fire seems to be located on the east side of Paradise Lake –down on the southeast side that is called Paradise Lake Flowage. Also seems to jive with the photo of the active fire on the Government Facebook page this evening.”

Aug 26, 2025:
– How the Annapolis County wildfire has grown in 13 days
Giuliana Grillo de Lambarri · CBC News “The out-of-control Long Lake wildfire in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis County grew from 300 hectares on Aug. 13 to more than 8,000 hectares in less than two weeks, forcing over 1,000 people from their homes and damaging property in the area…Here’s a timeline of how the fire spread, based on maps and updates from the Department of Natural Resources: [Gives maps, Thursday, Aug. 14 — over 400 hectares, Saturday, Aug. 16 — approximately 800 hectares, Monday, Aug. 18 — over 3,200 hectares, Sunday, Aug. 24 — over 3,255 hectares, Monday, Aug. 25 — over 8,000 hectares Tuesday, Aug. 26 — over 8,000 hectares – At a media conference on Tuesday, Rudderham said the fire had grown again, but he did not have an updated number of hectares.”
Monday night brought some rain to the area, but not enough to make a significant difference.
– How a centuries-old fire foreshadowed the future
John Woodside in the National Observer “A monster firestorm roared through the pine and spruce forests of New Brunswick. It burned one-fifth of the province’s forests and raged through villages, reducing buildings to ash and killing at least 160 people — although historians believe that is likely a severe undercount…This was the Miramichi Fire, which 200 years ago this fall announced an era of megafires in North America.The fire was in fact most likely a series of blazes that lethally converged, destroying settlements from Fredericton to Saint John — but it also spread across the United States border, burning some 820,000 acres in Maine…The year of the Miramichi Fire saw peak timber exports hacked from New Brunswick’s Acadian forest, and prominent fire historian Stephen Pyne, emeritus professor at Arizona State University and author of Awful Splendour: A Fire history of Canada, says the explosive growth of logging set the stage for the coming inferno. With the forests covered in logging waste at a massive scale, the forest was a powder keg ready to erupt, he said in an interview with Canada’s National Observer. The Miramichi Fire “establishes the alliance between fire and axe,” he said. “You get the beginning of industrial forestry taking shape and that is creating industrial scale fuels to power the fires.” In recent years, Pyne has developed a theory of fire history he calls the pyrocene: fire-wielding humans, in his argument, have created a fire equivalent of the ice age. If ice ages are defined by features like rising sea levels, changes to the climate system, shifts in biogeography and mass extinctions, the fire age we’ve collectively built bears similar hallmarks.” COMMENT: Read more about history & ecology of fire and forests in N.B. in Defining a forest reference condition for Kouchibouguac National Park and adjacent landscape in eastern New Brunswick using four reconstructive approach
Donna R. Crossland. A Thesis for the Degree of Master of Science in Forestry, UNB, 2006. 322 pages

Aug 25, 2025:
– Homes destroyed by out-of-control N.S. wildfire, premier confirms
Richard Cuthbertson · CBC News. “Some homes in western Nova Scotia have been destroyed by the wildfire that broke out earlier this month but doubled in size over the weekend, as officials warned that much more rain than what fell on Monday will be needed to stop the flames…More than 1,000 people have now been evacuated from communities in Annapolis County near the Long Lake fire. The fire has more than doubled in size since the weekend and measures 8,026 hectares — or about 80 square kilometres — according to an update posted on social media by the Department of Natural Resources Monday evening. The fire continues to move along both sides of Paradise Lake.”
– Following destructive wildfires, New Brunswick reopens forest access
By Hina Alam, The Canadian Press on Halifax City News

Aug 21, 2025:
– Photos From Wildfire Response at Long Lake, Annapolis Co.
NS DNR News Release
– How long will it take to control the N.S. wildfire? Hurricane Erin makes it hard to predict
Anjuli Patil · CBC News “Officials say winds from Hurricane Erin could move and spread the fire over the weekend (Aug 23-24]”

Aug 20, 2025:
– Experts say Manitoba needs better forest management to mitigate wildfires — but some divided on best practices
Rosanna Hempel · CBC News “…British Columbia-based wildland fire ecologist Robert Gray argues communities in fire-prone regions aren’t adequately protected — but he says they can become more resilient by treating about 40 per cent of the surrounding landscape to prevent or slow wildfires from spreading into towns. Fire and fuel management practices include clearing and thinning trees and prescribed burning, which involves deliberately setting an area of land on fire in a controlled way, Gray said. Practices also include restoring grasslands and wet meadows, along with shifting conifer-heavy forests to hardwoods, such as aspen and willow, which Gray says aren’t as flammable…Gray said provinces must better regulate the forest industry to make sure activities like logging and tree planting are carried out with a focus on fire and fuel management…Mike Flannigan, a professor of wildland fire at Thompson Rivers University, says proactive backcountry travel and fire bans, along with FireSmart homes, would be a more effective strategy in a country with vast boreal forests, where wildfires are a natural part of the ecology. Flannigan said Manitoba’s approach of monitoring wildfires that aren’t threatening communities, “which is working with Mother Nature,” is appropriate, as opposed to always suppressing all wildfires, a costly practice he said is common in the U.S.”

Aug 18, 2025
– Homeless people in Nova Scotia’s woods choosing to stay despite ban, wildfire risk
Taryn Grant · CBC News “Province has not yet issued any fines to people in forested tent encampments”
– UPDATE ON LONG LAKE FIRE, FB post on Annapolis Environment & Ecology by Bev Wigney:
“Hopefully everyone got some rain last night. The fire map was showing that the fire danger for much of the Valley is reduced to “moderate” from “high” and in some areas, “extreme”, so that’s a bit reassuring. Also, when I checked the NRCAN “Canadian Wildland Fire Information System” interactive map this morning, I see that they have reduced the estimated perimeter area a little since last night — it is now stated as 2,257 hectares (approximately 5,577 acres) AND that the shape of the estimated perimeter has been more refined and seems to be covering less of the area close to West Dalhousie Road, so that looks like something positive. As some may have noticed, the wind direction has shifted and is forecast to come from the north today. That should be a help as yesterday’s wind was from the southwest and pushed the fire northward toward West Dalhousie Road. With a north wind today (supposed to be pretty gusty), it should be pushing the fire southward and hopefully back onto some previously burnt areas, which could be a help (at least that’s my guess). If I see any updates from DNR, I’ll post them here later today.
Anyhow, I’m assuming that the 4 Fire Boss skimmer planes will be working on the fire as needed today. I haven’t heard any plane sounds yet (they flew over my place a couple of times yesterday), but they could be following a different path today. EDIT:: The planes have been busy this morning — have been over my place at least 3 times, so that’s great to see.]
Anyhow, let’s hope that the rain and the change in wind direction will work in favour of the firefighting efforts.
Link to the NRCAN website if you want to check out the interactive map for yourself:
https://cwfis.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/interactive-map “

Aug 15, 2025:
– 107 homes evacuated as Long Lake fire continues to burn in Annapolis County
Frances Willick · CBC News “Other smaller fires in the county are not spreading…More than 100 homes have been evacuated as an out-of-control wildfire near West Dalhousie in Annapolis County continues to burn Friday. The fire broke out Wednesday (Aug 13) on the north side of Long Lake, about 20 kilometres east of Annapolis Royal, N.S. The provincial Department of Natural Resources has said a lightning strike caused the fire. On Friday afternoon, the province said the fire is estimated at 406 hectares or about four square kilometres — up from 300 hectares around noon Thursday.” UPDATE Aug 16, 2025: Long Lake wildfire nearly doubles in size overnight, By Rachel Morgqn for Hfx City News. “In an update Saturday morning, the Department of Natural Resources says the Long Lake wildfire is now estimated to be about 807 hectares in size. That is significant growth from the estimated 406 hectares burning Friday. It is officially the largest wildfire burning across the province and continues to grow out of control after being sparked by lightning earlier this week. The nearby fire at Hoyt Lake is being held at 1 hectare.”

– Forestry operations still allowed in Nova Scotia’s woodlands, but should they be?
Joan Baxter in the Halifax Examiner “A conversation with forestry expert Greg Watson on wildfire risks and climate change, logging when woods are bone dry, and what makes forests less fire-prone.”

Aug 14, 2025:
– Redefining resilience with the Wildfire Resilience Consortium of Canada
By Forestry for the Future in canadiangeographic.ca “As of mid-August, the 2025 fire season is shaping up to be Canada’s second-worst on record, with more than 7.3 million hectares burned…Enter the newly-created Enter the newly-created Wildfire Resilience Consortium of Canada. As a beacon of boundary-breaking hope, the WRCC aims to create a transformative approach to wildfire management. As a beacon of boundary-breaking hope, the WRCC aims to create a transformative approach to wildfire management…” From the WRCC: “The WRCC is a purpose-built, not-for-profit organization formed by five foundational partners— FPInnovations (FPI), The Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction (ICLR), The National Indigenous Fire Safety Council (NIFSC), TRU Wildfire (TRU) and Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC)— each contributing expertise in disaster prevention, fire safety, wildfire science and sustainable forestry to align with national strategies like the Blueprint for Wildland Fire Science.” COMMENT, Initially at least, the WRCC appears to light on critical science; it could use some independent, university based researchers.

– Nova Scotia approves glyphosate spraying on 3,577 acres of drought-stricken, fire-prone forest
Joan baxter in the Halifax Examiner. “But province remains tight-lipped on details of those approvals

Aug 13, 2025:
– Province Recommends More Wildfire Precautions
DNR News Release

Aug 12, 2025:
If pedophiles have a charter right to loiter by playgrounds, do Nova Scotians have one to walk in the woods
By Aaron Beswick for Saltwire “On Friday, Jeffrey Evely thanked Department of Natural Resources officers for giving him a $28,872.50 fine for going in the woods. He then shook the hands of the officers who he’d asked to watch him walk briefly into the forest beside their office on Mountain Road in Coxheath, Cape Breton. “Our rights and freedoms are the legacy of our fallen soldiers,” said the 20-year veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces who served in Afghanistan and Iraq.

– How the Washmill underpass created the fire risk at Susies Lake
Tim Bousquet in the Halifax Examiner “This year’s first substantial wildland fire on mainland Nova Scotia broke out in the Susies Lake area yesterday. The good news: the firefighting response was excellent…What starts fires versus what causes fires After every fire, people want to know how it started. We’ll probably find out soon how the Susies Lake fire started. But for me, what started the fire almost doesn’t matter…I just take it as a given that there’s a wide range of human activity that can start fires. We can and should try to limit those risks — it’s absurd that people can’t hike in the woods but heavy forestry operations are allowed — but even our best efforts to limit risks aren’t going to be 100% successful. People are people, and people are going to do people things, including being stupid and unintentionally making sparks. As I see it, by focusing exclusively on what starts fires, we’re missing what causes fires, or at least what causes the fires we are most concerned about…

– Crews head back into woods at wildfires in Halifax and Kings County
By Ian Fairclough for saltwire “Fire crews in Halifax and Kings County are heading back into the woods this morning as they battle wildfires that broke out Tuesday afternoon. The larger of the fires is in the Susies Lake area of Halifax, behind the Bayers Lake Business Park. It started at about 2:30 p.m. and spread quickly as Halifax Regional firefighters worked to limit its spread while Department of Natural Resources firefighters headed to the scene…In an update after 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, Halifax Regional Municipality said DNR estimated the fire to be 25 to 30 hectares and out of control, but with progress being made. The fire was not expected to grow overnight, but DNR staff were remaining on site to monitor conditions, along with two trucks and crews from Halifax Fire…Meanwhile, in Kings County, crews were dealing with two fires near Lake Paul on the South Mountain that were believed to be caused by a storm cell that went over the area Tuesday afternoon bringing lightning but no real rain…It’s believed both fires are under four hectares in size and burning in very rugged terrain. Once they were located, Berwick and Kingston firefighters sent some crews to assist until backing out of the woods at dark. The fires have not yet been declared under control. “

Recent news related to “Woods Bans” in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick,
View More on the Ban 7-10Aug2025

Aug 8, 2025:
The drought in Nova Scotia and its link to climate change
Cathy Conrad in the Hfx Examiner. “..The 2016 drought in Nova Scotia highlighted the vulnerability of this province (particularly wells and water supply) which staff in the provincial government cautioned at the time would be ‘exacerbated by climate change.’ What have we done since then to prepare ourselves for this? Closing the woods to hikers is a literal drop in the bucket…Our provincial leaders would be wise to listen and talk with the environmental NGO sector and engage in community-based planning. There is a lot of expertise amongst our population. It would be unfortunate and unwise to continue to regard Nova Scotians concerned about the state of our province cynically as ‘special interest groups.’ “

Aug 7, 2025:
– Wildfire danger on the rise in Atlantic Canada amid drought
Rhythm Reet for The Weather Network/Yahoo News “From May to August, the average rainfall accumulation for Greenwood, N.S., is 314.5 mm while Halifax, N.S., typically sees 376.7 mm. So far, however, Greenwood has seen 209.2 mm (in the extreme rating) and Halifax has received 166.8 mm–just 67 per cent and 44 per cent of their average rainfall, respectively….As we look to the near future, a ridge of high pressure is going to keep things dry across Atlantic Canada. The ridge is building across the region heading into the weekend, helping to keep temperatures soaring up into the high 20s and low 30s in the Maritimes…However, rain is expected to show up as we head into next week, along with thunderstorms. Stormy weather can be expected thanks to the muggy conditions and a possible cold front moving across the region. That isn’t a good scenario for how dry it currently is across the region.”
– CCF Warns Premier Houston: Hiking Ban Threatens Freedoms, Petition Demands Repeal
The CCF Press Release “The CCF has formally sent a letter to Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston and National Resources Minister Tory Rushton urging the provincial government to reconsider the recently announced restrictions on hiking, birdwatching, fishing, picnicking and other outdoor activities in the province’s forests. Citing wildfire risks amid dry conditions, the ban was announced and came into effect Tuesday, August 5. While the CCF recognizes the importance of wildfire prevention and supports targeted safety measures, this sweeping ban unnecessarily and disproportionately restricts responsible outdoor recreation that has zero fire risk. The ban negatively impacts the well-being of Nova Scotians. The full letter can be read here….”
– Canada’s Forests Are in Trouble. It’s Time to Stop the Greenwashing.
Post on naturecanada.ca ” Despite claiming to be climate champions, current forestry practices like glyphosate spraying, fire suppression, and dense conifer planting are making our forests more flammable, less biodiverse, and less resilient.”

Aug 6, 2025:
– If you go down in the woods today…
Philip Muscovitch in Hfx Examiner “…In a news release published yesterday, the province announced it was “restricting travel and activities in the woods because continued hot, dry conditions have greatly increased the risk of wildfires.” The official proclamation of the ban may seem straightforward at first, but it is reminiscent of the infamous COVID “stay in your community” directive, in that it led to all sorts of questions…The announcement did not immediately make clear what the impact would be on forestry, but Todd Burgess, the executive director of Forest Nova Scotia, almost immediately published guidance for members, following a conversation with Matt Parker, the executive director of forestry and wildlife at the Department of Natural Resources…Companies cutting on Crown land will get blanket travel permits, Burgess said. From Forest Nova Scotia: “Conducting forestry activities between the hours of 8:00 pm and 10:00 am (excluding travel time to and from the work site). Forestry activities include: Harvesting, Hauling timber, Floating equipment,Silvicultural operations (with the exception of planting) Road construction and maintenance.” So, heavy industrial activity is OK, but walking through some urban parks is not. By the end of the day, there was more clarity around what is and is not allowed, as various organizations weighed in with specifics related to their areas.”
– Nova Scotia has issued more than $288K in burn-ban fines in 2025
Aly Thomson · CBC News “Agencies in Nova Scotia have issued 10 tickets worth more than $25,000 each to people allegedly violating burn restrictions so far this year amid dry conditions that have increased the risk of wildfires throughout the province. Natural Resources Minister Tory Rushton said Tuesday that seven summary offence tickets have been issued by conservation officers under the Forests Act since the fine was permanently increased in May…Scott Tingley, the manager of forest protection for the Natural Resources Department, said the dry conditions, with no rain in the forecast for at least 10 days, mean everyone needs to do their part to prevent wildfires…Travel and activity in the woods were also banned in May 2023 while the province battled two major wildfires that destroyed hundreds of homes. The restrictions were initially put in place for about four weeks or until conditions allowed them to be lifted. The restrictions were lifted after about a week.Bans were also implemented in 2016 and 2001 due to fires and dry conditions…Rushton said there have been about 100 small wildfires in Nova Scotia so far this season that were extinguished quickly.”
– Nova Scotia’s woods ban prompts mixed reaction, COVID-19 flashbacks
By Melanie Price for CTV “… Jamie Lee Arseneau, the owner of LaHave River Campground in Barss Corner, N.S., says she was surprised to hear of Tuesday’s woods ban…“I wouldn’t say it’s an overreach, because I do understand the need for extreme caution with lack of resources to attend to emergencies in this climate. I think we were just surprised at the lack of connections to fires in woods to now have the woods specifically be restricted in a province that’s fuelled on tourism, to be honest.”

Aug 5, 2025:
– Travel, Activities in Woods Restricted to Prevent Wildfires
NS Gov “The Province is restricting travel and activities in the woods because continued hot, dry conditions have greatly increased the risk of wildfires. The restrictions, effective as of 4 p.m. today, August 5, include:hiking, camping, fishing and the use of vehicles in the woods are not permitted; trail systems through woods are off limits; camping is allowed only in campgrounds. These and other measures are in place on provincial Crown and private land until October 15 or until conditions allow them to be lifted. The fine for violating the restrictions is $25,000…Forestry, mining and any commercial activity on provincial Crown lands are also restricted. People who conduct this kind of activity can apply for a permit at their local Department of Natural Resources office.”

July 31, 2025:
N.S. wildfire reignites memories of 2023 blaze for some residents
By Hafsa Arif for CTV “A wildfire that broke out near Big Indian Lake brought an emotional wave of déjà vu for some residents of Upper Tantallon, a Nova Scotia community devastated by wildfire two years ago…As of Thursday evening, the fire was being held at 0.5 hectares in size and no homes were at risk…Tingley said recent fires are burning much deeper in the forest floor than usual – a clear sign of the province’s prolonged dry conditions. “These fires are requiring a significant amount of effort to fully extinguish,” he said. Though the exact cause of the Big Indian Lake fire is still under investigation, Tingley said many recent wildfires may be linked to improperly extinguished campfires or other unauthorized burns. “In some cases, the fires were started with good intentions,” he said. “But people don’t realize how much effort it takes to truly put them out, especially in dry conditions.” In response, a provincewide burn ban has been issued. It’s expected to remain in place until mid-October or until conditions improve.”

July 18, 2025:
– Canada Invests in Wildfire Innovation and Resilience Through New Centre of Excellence
Natural Resources Canada “Today, the Honourable Tim Hodgson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, and the Honourable Eleanor Olszewski, Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience, announced an investment of $11.7 million over four years to establish the Wildfire Resilience Consortium of Canada (WRCC). Funded through the Wildfire Resilient Futures Initiative, the WRCC will serve as a national centre of excellence and virtual hub for wildland fire innovation and knowledge exchange.”

Associated links

• Wildfire Resilience Consortium of Canada
• Centre of Excellence for Wildland Fire Innovation and Resilience
• Wildfire Resilient Futures Initiative
• Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction
• FPInnovations
• National Indigenous Fire Safety Council
• TRU Wildfire
• Thompson Rivers University
• Forest Products Association of Canada
• Canadian Wildland Fire Information System: Monthly and Seasonal Forecasts
• Canadian Wildland Fire Strategy
• WildFireSat
• Kananaskis Wildfire Charter
• Wildfires – Canada.ca
• National Adaptation Strategy

– It’s time to fight fire with fire in Canada
By the Editorial Board The Globe and Mail Subscription Required. Summary from TreeFrog Forestry News: “Canada’s premiers met June to talk infrastructure but were distracted by the small matter of the forest fires raging across the West at the time. …Six weeks later, the country is well into one of its worst wildfire seasons ever. …“Suppression alone is no longer adequate to address the growing challenges from wildland fire,“ the Canadian Council of Forest Ministers said in a report last year. ”Wildland fire management in Canada needs to be transformed.” That means creating a national regime of prescribed burns – the deliberate setting of fires under controlled circumstances to reduce the number and intensity of forest fires, and to limit damage to property. It’s a practice that Indigenous peoples in Canada and elsewhere used for millennia to manage their lands. But its use is sharply limited in Canada, mostly because politicians are scared to the point of paralysis by the off-chance that a government-sanctioned burn could get out of control.”

June 22, 2025:
Some evacuees heading home as forest fire on Eastern Shore slows
CBC News “The RCMP, Halifax Fire and Emergency and the Department of Natural Resources have been on the scene of a forest fire along Ostrea Lake Road, which is located near Musquodoboit Harbour, since Sunday afternoon.”

June 12, 2025
Canada Announces Major Investments to Improve Resilience Against Wildfires
Natual Resources Canada “Today, the Governments of Canada, British Columbia, Alberta, Newfoundland and Labrador, Yukon, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Manitoba, together with the CIFFC, announced a total investment of $104 million through the Government of Canada’s Resilient Communities through FireSmart (RCF) Program.”

June 3, 2025:
– What’s important to know about burn restrictions as wildfire risk increases
Ian Fairclough in the Chronicle Herald
– Study projects that increasing wildfires in Canada and Siberia will actually slow global warming
By Stefan Milne The University of Washington “…A new University of Washington-led study projects that in the next 35 years these increasing boreal fires will actually slow warming by 12% globally and 38% in the Arctic. The study is the first to identify the divergence between the observed boreal fire increase and the constant fires used in climate models. Because the aerosols in smoke brighten clouds and reflect sunlight, summer temperatures during fire season drop in northern regions, leading to reduced sea ice loss and cooler winter temperatures. This effect is despite the warming effects of the fires themselves from factors such as soot that falls on the ice. Researchers published their findings June 3 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.”

June 1, 2025:
– ‘This is classic climate change’: Sask. faces worst wildfire season in decades
CBC “”This is classic climate change,” said Colin Laroque, head of soil science and professor at the University of Saskatchewan. Laroque said climatology is studied using 30-year timeframes of weather patterns, which “weren’t that different” until recently. “If you’re that 20, to 25, to 30 year [age], you’re experiencing something that we’ve never really experienced before.Laroque said the question of whether this year is abnormal is relative. “It’s in the more recent past, this is normal,” Laroque said. “This is our new normal…In the past, “snowpacks” would take time to fully melt and trickle into the ground as it warmed up. This would recharge the moisture of the soil. “What’s happening the last few years is that we go from a relatively cold period of time and one or two days later it’s plus 22 [C],” Laroque explained.The extreme back-and-forth causes the snow to melt rapidly while the ground stays frozen, not allowing the snow to fully sink into the soil.Laroque said most of the snow ends up evaporating, causing “instant drought,” similar to what the province experienced in spring 2024…Not all is lost. Many ecosystems in Canada have adapted to large fires, Daniels said…”We are now learning in Western Canada from our Indigenous collaborators and Indigenous knowledge holders that there was tremendous value in using fire, ‘low intensity fire’ or ‘good fire’,” Daniels said. In the spring and fall, a specific type of fire would be used by some Indigenous communities to burn off fuels that have accumulated over a couple of seasons to stimulate understory plants and to remove the density of trees. “You’re still maintaining a forest ecosystem around you, but you’re changing the amount of fuel.””

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May 31, 2025:
– N.S. wildfire season off to a slow start after cool, wet spring
Danielle Edwards · CBC News. “39 fires have burned about 35 hectares across the province so far…Wildfire season in Nova Scotia runs from March 15 to Oct. 15 and Scott Tingely told CBC News that so far, the number of fires and the amount of hectares burned are both below average at this point. “We had a pretty cool, wet spring so far, so that has certainly helped kind of mitigate the conditions and the risk,” Tingley said….”We’re starting to see a lot of the trees starting to leaf out,” he said. “The trees greening up are kind of mitigating some of that risk as well.” CBC meteorologist Ryan Snoddon said this year, the biggest issue is how long it’s been since the last rainfall. “With leftover dead grass and shrubs from the winter, it doesn’t take long for things to dry out,” Snoddon said. “On that note, we’ve had a pretty good May with some rain every few days.” Mitigation since record wildfire year Tingley said in the two years since after the province’s most devastating wildfire season on record, the Department of Natural Resources has implemented all the recommendations that were in a report about the department’s response in 2023. Some of those changes include updating equipment, renewing the helicopter fleet and improving internal communication procedures. He said the department has also worked on adding more personnel to the teams that deal with wildfires.'”

May 30, 2025:
Wildfire in remote area of Cape Breton being held
Aly Thomson · CBC News

May 13, 2025:
Pilot shortage raises concerns as wildfire season begins in Nova Scotia
By Chris Halef for HalifaxCityNews

May 6, 2025
– Slowing the spread: A biomass-focused wildfire prevention strategy
By Andrew Snook in Canadian Biomass

Apr 15, 2025:
– Three burn parameters can make prescribed forest fires burn safer and cleaner
by Farah Aziz Annesha, Stanford Universitynon phys.org “Recently, in a study published in Atmospheric Pollution Research, scientists at Stanford University suggested ways to perform prescribed burns with drastically reduced health implications. They’ve determined that simply tweaking some of the burn conditions can slash PAH emissions by up to 77%. The researchers estimate that this could cut cancer risks from smoke exposure by over 50%.”

Apr 13, 2025:
Can fungi fight fires? This Alberta town plans to find out
CBC News “This summer, researchers from Lac La Biche, Alta.-based Portage College will go into the the boreal forest surrounding Fox Creek to collect local fungi. Spores from that fungi could later be used to inoculate wood in man-made slash piles. Forests are thinned to remove wood biomass so there is less material to burn during a wildfire. Wood that has been removed can be stored in massive slash piles, which can be fire risks themselves. Fungi could be used to break down the wood faster, returning them to soil, said Michael Schulz, research chair in environment and sustainability in the boreal forest at Portage College.Boulder Mushrooms, a company based in Colorado, already uses fungi as a way to help prevent forest fires by turning slash piles into wood chips, inoculating them with mushroom spores.”

Apr 10, 2025:
Experts say Trump logging mandate would increase wildfire damage
By Kendra Chamberlain for Columbia Insight. “The Trump administration has issued a jaw-dropping proposal to open up nearly 60% of National Forest land for logging under the guise of wildfire mitigation—but it won’t help reduce wildfire risk in the Pacific Northwest. In fact, it will likely make forests—particularly dry forests—more vulnerable to high-intensity wildfire…Conservationists and forest ecologists agree that federal forestlands are in dire need of better management strategies to reduce the risk that high-intensity wildfires pose to communities in the Pacific Northwest. But as Nick Cady, legal director of the conservation group Cascadia Wildlands, points out, logging is not a silver bullet solution to mitigating wildfire risk. In fact, it’s part of the problem…he connection between logging forests and fire risk is well established. Research dating the 1940 indicates that logged forests experience more severe wildfire. Logging projects tend to harvest larger-diameter trees that are typically more fire-resistant than smaller-diameter trees. Clear-cutting patches of forested land alters the microclimates of the landscape, allowing more sunlight to reach the ground, amplifying brush growth and drying out the soil, which creates even more dry fuel. Clear-cut patches also generate more wind, which helps wildfire spread more quickly across logged landscapes…“There’s a lot of modeling on how fire will interact with different areas, but when they’ve observed areas that have burned, and especially in the Pacific Northwest … the more intensely it was logged, the more intensely it burned,” said Cady. As the adage goes, we can’t log our way out of wildfire. Trump’s directive appears to be based on fundamental misconceptions of forest and fire ecology.”

Apr 8, 2025:
– COFI Convention: Finding innovative solutions to wildfire management
By Andrew Snook for Pulp& Paper Canada “Day 2 of the BC Council of Forest Industries’ COFI 2025 Convention kicked off with a focus on integrated solutions to wildfire, conservation, community safety and economic development. Keynote speaker John Kitzhaber, former Governor of the State of Oregon, discussed the need for new creative solutions to wildfire, conservation, community safety and economic development during Day 2 of the COFI 2025 Convention…Kitzhaber told attendees that forest policy cannot be solved in isolation and needs to include people who may not, on the surface, see themselves as affected directly by how forests are managed…Oregon is currently facing a significant housing shortage across the region, and over the next 20 years, has a projected need for 550,000 new housing units…Kitzhaber said that by creating a more intentional link between forest and family, it would offer a way to solve the overlapping challenges of housing and wildfires simultaneously as part of an integrated strategy to make the solution space larger in two important ways. The first is rethinking governance structures to view forested landscape as a whole and imagine how to design and harmonize management practices to achieve common goals across the entire landscape, rather than just looking at fragments of it. The second is to reframe the current wildfire and forest debate in a larger context that includes other policy goals and social values and political constituencies who may not, on the surface, be seeing themselves as being impacted in any way by how we manage our forests.”

– Parmar’s suggestion about ‘wildfire resilience’ logging called a ‘timber grab’
In pgdailynews.ca “On Friday, at the Council of Forest Industries conference in Prince George, Forest Minister Ravi Parmar suggested that provincial parks and Old Growth Management Areas could be logged for so-called “wildfire resilience.” Old Growth Management Areas were established to protect biodiversity, and parks are important for natural and cultural values. “Parks and Old Growth Management Areas should be safe from logging, period,” said Jenn Matthews. “Minister Parmar is using peoples’ fear of fire to lessen resistance to the idea of logging in areas that are supposed to be industry-free…Old forests generally have lower temperatures, higher moisture and lower wind than younger forest, and logging in them can decrease their resilience by creating dry debris (sometimes called surface fuels), leading to increased ignition and intensity, said Connolly. Old forest is not more likely to burn and is less likely to ignite. Weather generally overwhelms the effects of fuel on wildfire spread.”

Mar 22, 2025:
Climate change means even ‘very, very wet’ Nova Scotia feels drought
By Hina Alam, The Canadian Press in halifax.citynews.ca “Barret Kurylyk, an engineering professor at Dalhousie University, said the “warmer and drier climate” in Nova Scotia means there is now more evaporation and therefore less water making its way down to the water table. Nova Scotia began seeing more extreme summer drought in 2016 in the southwestern parts of the province, and conditions were the driest in 2023 when wildfires scorched about 250 square kilometres of land in the province and destroyed at least 165 homes.Kurylyk, Canada Research Chair in coastal water resources, is studying the effects of climate change on groundwater in Nova Scotia.”

Mar 19, 2025:
– Don’t underestimate early-season wildfire risk, expert urges
By Mark Hodgins in halifax.citynews.ca “It’s only March and there’s even snow on the ground still in some parts of Nova Scotia, but an official with the province’s Department of Natural Resources says it’s not too early for wildfires…Wildfire risk season in Nova Scotia runs from March 15 to October 15 and during the season no burning of any kind is between 8:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. The provincial burn restriction map is updated daily to then show if people can burn starting at 2 p.m., 7 p.m. or not at all, depending on the fire risk determined that day by officials…CityNews weather specialist Allister Aalders says, the federal government’s drought monitor reports Halifax and much of HRM has been “abnormally dry” since June 2024, and during the fall and early winter season a moderate drought was reported…“Certainly if the dry conditions don’t improve over the next several weeks, we could be looking at more long-term issues, not just with the growing season,” Aalders said. “Some people have already been trucking in water since the fall and even during this past winter to maintain their well water levels.”

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Feb 21, 2025:
– Tree diversity is the key to forest survival
Zack Metcalfe in the National Observer. “…Taylor has been expanding his research into the domains of drought and wildfires, both of which will become more common in coming decades, and which are already being felt in the Maritimes. Here too, he’s found the diversity of trees in a given forest is a good indicator of how well they’ll weather a warming world, not only absorbing carbon, but holding onto it…Today, many managed forests in the Maritimes suffer the unnatural dominance of White Spruce (planted and cultivated by loggers) and Balsam Fir, a conifer that, ironically, has benefited from a century of fire suppression. Normally, they’d be the first to burn, making way for deciduous trees, but with a paucity of natural fires, they’ve spread to new extremes. Such White Spruce and Balsam Fir-dominated forests, lacking in native diversity, are sequestering less carbon than they should, and are especially vulnerable to a warming climate.”

Feb 15, 2025:
–The fire paradox: Tree-ring data shows wildfire activity has declined, not increased
By Elena Lopez University of Arizona

Feb 12, 2025:
– Guest Column: Congress should oppose anti-science, anti-public lands bill
Erik Fernandez in www.bendbulletin.com “With a name like the “Fix Our Forests Act,” it should be a good thing for forests, wildlife, and the environment, right? Unfortunately, that is not the case with H.R. 471, aka the Fix Our Forests Act. A more accurate name for this legislation would be the “Clearcut Our Public Lands Act.”Proponents of the bill say it will reduce wildfire risk. A closer look at the actual text shows that it would significantly erode bedrock environmental protections under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and National Environmental Policy Act, remove science from land management decisions, eliminate public oversight across millions of acres of public lands, and may even make wildfires worse.”

Feb 10, 2025:
A fire deficit persists across diverse North American forests despite recent increases in area burned
By Sean Parks et al for Nature
“…Our results indicate, despite increasing area burned in recent decades, that a widespread fire deficit persists across a range of forest types and recent years with exceptionally high area burned are not unprecedented when considering the multi-century perspective offered by fire-scarred trees. …Although contemporary fire extent is not unprecedented across many North American forests,there is abundant evidence that unprecedented contemporary fire severity is driving forest loss in many ecosystems and adversely impacting human lives, infrastructure, and water supplies.”

Feb 7, 2025:
Canada invests $72 million on satellite constellation to monitor active wildfires
By Stéphane Blais, for Canadian Press on Halifax City News “Federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said the damage caused by wildfires will almost certainly increase with climate change. “If we go back about fifteen years, on average, the (annual) costs of climate change in Canada were about $200 million. In 2024, it was $8 billion — it is exponential — and there are some studies that estimate that in the coming years, it could increase to $25 billion,” the minister said…The money will go to Ontario-based Spire Global Canada, which will develop the satellite constellation..The satellites will be operational three months after their launch in 2029.”

Feb 6, 2025:
– Loggers and provincial forestry branch pointing fingers at each other
Howard May for www.cochraneeagle.ca “…Shaun Peter of Guardians of Recreational Outdoor Wilderness (GROW) said they are trying to convince the powers that be to commit to implementing the FireSmart program in the area, as a prudent protection, in light of the increase in wildfires across North America in recent years…Without it being designated as FireSmart by the province, WFTC said they have to harvest under standard ground rules. Peter said those rules leave the landscape highly susceptible to fire, with fine fuels left behind, and a high density flammable coniferous regrowth.”

Jan 18, 2025:
– Can my city burn? Let’s ask John Vaillant
In Zero Carbon series by Chris Hatch, in the National Observer. “I know I’m not the only one watching the Los Angeles fires and asking myself an almost forbidden question: could my city burn too?”

Jan 14, 2025:
4 Graphics Explain Los Angeles’ Rare and Devastating January Fires
By James MacCarthy and Jessica Richter for www.wri.org “..The increasing size and severity of wildfires in California is not an isolated event. Climate change is making wildfires more frequent and intense around the globe, resulting in larger forest fires worldwide. Hot and dry weather conditions brought on by climate change result in longer and more severe fire seasons and make bigger areas more prone to wildfires.”

Jan 7, 2025:
‘Fire Weather’ Is Hitting the North the Hardest, Study Says
Amanda Follett Hosgood in The Tyee. “Canada’s northern regions have seen increasingly longer wildfire seasons in recent decades, with the number of days conducive to severe burning rising most steeply in B.C.’s far north, according to a recent study.The findings, published last week in Science, are from a University of British Columbia study led by Weiwei Wang, a research scientist with Natural Resources Canada’s Northern Forestry Centre…Countrywide, regions with the most high or moderate burn severity days “were primarily located in the areas dominated by coniferous forests in the northwestern uplands and northeastern region.Areas containing many low burn severity days were “mainly in the southern broadleaf and mixed-wood forests and in the southwestern mountain forests,” the report found.”

Dec 17, 2024:
– Aspen is a natural fire guard. Why has B.C. spent decades killing it off with glyphosate?
Ainslie Cruickshank in the Narwhal “The BC NDP government promised to phase out its use in forestry, but decades of herbicide spraying has reduced biodiversity and the potential for wildfire mitigation”

Dec 16, 2024:
– How ‘Thirsty’ Trees May Make Forests More Vulnerable to Climate Change
“In www.morningagclips.com “The southern Appalachian Mountains feature large, intact forests with frequent precipitation. This kind of area would not typically be a place to look for the effects of climate change, but the emergence of more “thirsty” trees like maples shifts that dynamic. Maples are an example of “diffuse-porous” trees, which require more water to grow than “ring-porous” trees like oaks…Previous models did not account for the different water needs of various tree species, Martin said. This led to a potential underestimation of the threat posed by climate change in areas with increasing diffuse-porous tree populations.”

Dec 12, 2024:
– Government of Canada provides disaster recovery funding to Nova Scotia for wildfires, flooding and storm Dorian
Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada. ” OTTAWA, ON, Dec. 12, 2024 /CNW/ – In 2023, Nova Scotia experienced one of its worst wildfire seasons, leading to extensive damage to residences, small businesses, farms, municipalities, and provincial sites, and the evacuation of more than 16,000 people. Just over a month later, the province experienced extreme rainfall that led to the worst flooding the province has experienced in 50 years. This follows the significant damage to public and private infrastructure and prolonged power outages caused by storm Dorian across the province in 2019. Today, the Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada, announced payments of almost $67 million to Nova Scotia through the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) program, to assist with response and recovery costs associated with the wildfires in 2023, the extreme rainfall and flooding in summer 2023, and storm Dorian in 2019.”

Dec 5, 2024:
– Forests will burn but then logging them right after delays recovery
Casey Kulla in Oregon Capital Chronicle “The fires that burned down the Santiam Canyon over Labor Day weekend in 2020 were a disaster for the communities from Idanha all the way to Stayton. Recovery started right away, but rebuilding homes and public infrastructure has been tragically slow, delaying the healing of the community. Likewise in the burned forests; healing started right away, but logging those burned forests delayed healing…Oregon forests — from the coast to high desert — need fire to be healthy.We even try to stop the fires. But the forest will burn. It is what happens in the forest afterwards that’s up to us. A post-fire forest is still a forest; it still does stuff. And it can and will regrow as the forest that it needs to be, if we let the forest be. That means not logging it.”

Nov 20, 2024:
– Serious lack of rain leads to underground fires in parts of N.S (Audio)
Interview with Fire chief Brett Tetanish of the Brooklyn Volunteer Fire Department on CBC’s InfoAM “On top of making people’s wells go dry, the lack of rain this fall is resulting in underground fires. It’s something the Brooklyn Volunteer Fire Department had to deal with recently. Fire chief Brett Tetanish shares some tips for fire smarting your property.”  Related: CBC News Zombie fires? Why Nova Scotia’s dry fall could cause blazes to spark back up next spring Also view CTV News: Wells running dry as drought conditions persist in Nova Scotia, by Jonathan MacInnis Nov 18, 2024.

Nov 14, 2024:
– Nova Scotia leaders on climate action (News Video)
CBC “From floods to wildfires to hurricanes: Nova Scotia’s been hard hit by a number of disasters attributed to climate change. Leaders are asked how they would keep Nova Scotians safe from the effects of climate change.”

Oct 20, 2024:
Nova Scotia saw its least active wildfire season on record in 2024
Aly Thomson · CBC News “Natural Resources Department says increased awareness of burn ban restrictions played a part…In an effort to prevent wildfires, Nova Scotia increased the fine amount for violating those restrictions to $25,000. Natural Resources took a zero-tolerance approach to enforcement. The department issued 19 fines of $25,000. The RCMP also issued at least two fines equivalent to that amount…John Lowe, district chief of Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency, said he believes new artificial intelligence cameras that were installed earlier this year around the municipality were a valuable asset to the department this season.”

Oct 11, 2024:
– Sharp divide in Oregon over bill to step up logging to prevent wildfires
Alex Baumhardt for oregoncapitalchronicle.com “Republicans are backing a proposal to scale back environmental regulations to “thin” forests while Democrats and environmentalists want to fund community preparedness”

Sep 27, 2024:
– Wildfire risk from Fiona debris has lessened in P.E.I.’s forests, says official
CBC News ·”Over 1,200 hectares have been salvaged to date, says P.E.I.’s forestry director”

Sep 25, 2024:
Forest fire size amplifies postfire land surface warming
Jie Zhao et al., in Nature “Climate warming has caused a widespread increase in extreme fire weather, making forest fires longer-lived and larger. The average forest fire size in Canada, the USA and Australia has doubled or even tripled in recent decades. In return, forest fires feed back to climate by modulating land–atmospheric carbon, nitrogen, aerosol, energy and water fluxes. However, the surface climate impacts of increasingly large fires and their implications for land management remain to be established. Here we use satellite observations to show that in temperate and boreal forests in the Northern Hemisphere, fire size persistently amplified decade-long postfire land surface warming in summer per unit burnt area. Both warming and its amplification with fire size were found to diminish with an increasing abundance of broadleaf trees, consistent with their lower fire vulnerability compared with coniferous species. Fire-size-enhanced warming may affect the success and composition of postfire stand regeneration as well as permafrost degradation13, presenting previously overlooked, additional feedback effects to future climate and fire dynamics. Given the projected increase in fire size in northern forests, climate-smart forestry should aim to mitigate the climate risks of large fires, possibly by increasing the share of broadleaf trees, where appropriate, and avoiding active pyrophytes.“ Tip of the Hat to Rob B. for flagging this item

– Sep 4, 2024:
FPAC’s Derek Nighbor says Canada’s passive approach fuelling wildfires
By Derek Nighbor in Canadian Biomass “…Even some of our national parks, those enduring icons of conservation, are turning into net carbon emitters due to drought and wildfires, according to recent findings from the Parks Canada Carbon Atlas Series…What does proactive management mean? It means hands-on intervention into our forest ecosystems. For example, making deliberate efforts to remove flammable materials in high fire risk zones, particularly forests that are older, denser and drying out. These forests are prime for combustion from a lightning strike or a spark from an off-road vehicle.”
Comment (DP): Big Forestry has the solutions to it all. Carbon capture, stopping the fires; no recognition of Bif Forestry’s high emissions and practices that contribute to bigger fires (herbicides etc), and even start them (sparks from machinery operatng during very dry periods). The comments by Nighbor expose the real objective… continued access to Old Growth, and they want access to Parks and Protected Areas, all to feed thethirst for biomass. For the Nova Scotia version, see Forest NS on wildfires, and some comments on versicolor.ca/nstriad. Also available as a PDF

Aug 29, 2024:
– 5 things to know about B.C.’s lucrative salvage logging industry
By Zoë Yunker, Photography by Taylor Roades in The Narwhal “Despite the ecological risks, it’s cheaper and easier than ever to clear cut the last living trees in wildfire-impacted forests”
Nanoplastics found to interfere with tree photosynthesis

Aug 28m 2024:
– Robots Are Starting (Good) Fires in California
By Coco Liu in Bloomberg “BurnBot’s tank-like robot helps manage wildfire risk by conducting controlled burns with no open flames, minimal smoke and much less manpower.”
– Wildsight’s Eddie Petryshen discusses impacts of salvage logging
Paul Rodgers in Kimberley Bulletin “Wildsight conservation specialist Eddie Petryshen says the impacts of post-disturbance salvage logging outweigh the short-term benefits to the timber supply…In addition to damaging nitrogen-fixing plants that sprout soon after fires, Petryshen said another impact is on water. He cited a recent study from the southern Rockies in Alberta that found that sediment was nine times greater in burnt watersheds than in unburnt, but 37 times greater in salvage-log watersheds. ”
– Nova Scotia shelter village opens in time for peak of hurricane season
The Weather Network “Nova Scotia has purchased 200 shelters, just in time for the peak of hurricane season, and they’re now being placed around the province to support people experiencing homelessness.”

Aug 21, 2024
– Largest study of 2023 wildfires finds extreme weather fuelled flames
By Bob Weber, The Canadian Press ON halifax.citynews.ca. References: Drivers and Impacts of the Record-Breaking 2023 Wildfire Season in Canada. P. Jain et al., Aug 2021 in Nature Communications.“Standardized anomalies of the Canadian Fire Weather Index (FWI) System’s Drought Code (DC), show similar trends, with severe drought conditions in some northern and western areas in May, and new-onset drought conditions in Quebec and Nova Scotia in June (Fig. 3d, e). Early-season drought is a common occurrence in western Canada26, due to persistent drought carried over from the previous year and exacerbated by a low winter snowpack27 (Fig. S1). In contrast, the 2023 fire season started with near-average levels of soil moisture following snowmelt in the eastern provinces, but above-average temperatures and rapid drying caused what could be described as a ‘flash drought’, an emerging phenomenon that we are only beginning to understand.”

– Climate change is pushing wildfires closer to urban areas. Firefighters say they’re not prepared
By Nicola Seguin CBC News “A new report from Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency sheds light on what firefighters faced over the nearly three-week operation to put out the fire that broke out on May 28, 2023, in Upper Tantallon, 30 kilometres from downtown Halifax (and burned more than 900 hectares, forcing more than 16,000 people to evacuate and destroying 151 homes), and points out how the urban, structural firefighters didn’t have the training, experience or equipment to deal with a wildfire.” Related on halifax.ca: HRFE Post Incident Analysis Wildland Urban Interface Fire May 2023, and this doc: HRFE Post Incident Analysis Wildland Urban Interface Fire: May 2023 FINAL REPORT July 3, 2024.

Aug 14, 2024:
– Canada’s 2023 wildfires released almost 10 years worth of carbon dioxide in one of the world’s worst fire seasons, report finds
By Kate Helmore, The Globe and Mail (Subscription Required),  Summary from Tree Frog Forestru News: “An international report published Wednesday found that Canada’s 2023 wildfire season burned six times more area than usual and released nine times the usual amount of carbon, ranking it as one of the worst across the globe. These wildfires, which raged from Nova Scotia to Vancouver Island, emitted almost a decade’s worth of carbon dioxide, compared to the average for the area, said the inaugural State of Wildfires report, published in the journal Earth System Science Data which included expert panels from continents across the globe. “Whatever statistic you look at for Canada last year is absolutely striking,” said Dr. Matthew Jones, lead author of the report and research fellow at the Tyndall Center for Climate Change Research at the University of East Anglia in Britain. “If you look at the number of fires, the area burned, emissions, the size of the fires … pretty much every record was smashed.” Cites this paper: State of Wildfires 2023–2024 by MW Jones et al., in Earth System Science Data
– Logging after wildfires is a hot industry in B.C. Could it do more harm than good?
By Zoë Yunker in The Narwhal “This story is part of In the Line of Fire, a series from The Narwhal digging into what is being done to prepare for — and survive — wildfires…Forestry companies get a slew of profitable perks to harvest areas burned by B.C. wildfires. They’re also allowed to log living trees that could be key to species and ecosystem recovery in burn zones”
– Will logging more in healthy forests reduce wildfire risk?
On www.davidsuzuki.org “…There is no one-treatment-fits-all approach to address wildfires; we are likely to have failures along the way and we must learn to adapt. But increased wildfire activity should not be used as a Trojan horse to give the forestry industry even more power over decisions that affect forests in Canada under the guise of “fixing” a problem. Expanding industrial logging into remaining unlogged forests is not the solution; more comprehensive forest management is.”

Aug 12, 2024:
– Logging industry’s wildfire claims are misleading the public
Chad Hanson in The Hill. “The Park Fire in northern California has reached approximately 400,000 acres in size, and already logging industry advocates are pushing out misinformation about the fire in an attempt to promote their deceptively-named Fix Our Forests Act logging bill. The timber industry’s political apologists tell us that the Park Fire grew so big, so fast ostensibly because public forestlands are “overgrown” and in need of “thinning…The truth is that this “overgrown forests” narrative, which is being spun by the logging industry and its political apologists, is a new and insidious type of climate change denialism.”
Chad Hanson, Ph.D., is a forest and fire ecologist with the John Muir Project, based in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, and is the author of the book, “Smokescreen: Debunking Wildfire Myths to Save Our Forests and Our Climate.”

Aug 9, 2024:
– Biomass power station produced four times emissions of UK coal plant, says report
By Jillian Ambrose for The Guardian UK. “UK — The Drax power station was responsible for four times more carbon emissions than the UK’s last remaining coal-fired plant last year, despite taking more than £0.5bn in clean-energy subsidies in 2023, according to a report.”

Jul 25, 2024
– Insurance claims from last year’s floods, wildfires in Nova Scotia total $490 million
Michael MacDonald · The Canadian Press on cbc.ca “Canada isn’t ready to deal with more severe weather from climate change, Insurance Bureau VP says”

Jul 23, 2024:
– Conservation North conference talks negative impacts of salvage forestry
Staff at www.princegeorgecitizen.com “Some scientists are calling for a drastic change to the way B.C. deals with forests burned by fire and affected by insects. The remarks came as the scientists took part in a webinar organized by the volunteer group Conservation North and virtually attended by more than 200 people on Monday, July 22. During the meeting, they said “salvage” logging after a fire usually causes more damage to a forest than the fire itself, and explained that logging reduces biodiversity, contributes to climate change, increases the vulnerability of the forest to further fires, and often causes soil degradation and erosion…The webinar recording is available on the Conservation North YouTube channel” – See Gaming the ecosystem: the truth about salvage logging “Have you ever wondered what “salvage” logging is, and how it affects communities, ecosystems and the climate? This webinar, held on July 15th, 2024, answers these questions. The session featured Seraphine Munroe (Maiyoo Keyoh Society), Dr. Karen Price (independent ecologist), Dr. Phil Burton (emeritus University of Northern BC professor), Dr. Diana Six (University of Montana) and Dr. Dominick DellaSala (Wild Heritage).”

– Climate change likely influenced forest fires in Labrador, says ecologist
Abby Cole · CBC News “Anthony Taylor says forest fires will likely become more common…”Newfoundland and Labrador as a whole has warmed by more than two degrees Celsius since the … late 1800s,” he said. “And in fact, Labrador itself has warmed more than a degree since the 1960s.” Although there has been close to normal amounts of rainfall in Labrador, he said, higher temperatures cause increased evaporation and drier forests, likely contributing to conditions that are conducive to fire…”While large fires do occur in Labrador from time to time, I don’t want to undersell the influence of human-caused climate change on this because it is very likely that these fires we’re seeing this year are influenced by climate change,” he said. “We just haven’t been as a society taking our role in preventing and slowing climate change enough.… And that’s primarily by reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and reducing those greenhouse gas emissions.””

Jun 20, 2024:
How long will it take to put out P.E.I.’s peat fire?
CBC News (Video) “The fire at a peat harvesting operation in Foxley River, P.E.I., has been burning for several days. Mike Montigny and Nick Thompson from the province’s forest, fish and wildlife division explain why this type of fire is so hard to extinguish, and how the department is managing its resources.”

May 26, 2024:
Burnt trees, new life
By Aly Thomson, CBC News “Thousands of trees were destroyed in a wildfire outside Halifax last year. Now some of them are returning in a very different form…”“If you can imagine that you had a garden that was growing and you didn’t weed your garden and all the weeds were coming up and it was very thick, if a fire went through that, there’s a lot more fuel there and the fire would be a lot more intense,” he says.” It’s a claim disputed by Donna Crossland, who has dedicated her life to forest ecology. She works with the Healthy Forest Coalition, a group that protests clearcutting of Nova Scotia’s forests…”

Feb 9, 2024:
Georgia’s Fire Management at a Crossroads: Balancing Prescribed Burns and Climate Change
By Momen Zellmi BNN Breaking “Georgia’s delicate balance of fire and land management, crucial for ecosystem health and wildfire prevention, is threatened by climate change. Fewer ‘good burn days’ and environmental regulations pose challenges for land managers, demanding innovative solutions to protect both nature and human wellbeing.”

Feb 1, 2024:
Effects of clear-cut logging on forest fires
By Eli Pivnick, North Okanagan Climate Action Now/The Similkameen Spotlight “The idea that clear-cuts help stop forest fires is a myth. That is the conclusion of a number of recent studies in the western U.S. Clear-cuts provide an area hotter and drier than the surrounding forests in fire season. Without trees, clear-cuts have no wind breaks, which allow wind speeds to increase. Clear-cut logging tends to spread invasive grasses, which are flammable. In the first several years after logging, fires in a clear cut will burn hotter and travel faster than in the surrounding forest. In the western U.S., forested areas around a community are some times clear-cut to reduce fire risk. This is termed “thinning.” However, this actually increases risk. One example is the Camp Fire which destroyed the town of Paradise, CA., in 2018. The forested area around Paradise had previously been “thinned.” No forest treatment more than 30 metres from a dwelling has been shown to reduce fire risk.”

Dec 28, 2023:
Wall Street Journal Gets Carbon Storage Wrong
George Wuerthner in Wildlife News “The Wall Street Journal’s December 21, 2023, editorial board wrote that Biden’s New Forest Plan will “lead to more uncontrolled fires—and won’t help the climate.” The WSJ is upset that the Biden Administration plans to ban logging of old-growth forests on national forest lands, a proposal they characterize as a “land grab.The WSJ disputes the assertion made by the Biden Administration and many scientists that old-growth forests capture and store CO2, thus slowing climate warming. The editorial is full of the usual timber industry rhetoric that national forests are “overgrown” and need to be logged to be “healthy.”…”

Dec 11, 2023:
– In Halifax, a call to promote old-growth forests as a guard against future wildfires
By Michael Tutton Canadian Press in CBC. “As he stands near a Nova Scotia forest with soaring 150-year-old trees, Mike Lancaster sees a natural, long-term solution to the threat wildfires pose to city dwellers…The director of the St. Margaret’s Bay Stewardship Association said much of the 1,000 hectares that ignited in May — destroying 151 homes and businesses in Halifax’s western suburbs — was young, dense, coniferous woodland that had grown after decades of intensive logging. Pointing to the canopy of older-growth trees just three kilometres from lands scarred by wildfire, Lancaster describes how the space between the trees, the mixture of species and the higher branches decrease flammability. ..After a historic wildfire season across Canada, experts are turning their eyes to Nova Scotia as a harbinger of the growing risk facing cities on the forest’s edge. “If Halifax can burn, any place can burn, and that blows all our minds,” says John Vaillant, author of the award-winning “Fire Weather: The Making of a Beast,” which tells the story of the 2016 Fort McMurray forest fire. Vaillant said in an interview that Nova Scotia’s urban wildfires were a shock to fire experts across Canada, making the province’s next steps a matter of national interest…what — if any — changes will be made to Nova Scotia’s forestry practices in 2024 is unclear, as the department has yet to release initial findings on how the Halifax-area blaze ignited and what might prevent a recurrence. ..When it comes to leaving forests to regenerate, Steenberg says poor soil and other conditions that limit growth mean that about a quarter of the province’s forest will yield shorter-lived trees that are susceptible to frequent fires…“Old-growth (forests) aren’t necessarily more or less susceptible to fires,” he says. “It depends on the conditions. Old-growths are complex and often have different-aged woods in them and may have coarse, woody materials that can be fuels.”…Eric Rapaport, a Dalhousie University professor of planning who has studied fire risks in the Halifax area since 2012, says the time may have come for the province and city to approach landowners to ask them to consider accepting “a good fire break” between woodlands and homes.Rapaport is also an advocate for creating the equivalent of floodplain mapping for fires, where publicly available maps would provide tree-by-tree detail of fire dangers…For Vaillant, the author, better preparation is key to minimizing future destruction.”

 

Nov 16, 2023:
The Crucial Role of Forestry in Preventing Devastating Wildfires
Blog post on forestns.ca “Many people say that we just need to plant more hardwood. It’s not that simple. Nova Scotia’s wildfires this summer completely burnt multiple hardwood stands. Yes, hardwood is more resilient to wildfires, but it is not fireproof. With massive amounts of forest fire fuel on the ground, hardwood will burn, too. And hardwood doesn’t create lumber to build homes…Our push to protect more and more of the forest will add to wildfire risk and result in our forests becoming net emitters of carbon…We are facing increased wildfire risk because our forests are not as actively managed as they should be, and fewer women and men work in the woods.” COMMENT: See Would “thinning areas where harvesting isn’t allowed” as advocated by Forest Nova Scotia reduce wildfire risk? 23Nov2023

Nov 9, 2023:
Concern rising over increasing carbon emissions from Canada’s forest fires
By Doyle Potenteau Global News “…Wieting says the impacts are so high that “carbon emissions connected to forests are close to three times higher compared to all our other emissions from burning fossil fuels.” He says those wildfire emission totals are hidden in B.C.’s accounting, “and it’s a major problem because we cannot continue to ignore these emissions.””

Oct 30, 2023:
Nova Scotia saw its most devastating wildfire season on record in 2023
CBC News “According to the provincial government, a total of 220 wildfires impacted approximately 25,096 hectares this season, which typically runs from April to mid-October. More than 150 homes were lost in a wildfire that started in Upper Tantallon, N.S., just outside Halifax on May 28. On the province’s southwestern tip, about 60 homes and other structures burned in the province’s largest wildfire on record, which broke out that same weekend and affected 23,525 hectares.”

Oct 29, 2023:
‘It gives them hope’: Volunteers plant trees on land devastated by N.S. wildfire
By Ella MacDonald Global News “..Carter says they plan to plant hardwood trees — in this case, sugar maples — around the edge of the block, due to their slower burn rates. “And as you come in, it will be the pine and the spruce, with the idea being that if there was a fire, the rate of spread would be less in the hardwood, near the edge.””

Oct 28, 2023:
Future of wildfires: What will happen to Canada’s scorched forests as fires worsen?
By Katherine Cheng Global News

Oct 16, 2023:
Halifax’s emergency system caused confusion, frustration, wildfire report finds
Suzanne Rent in the Hfx Examiner. Intro in Morning File References a new report: Upper Tantallon Wildfire Lessons Learned (HRM doc for discussion at Oct 17, 2023 Regional Council)

Sep 24, 2023:
From the ashes: Research road trip maps regeneration after wildfires
Tavor Gaster in ubyssey.com “…Members of the UBC Integrated Remote Sensing Studio, including Smith-Tripp, took a two-week remote sensing fieldwork road trip across the country. From the Acadian broadleaf forests of New Brunswick to BC’s temperate rainforests, they used drones to scan landscapes from timber plantations to bare ash. The researchers call themselves the “Scantiques Roadshow.” The Scantiques Roadshow is a part of a Canada-wide study that focuses on developing new methods to monitor how forests respond to disturbances like wildfires, droughts and pests. …Part of the Scantiques Roadshow team’s job is to find out why some forests grow back relatively quickly while others falter. “Understanding what forests look like after a disturbance occurs is really important, “said Smith-Tripp. “We also should plan for that sort of resiliency within forests because we know that our forests are operating under greater stresses.” (Extract as cited in TreeFrog Forestry News for Sep 25, 2023)

Sep 13, 2023:
Learning to live with wildfire
By UBC Okanagan News, The University of British Columbia. “UBC Okanagan researchers take an interdisciplinary approach to wildfire management…While it sounds unorthodox, carefully planned, small-scale controlled burns in strategic areas can yield a variety of benefits, says Dr. Bourbonnais. They remove accumulated dry fuel for future fires, make breaks in massive expanses of forest and even help regenerate entire ecosystems that can restart and thrive in burned-out areas.It’s an idea the general public may be hesitant to embrace.”

Sep 8, 2023:
Forest blackened by Saint Andrews-area fire sprouts signs of life
Mia Urquhart · CBC News. “Homeowner sees renewal, UNB tree expert says fire a normal part of forest regeneration”

Aug 24, 2023:
– Canadians unified on forest protection although wildfire cause divisive: poll
Canadian Press on rdnnewsnow.com

Aug 23, 2023:
– Halifax councillors hope to make Tantallon wildfire ‘a catalyst for change
Zane Woodford in the Halifax Examiner (subscription required; intro. in Morning File)

Aug 10, 2023:
Historical Fire Regimes and Recent Wildfire Trends in Canada and Nova Scotia
YpuTube Webinar on MTRI channel
The 2023 fire season in Canada has drawn widespread attention due to the exceptional area burned and the number of people affected. Our Summer Seminar with Ellen Whitman, Forest Fire Research Scientist at Natural Resources Canada, on Aug. 10, 7-8 p.m. will help viewers contextualize this year with an understanding of historical fire activity and the natural role wildfires play in our forests, both nationally and provincially. We will conclude by discussing how modern climate change and fire suppression have contributed to recent and ongoing changes to Canadian fire activity and the associated ecological impacts of shifting fire regimes.

July 31, 2023:
Swedish study shows secondary forests more sensitive to drought than primary forests
by Lund University in phys.org

July 25, 2023:
– Climate change: Correlation between wildfires, flooding in Nova Scotia
By Hina Alam The Canadian Press in the Toronto Star “The fingerprints of climate change are all over the supercharged weather witnessed this year in Nova Scotia — and the rest of the country — from raging wildfires to devastating flooding.”
– Commercial building codes lack strong wildfire-management provisions, indoor air quality controls, says expert
M Lewis for Globe & Mail

July 18, 2023:
What’s happening to the many trees charred by the N.S. wildfire?
Heidi Petracek for CTV News. Charred wood can still be sawed and helps pay for clearn-up

July, 6, 2023:
Biodiversity, better forest management key to combat wildfire: experts
Cindy Tran for Edmonton Journal. “Old forests and mature forests are actually more resilient to wildfires than younger forests.”

July 4, 2023:
One extreme to the next: June completely erased Nova Scotia’s rain deficits of early spring
Ryan Snoddon · CBC News “April and May of this year were unusually dry, compared to the 30-year average…[but since June 1] Rainfall totals are way up in most areas of Nova Scotia, compared to the 30-year average.”

July 3, 2023:
As California fire season begins, debate over wildfire retardant heats up
By Hayley Smith Los Angeles Times (Also used in Canada)

June 29, 2023:
‘It burns wild and free up there’: Canada fires force US crews to shift strategy
By Gabrielle Canon& Leyland Cecco in The Guardian/ Pertinent to NS as our recently out-of-control fires occurred in areas of significant settlement (as in much of the US area where there are regular wildfires), versus many wildfires in Canada which are in very remote areas and are allowed to burn,”While there’s been a slow shift to bring healthy fires back to the forests – experts have criticized US agencies with causing more devastation by not letting enough land burn.”

June 19, 2023:
Here’s how you can help protect your property from wildfire, say safety experts
ances Willick · CBC News

June 17, 2023:
Wildfire in southern N.S. occurred amid some of driest recorded conditions: scientist
Michael Tutton for The Canadian Press, in the Penticton Herald “Driest woods since 1944 key to N.S. wildfire” Article cites AR Taylor on recent stats, climate warming; and Donna Crossland on historical forests fires

June 16, 2023
Officials knew of wildfire risk in Upper Tantallon for years but did nothing, say residents
Haley Ryan · CBC News “Earlier reports warned of wildfire risks in Upper Tantallon, where wildland meets urban space…In 2016, wildfire prevention officer Kara McCurdy determined the northern end of Westwood Hills was at “extreme” risk, with southern parts at high and moderate risk.Her protection plan made a number of recommendations, including creating a gated emergency road through to Wright Lake Run, installing dry fire hydrants since there are none, and creating a community buffer of thinned trees around the subdivision. Dry hydrants allow for a water supply when there is no municipal system available…Halifax received a 2013 study from Dalhousie University that was partially funded by the Halifax municipality and developed a model to identify the future forest risk of forest fires in the area.”We found very high risks in some of the places where the forest kind of interfaces directly with residential homes,” said Eric Rapaport, report co-author and professor with Dalhousie University’s School of Planning.

The report suggested the city create bylaws to clear space around residential homes, limit ongoing development in wildland-urban interface areas, educate private citizens in high-risk areas, and to “manage WUI areas for fire risk.”

“It is a bit frustrating when we don’t see things change and then we run into problems,” Rapaport said.

Rapaport said he was surprised to see the Upper Tantallon wildfire spread so quickly. But in the aftermath, he has used data to see there were large swaths of quick-burning trees in most of the affected subdivisions — which McCurdy’s assessment also noted.

‘The evidence was there’
“We could have identified those trees and we could have started … 10 years ago in trying to remove some of that risk,” Rapaport said.

June 15, 2023
Are forest fires in Canada becoming more frequent and larger – or not?
An op-ed type of article in the Financial Post by Prof Ross McKitrick (University of Guelph and the Fraser Institute) has ellicted some critical discussion of fire stats around the issue of whether forest fires are becoming more frequent, larger — or not. I will try to keep track of this important debate – See http://versicolor.ca/nstriad/hrm-forest-fire/on-cndn-forest-fire-stats/

June 13, 2023:
Barrington Lake Wildfire Under Control
NRR. “The Barrington Lake wildfire in Shelburne County is now under control. The final size of the fire is 23,525 hectares (about 235 square kilometres). It is not expected to spread.

June 12, 2023:
– Retired Halifax firefighter Paul Irving says he urged that the FireSmart program be adopted in 2004, but was ignored
Jennifer henderson in the Halifax Examiner
– Is Eastern Canada doomed to follow the West into harsher wildfire seasons?
Matthew McLearn in https://www.theglobeandmail.com/
– Over 1% of Canada’s forests burned the past few weeks, officials say aging trees big factor
ByMo Fahim in www.mymuskokanow.com/
– The NS wildfires are not ‘natural’ disasters: climate change, forest management, and human folly are all to blame
Joan Baxter in the Halifax Examiner
– N.S. government must help communities prepare for more wildfires: climate experts
By Michael TuttonThe Canadian Press/Toronto Star

June 11. 2023:
139 firefighters from Canada, U.S. battling Nova Scotia’s Barrington Lake blaze
The Canadian Press/CTV Atlantic News. “..The Barrington Lake fire in Shelburne County has grown to about 235 square kilometres since it first broke out on May 27. Provincial officials say it remains out of control, but it has stopped spreading.”

June 9, 2023:
In the wake of wildfires, forests’ ability to trap carbon ‘goes up in smoke’
Doug Johnson for the Weather network. Interview with Werner Kurz, a senior research scientist with the Canadian Forest Service. Useful Link in article: CCA nature Based Climate Solutions: Forests

June 8, 2023:

– An expert explains the science of wildfires
Suzanne Rent in the Hfx Examiner., interview with Ellen Whitman. Of note:

HE: What are the differences between the fires in Nova Scotia and say the fires happening in Ontario and Quebec right now?

EW: A major difference there is the forest type, for one thing. You do have a patchier landscape in Nova Scotia in terms of the availability of those continuous conifer fuels. Those fires burned in conifer-dominated areas and created some of the biggest fires Nova Scotia ever experienced. However, the fires that are happening in other parts of eastern Canada right now are in the boreal forests. It’s a much more conifer-dominated landscape. There’s lots of continuous fuel available.

– Nova Scotia’s fiery past — and potential future — with an environmental advocate (audio)
CBC Mainstreet “Donna Crossland started her career researching the history of fire in the Kouchibouguac National Park in New Brunswick. Now the vice-president of Nature Nova Scotia, Crossland has written an essay called “Nova Scotia’s Fiery Past.” She spoke with Mainstreet’s Alex Mason about that history, and what we can learn from it.”
Related:
– Essay: Nova Scotia’s Fiery Past
– Ecologist’s perspective on the Keji-area fires (Post on nsforestnotes.ca, Aug 17, 2016).

June 7, 2023:
– Canada marks Clean Air Day with worst air quality in the world, as feds consider disaster response agency
By Mia Rabson Canadian Press in CTV News

– From British Columbia to Nova Scotia, Wildfires Spread Across Canada
By Dan Bilefsky and Vjosa Isai in the NY Times June 7, 2023 “In a country known for its picturesque landscapes and orderliness, the out-of-control wildfires have stoked unease and underlined the perils of global warming…Until now, he said, many on the east coast had not been exposed, firsthand, to the health risks of air pollution caused by wildfires that have gripped the western provinces over recent years. “There’s essentially a disconnect,” he said. “They haven’t had this experience.” Comment: This not completely correct. I remember, admittedly prob 40 yrs ago, when we had an extended period of grey skies and smokey air from forest fires in Quebec. More frequently and according to atmospheric conditions, the air is that of the industrial heartland of US & Canada; we are the tail pipe.

June 6, 2023:
– Update on Wildfires, June 6
NS Gov. “The Barrington Lake wildfire in Shelburne County is still out of control. In total, there are five active wildfires in the province today, June 6”

– Fire update and emergency alerts
Tim Bousquet in MorningFile (Halifax Examiner).”Firefighting efforts in Nova Scotia have been greatly helped by a change in the weather — more than 90 millimetres of rain fell on the southwest part of the province Sunday and Monday, with some areas receiving 120 millimetres… worry is about alert fatigue”

June 5, 2023:
– Wildfire risk for most of Nova Scotia expected to remain unusually high this summer
Skye Bryden-Blom Global News. ““There are just places we shouldn’t be putting housing,” says assistant Dalhousie professor Alana Westwood. “There are certain kinds of forest ecosystems that are literally meant to burn, for example, ecosystems that are dominated by species called Jack Pine, their cones are opened by fire.”

June 4, 2023:
Update on Wildfires, June 4 (morning)
NRR. “Barrington Lake, Shelburne County: fire is still out of control, covering 24,980 hectares (249.8 square kilometres); Lake Road, Municipality of the District of Shelburne:
fire is being held at an estimated 114 hectares; Pubnico, Yarmouth County: fire is being held at 138 hectares; Westwood Hills, Tantallon: fire is under control at an estimated 950 hectares and is 100 per cent contained; Hammonds Plains: fire is under control at four hectares and is 100 per cent contained

June 3, 2023:
– Rain brings much-needed relief to firefighters battling Nova Scotia wildfires
By The Associated Press on npr.org

June 2, 2023:
– Urban sprawl on wooded lands presents unique challenges when fires spread: experts
Hina Alam The Canadian Press. “Halifax blaze shows complexity of urban wildfires”

– About that rain in the forecast…
By Kyle Shaw in the Coast.  “Nova Scotia needs wet weather to fight wildfires, and to catch up after a historically dry spring.”


June 1, 2023:
– Tantallon wildfire 50% contained; new fire in Shelburne County, while others out of control
Suzanne Rent and Tim Bousquet in Halifax Examiner Morning File. A set of items about the fire situation in NS.

May 30, 2023:
– How climate change is fuelling fires in Eastern Canada
By Cloe Logan in the National Observer.

– A timeline of the Upper Tantallon wildfire
In The Coast

May 29, 2023:
– Raging Fires in Nova Scotia
NASA Earth Observatory.Amazing Satellite Imagery

– Forestry expert discusses wildfire situation in the Maritimes
Global News.

May 28, 2023:
– Tracking forest fires across Nova Scotia
CTV News. “Hot, dry and windy conditions on Sunday helped cause a series of wildfires in Atlantic Canada, with at least 10 reported in Nova Scotia…So far, Nova Scotia has reported 176 wildfires this season, compared to 70 at this time in 2022”

2017
Wildland Urban Interface Community Wildfire Protection Plan Prepared for: Hammonds Plains Road, Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia
By: Kara McCurdy – Wildfire Prevention Office 2017 PDF doc Posted by CBC