Parks Canada prepares for a Flat Creek prescribed fire near Revelstoke, which could be lit after Aug. 18.
According to Parks Canada, prescribed fires serve the purpose of ecological and vegetation management. The burn will also help mitigate the risk of future wildfires. By reducing fuel for future fires, prescribed burning is not just environmentally beneficial, but also safer.
The conditions in Flat Creek are expected to be right after Aug. 18, so Park Canada could start the fire anytime thereafter.
Parks Canada will burn over 550 hectares of land 200 meters back from the highway across the Illecillewaet River. The prescribed burn will be on the western edge of the Purcell Range in the Beaver River Valley along the eastern boundary of Glacier National Park. Besides the environmental benefits of the burn, it will also help keep the Illecillewaet and Flat Creek drainages clear. The space that will be left after the fire also acts as a barrier between the national park and provincial territory, for any future wildfires in the area.
Prescribed fires happen in the national parks where Parks Canada deems that it’s necessary, and they said that it can sometimes take years to get the right conditions. Weather, moisture, and wind direction are just a few of the aspects that go into a Parks Canada decision to have a prescribed fire.
If the fire proceeds, Parks Canada warn that there may be smoke visible from the highway.
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@ZacharyDelaney
zach.delaney@revelstokereview.com
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