The historic town of Jasper, Alberta has been practically obliterated by wildfire

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Wildfire that roared into Jasper was a wall of fast-moving flame, says fire official | CBC News

WWW.CBC.CA

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One of two wildfires threatening Jasper, Alta., raged into the historic resort town Wednesday, consuming homes and businesses in a wall of flame. 

 

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One of two wildfires threatening Jasper, Alta., raged into the historic resort town Wednesday, consuming homes and businesses in a wall of flame. 

 

The wildfire, whipped into a firestorm by intense winds, burned with such intensity and speed that plumes of ash and flames shot hundreds of feet into the air. 

 

James Eastham, a Parks Canada wildfire information officer, said firefighters were faced with a wall of flame that proved impossible to contain. 

 

"Fire behaviour was intense," Eastham said in an interview Wednesday night after the flames entered the townsite.

 

"Fire crews were witnessing 300- to 400-foot flames in a fully involved, continuous crown fire and a fire spread rate of approximately 15 metres per minute."

 

The extent of the damage is unknown but park officials say numerous buildings in the historic townsite in the heart of Jasper National Park have been lost. 

 

 

[DPCyric]

It's insane Canada is having wildfires like this 

[chakoo]

6 minutes ago, DPCyric said:

It's insane Canada is having wildfires like this 

 

Canada has been regularly experiencing wildfires and part of this country ignores climate change because they’re beholden to oil and gas.

[DPCyric]

6 minutes ago, chakoo said:

 

Canada has been regularly experiencing wildfires and part of this country ignores climate change because they’re beholden to oil and gas.

 

Yeah I know was in Chicago last year when it was covered with the smoke from them.

[silentbob]

Yeah but they came mostly from fires in northern Quebec 

[AbsolutSurgen]

The wildfire risk in Jasper National Park is not a "new risk" -- a huge infestation of Mountain Pine Beetles created a lot of dead/dry wood over the last several decades.

It was widely recognized that the disruption to the natural/indigenous fire cycle (mostly post-WW2) has not been adequately dealt with by Parks Canada.

 

However, it's always easier to blame it all on climate change. 

[chakoo]

Alberta premier fights tears over Canada wildfires despite climate crisis denial | Canada | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

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Danielle Smith and her government’s refusal to combat global heating is said to have made blazes more intense

 

 

[CayceG]

3 hours ago, AbsolutSurgen said:

The wildfire risk in Jasper National Park is not a "new risk" -- a huge infestation of Mountain Pine Beetles created a lot of dead/dry wood over the last several decades.

It was widely recognized that the disruption to the natural/indigenous fire cycle (mostly post-WW2) has not been adequately dealt with by Parks Canada.

 

However, it's always easier to blame it all on climate change. 

 

Climate Has Led to Beetle Outbreaks in Iconic Whitebark Pine Trees | U.S. Geological Survey

WWW.USGS.GOV

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Temperature increases caused by climate change were a major factor driving the outbreak of mountain pine beetles that killed whitebark pine across millions of acres in and around Yellowstone National Park in the early 2000s, according to a new study.

 

Climate change made the beetle infestation. 

 

 

[AbsolutSurgen]

Jamie Sarkonak: Ottawa let wildfire fuel pile up in Jasper for decades

NATIONALPOST.COM

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Parks Canada permitted the perfect conditions for disaster -- their own report from 2022.

Strategic Environmental Assessment of Jasper National Park Management Plan - Jasper National Park

PARKS.CANADA.CA

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Since the establishment of Jasper National Park in 1907, Parks Canada has suppressed wildfires in the Park. Reintroduction of prescribed fires began in the 1980s, but the scale and frequency has not compensated for the loss of fire disturbance from removing Indigenous ignition practices and applying wildfire suppression actions after World War II.

There are four reference fire regime areas in Jasper:

Montane (50-year fire cycle);

Lower Subalpine (100-year fire cycle);

Upper Subalpine (200-year fire cycle); and

Old Growth (400-year fire cycle).

All of Jasper's fire regimes except for Old Growth are rated as having a poor area burned condition class (Montane: -86%; Lower Subalpine: -88%; Upper Subalpine: -79%; Old Growth: -33%) (Parks Canada Agency 2018a).

Their own reports admit the problem.  This has been recognized as a ticking time bomb since at least 2017,  and in response Parks Canada largely buried their head in the sand.

 

From 2018:

Letter: Jasper National Park has options on wildfire danger - Jasper Fitzhugh News

WWW.FITZHUGH.CA

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Dear editor, The information in the (letter) of May 17 in the Fitzhugh is bang on. Parks have the authority to do a lot more than what they are doing.

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From the large turnout at the public forum held earlier this month, it is apparent that the people in Jasper are concerned and have every right to be, their houses and livelihood are at a very high risk of being destroyed.  The turnout and the concerns should not be a surprise to anyone. Seasoned BC firefighters had never seen the explosive fire behaviour or ecological damage when fighting recent fires in forests exhibiting similar conditions to those in Jasper.

In this case, Jasper Park staffs are not truly cognizant of the potential of a fire in the current conditions.  They have limited experience or understanding in these types of conditions or resulting fire behavior. With ground fuel including spring growth that will dry out in midsummer from a lack of moisture, ground and ladder fuels from 100 years of Parks fire suppression and beetle killed forests (2017 - 93,000 ha) you have a powder  keg waiting to blow-up. Parks Canada has created unnatural forest conditions in Jasper National Parks by their actions (fire suppression) creating abnormal fire conditions and prime food for the mountain pine beetle.

If you think a 100m fire guard is going to stop a fire in these conditions, crown fire or not, you are mistaken.  The fire will cause more damage than any logging will because of the intensity of the fire (amount of vegetation consumed including soils) with enormous carbon emissions and soil destruction (sterilization) that can set the ecosystems back millenniums (ecological integrity?).  The potential for a huge fire or mega fire is real. Fires of this type and magnitude generally occur in mid August to early September. With climate change it may occur earlier.

We must therefore question Jasper Park staffs understanding of the term “ecological integrity” after so much interference in a natural process.  To put this into perspective the following definitions for ecological integrity and ecological restoration are provided.

Ecological integrity:

“means, with respect to a park, a condition that is determined to be characteristic of its natural region and likely to persist, including abiotic components and the composition and abundance of native species and biological communities, rates of change and supporting processes.”  (Canadian National Parks Act).

An ecosystem has integrity when it is deemed characteristic for its natural region, including the composition and abundance of native species and biological communities, rates of change and supporting processes." In plain language, ecosystems have integrity when they have their native components (plants, animals and other organisms) and processes (such as growth and reproduction) intact. (2017 National Parks committee)

Ecological restoration:

“the process of assisting the recovery and management of ecological integrity. Ecological integrity includes a critical range of variability in biodiversity, ecological processes and structures, regional and historical context, and sustainable cultural practices. (Definition from the Society for Ecological Restoration).  (Ecological restoration Guidelines BC)

Part of the process may include harvesting and silviculture strategies across the landscape to assist in ecological restoration. There are a multitude of harvest systems available that will not damage the soils and more than just clear cutting as a silviculture system that will assist with restoring ecological integrity in Jasper.  The impact of harvesting is disturbance and not ecological damage or negative impact to ecological integrity; it can assist the natural processes of diversity, natural reproduction and sustainable cultural practices.  Yes, this is a National Park and yes, they have a legal responsibility for public safety but as noted in the letter of May 17 to the Fitzhugh, the Parks Act provides the superintendent the authority to take action to protect the people and facilities while managing ecological integrity.

A healthy forest is a healthy ecosystem; that is ecological integrity. Part of healthy forests includes natural disturbances from regular wild fires or gap disturbances as part of an ecological successional process throughout various ecosystems. A massive destructive mega fire created from mans interference of a natural process is not part of ecological integrity. However, since parks actions have assisted in creating the situation of an unhealthy forest and thus a potential for a destructive mega fire in Jasper National Park, they should be willing to take immediate action in protecting the community and infrastructures while restoring the ecosystem back to a healthy state and thus improving ecological integrity.  

What can be done?  The municipality are doing everything they can do within their jurisdiction. Residence actions should include removal of shrubs, trees, anything that will burn, away from their home as described in the meeting for fire smart actions earlier this month. Trees and shrubs can be replaced at less cost than a home or a life. Parks actions should include more efforts in protecting the community and infrastructure by setting priorities for logging strategies throughout the park this summer.  To make this happen, parks will require people with expertise in organising and running operations with the knowledge of various harvesting systems and silviculture strategies that would best manage the current conditions in a National Park.  Other actions would include limiting activities in parks to the town and local trails. Lots of visible park staff presence trained in evacuations and signage throughout the park regarding fire conditions and no fires.

If Jasper survives the summer, Parks Canada should be prepared to do a lot more than they expect they should do to restore ecological integrity, returning to natural ecological process and cultural practices.  Immediately start planning for logging in key areas to protect the community and infrastructure and set a second priority for key areas that have significant secondary structure and mixed species forests to assist in ecological restoration.  Implement burn plans when conditions are right for the desired fuel reduction and natural processes to occur (generally there is a small window for burning, so be ready). These actions will break up the landscape of continuous fuels that would feed a fire.  If you get cold feet the conditions are only going to get worse as the beetles spread and more forests die. The result is more area primed for mega fire conditions to start and spread while people continue to be stressed.

So predictable, it was predicted 6 years ago.