As more than 60 wildfires rage throughout the province, Jasper鈥檚 fire crew is busy mopping up after a long-awaited prescribed burn.
It was a burn eight years in the making, as Parks Canada鈥檚 fire crew waited for the perfect conditions to align, allowing it to burn 500 hectares of forest on the slopes of Mount Greenock.
Using aerial ignition, the Vine Creek fire unit went up in flames in no time.
From various vantage points throughout the park, it created an apocalyptic sight, as a huge mushroom cloud formed over the park鈥檚 eastern horizon. On social media, people posted photos of the smoke and joked that 鈥淢ount Jasper is erupting!鈥�
Although a startling visual, the good news is the fire鈥攗nlike the many others burning in the province鈥攚ill only have positive effects for the park.
The Vine Creek burn creates a fire break that could protect our neighbours from future wildfires and potentially stop the spread of mountain pine beetle by reducing viable habitat for the tree-killing insects.
And, ultimately, it will also help a species at risk: the whitebark pine.
Fire was a natural process on the landscape in Jasper National Park for centuries before it was actively suppressed after the park鈥檚 formation.
By reintroducing fire to the valley, it allows for new vegetation to grow and provides wildlife with a new food source, as well as new habitat.
For some, the idea of burning the park鈥檚 forests seems counterintuitive. We all learned in school that fire is bad. We learn from Smokey the Bear that 鈥淥nly you can prevent wildfires鈥� and we were made to fear the repercussions of fire on the landscape.
But, as is clear with the Vine Creek burn and Parks鈥� fire management program, there is a time and place for fire, and when it鈥檚 well planned and articulated it can have positive results.
We鈥檒l see those positive results on Mount Greenock in the future, but unfortunately, they aren鈥檛 likely for the rest of the province.
Our thoughts are with those Albertans whose communities are currently at risk because of unintentional wildfires started by lightning or careless campfires and our thanks go to Parks鈥� fire crew for keeping our community safe during this dry, hot weather.
