There might still be snow on the ground but wildfire season has begun in Alberta.
On Tuesday, Minister of Forestry and Parks Todd Loewen officially declared the start of wildfire season, 10 days ahead of the usual March 1 starting date. With an El Nino winter that has caused warmer than usual temperatures, limited precipitation, and a rapidly shrinking snowpack, Western Canada could be in for another year of smoky skies and burning forests.
The early declaration of wildfire season allows the province to issue fire bans and other restrictions to limit the risk. Loewen said the government will bring in bans “a little more proactively” compared to last year and said a permit is now required for any fires in Alberta’s Forest Protection Area, which encompasses much of the province.
“In 2023, over 60 per cent of wildfires in Alberta were human-caused, meaning they could have been prevented. These human-caused wildfires placed an additional strain on personnel and resources,” he said.
While the Minister said the government believes the province currently has the adequate number of firefighters and staff, he announced that 100 new firefighters would be hired and trained in the coming weeks. That’s on top of the 900 firefighters the province employed in 2023, said Loewen.
Last year, around 22,000 square kilometres of land was burned in wildfires in Alberta, far above the five-year average for area burned of 2,262 square kilometres. There are currently 54 active wildfires in the province, all but 17 of which are holdovers from last year. All of the active fires are considered under control.
Loewen said Alberta intends to enhance its nighttime operations this season as well, when firefighting efforts can be most effective because of lower temperatures and higher humidity.
Persistent drought in Western Canada has set this season up to be one of the worst.
Conditions are so bad in Alberta that the government is negotiating with major water licence holders to strike voluntary water-sharing agreements in the Red Deer River, Bow River and Oldman River basins - the first time that has happened in more than 20 years.
Alberta Environment Minister Rebecca Schulz issued a blunt assessment of the situation last month: “Right now, we don’t expect that Alberta will receive enough precipitation to prevent a serious drought. We have to prepare for the worst.”
According to the Canadian Drought Monitor report from Jan. 31, 100 per cent of the Prairies region, which included Manitoba and Saskatchewan, was classified as “abnormally dry” or in “moderate to exceptional drought.”
While the province has made moves to prepare for the upcoming season, the Alberta Fire Chiefs Association has been asking for answers for weeks on the province’s plan.
“There is a growing concern among Fire Chiefs across the province of the lack of communication of what the plan is, allocation of funds compared to previous years and plan for the recruitment and deployment of firefighters and equipment,” read an open letter published at the end of January.
Heather Sweet, New Democrat forestry critic, said the government is already behind.
“Even though the government knew there were active wildfires burning underground over the winter, the [United Conservative government] laid off wildland firefighters for the season and waited until the beginning of the 2024 wildfire season to start hiring with no training time,” she said.
“We are behind on training and staffing.”
This is the weekly Western Canada newsletter written by B.C. Editor Wendy Cox and Alberta Bureau Chief Mark Iype. If you’re reading this on the web, or it was forwarded to you from someone else, you can sign up for it and all Globe newsletters here.
Wendy Cox