COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLAN - Prince George Hall/Agendas/2019/2019-04-08/doc… · 08-04-2019 · Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) was made a priority objective •

COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLANCOUNCIL PRESENTATIONAPRIL 8, 2019

CITYOF

PRINCE GEORGE

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OUTLINE• BACKGROUND AND HISTORY• 2018 PLAN UPDATE• FIRESMART• NEXT STEPS• SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

BACKGROUND

• 2005 Wildland/Urban Interface Wildfire Management Strategy

• Past treatments:all very high and high risk areas treated between 2006-2012Community Forest License for Crown Land

• 2009 Landscape Scale Fire Behaviour Modeling Fuel Reduction

CITY OF PRINCE GEORGE

INTRODUCTION

• Given the increase in wildfire activity an update to the Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) was made a priority objective

• Partial project funding secured through the UBCM Strategic Wildfire Prevention Initiative (SWPI) grant program

• Diamond Head Consulting retained to complete the project


CWPP PROCESS AND FRAMEWORK

• Local Area Description & Area of Interest (AOI)

• Values at risk• Wildfire Threat and Risk• Risk management and

mitigation• Treatment review and post-

wildfire assessment• The CWPP is not:

An evacuation planAn emergency response plan

Mitigation

Emergency Management

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Preparedness

Response


AREA OF INTEREST (AOI)

• The AOI defines the study area of the CWPP

• Normally the municipal boundary

• Made sense to expand:Past CWPPPast treatmentsLandscape behaviour modelAdditional community areasPartnerships

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( CITY OF PRINCE GEORGE

PRESENTATION TITLE

1Prince George CWPP

Community Wildfire Protection Plan for TheCity of Prince George and adjacent Regional

District of Fraser Fort George

Michael CoulthardRPF RPBioDiamond Head Consulting Ltd.

PRESENTATION TITLE

2Prince George CWPP

Background

• Since 2005 there has been substantial developmentgrowth and changes to these forests

• We now have a better understand of the expectedimpacts of climate change on wildfire

• This CWPP update includes theCity of PrinceGeorge aswell as a buffer of surrounding communities that liewithin the Regional District of Fraser FortGeorge.

• TheCWPP provides the framework to createcommunities that are designed for and prepared todefend against a wildfire event.

PRESENTATION TITLE

3Prince George CWPP

Objectives

• To understand the wildfire risk profile in and around the community

• Make recommendations to reduce vulnerability, and increase the community’s resilienceto wildfire

PRESENTATION TITLE

4Prince George CWPP

Wildfire Trends

• Wildfire impacts and suppression costs areincreasing

• This is in large part due to climate changedriving hot, dry summers and earlier springs

• Over the past decade there has been an averageof 1,692 fires per year in British Columbia,burning an average of 151,000 ha

• The 2018 fire season surpassed 2017 as theworst on record with more than 1.25 millionhectares burned

PRESENTATION TITLE

5Prince George CWPP

Wildfire Trends

• From now to 2080 weather for PrinceGeorge is expected to:• Increase in temperature from a baseline of 3.9 to 7.6 celcius

• Experience an increase of very hot days (>30 celcius) from 1 to 18

• A decrease in summer precipitation of 10%

Transient stressors include: seasonal moisture deficit, drought and heat; extreme wind and rainfall; urban activity and air pollution; pests and disease; and wildfire and flood events

PRESENTATION TITLE

6Prince George CWPP

Wildfires in Prince George

• In the past 10 years there have been 91 fires in the studyarea that have burned approximately 90 ha

• Nomajor fires have occurred in theAOI in the last 10years.

• Wildfires in adjacent areas have hadmajor impacts,causing poor air quality and influxes of evacuees fromnearby communities

PRESENTATION TITLE

7Prince George CWPP

Wildfires in Prince George

• The 2018 fire season was one of the worst onrecord.

• These fires caused extremely poor air quality inPrinceGeorge putting the air quality healthindex at very high.

• In 2017 and 2018, PrinceGeorge received10,000 and 3,000 evacuees respectively fromnearby communities

PRESENTATION TITLE

8Prince George CWPP

Values to be Protected

• Human life and safety

• Urban development

• Industry manufacturing plants andmills

• Cultural values and archeological sites

• Species at risk

• Recreation

• Timber values

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PRESENTATION TITLE

9Prince George CWPP

Values to be Protected

Critical infrastructure

• Hydro transmission lines and substations• Railways• Municipal water supply• Waste treatment• Hospitals• Schools• Airports• Municipal buildings• Police stations• Fire stations

PRESENTATION TITLE

10Prince George CWPP

Wildfire threat

• Wildfire threat reflects the potential fire behaviour• Fuel loading• Slope and aspect• Weather conditions

• Highest threat is posed by coniferous dominated forestson steep slopes

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Wildfire risk

• Risk = Probability X Consequence(Fire Behavior) (Values at risk)

• Typical summer winds will drive a fire to thenorth and north east

• Most of the public lands pose a moderatewildfire risk

• High to extreme risk on public land areconcentrated north and west of the city center

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Recommendations

Fuel Management:

• High risk interface fuels have been identified

• 14 high priority areas recommended for treatment

• One landscape level fuel break recommendednorth west of the Nechako

• Maintenance of old treatment areas

City 01 Prince Geofge communlty Wllctfltt- P,01ecuon Plan Map 9A; Fuel Treatmonl

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Recommendations

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Recommendations

Community Education:• Most hazardous fuel areas are on private lands

• Public awareness and education is critical

• Develop stewardship opportunities for individuals andcommunity based volunteer organizations.

• Youth involvement through schools• Presence of wildfire awareness materials at publicevents

• Showcasing of fuel treatments• Use of technology – social media, website

When thoy are not ac-tlve.Jy nehling forest fires, wlldrlre crews will bo working on II fuel man;1gemont proJect In thie aroa . Thia project may b• completed o'-'•r multlple years.

Reducing the amount or forut ruel ctianges fire behaviour during a wBdtlro event. This wltl create • defen:!olble apace to help nrst responders protect thll community,

PRESENTATION TITLE


Recommendations

Wildfire Response:• Prevent ignitions

• Early detection and reporting

• Suppression resources (vehicles,structural protection units, water sources)

• Access and evacuation

• Safe shutdown of industrial sites

• Training and interagency communicationand cooperation

WILDFIRE RISK RADIANT HEAT VS. EMBER IGNITION

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Implementation

• Anticipate urban growth, changes in forest condition and weather patterns fromclimate change

• Make forests in the interface more resistant to wildfire

• Make development in the interface “Firesmart”

FIRESMART

• Shared responsibility for those in fire-prone areas to take steps to protect their property and community

• 7 FireSmart Disciplines• When an area or

community participates together wildfire resiliency increase

Severe Fire Conditions

Fuel, Weather, and Topography

Overwhelmed Fire

Suppression

Rapid fire spread and/or

High intensity

Reduced Fire Protection

Lack of resources leads to reduced

effectiveness

DISASTER!

Many homes total ly

destroyed

Breaking the Wildfire Disaster Cycle


FIRESMARTFireSmart P r iority Zone


FIRESMART

• Different actions based on priority zones• Remove fuels close to the structure and keep

gutters/decks clean of debris• Don’t plant evergreen shrubs against the structure• Stack wood away from the house• Select tree thinning and pruning • More information available through FireSmart BC

https://firesmartbc.ca/


NEXT STEPS

• Approve Prince George CWPP dated December 2018• Prepare public info session and summary report• Finalize SWPI grant submissions• Community Resilience Investment (CRI) Grant

application• Detailed risk reduction planning and future fuel

treatments• Education and awareness, FireSmart with RD


CURRENT – EMERGENCY PLANNING

• Internal planning team formed in September 2018 to develop an Evacuation Plan for 2019 wildfire season

• External multi-agency planning team – “Integrated Regional Planning Group” – 2018/19 focus on wildfire evacuation planning

• UBCM – two successful grant applications: $25,000 for Emergency Operations Centre exercise, and $23,500 for Emergency Support Services modernization

• Presentation to Council on Apr 29 detailing the evacuation planning process


NEXT STEPS – EMERGENCY PLANNING

• Spring Tabletop Exercise Series – April 2, May 2 & May 17 – Wildfire Evacuation Scenario

• City-wide Evacuation Map and ‘Community Evacuation Assembly Points’ – to be released in May

• Evacuation planning workshop with Lleidli T’enneh First Nation to occur in May

• Evacuation Plan finalized and delivered in June


SUMMARY

• Good progress made between 2005-2012• CWPP update completed• Working to reduce risk• Working to educate residents and make communities

FireSmart


THANK YOU

QUESTIONS?

Joshua Kelly EIT, PMPSupervisor Energy, Environment & Sustainability

Documents

COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLAN - Prince George Hall/Agendas/2019/2019-04-08/doc… · 08-04-2019 · Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) was made a priority objective •