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Sonja E.R. Leverkus PhD RPBio PAg FIT AFE Certified Wildland Fire PractitionerIndigenous Consultation and Forestry: Finding Common Ground and Learning from Indigenous Knowledge – CIF Edmonton
November 14 2019 Shifting Mosaics Consulting and Northern Fire WoRx Corp. – Fort Nelson, BC/ Wildfire Analytics - U of A
Putting fire out on the land:Mobilizing traditional and local knowledge with
science in fire management
Traditional use of fire and current uses of TEK with Rx fire?
NFWRxPutting fire out on the land since 2016
How do we mobilize traditional ways into current practices – in essence,
how do we put fire out on the land?
It’s part of all we do.
Read about it
• Fire-adapted species, oral accounts, fire scars, charcoal and pollen, maps, reports, aerial imagery
• Lightning + anthropogenic 70 reasons – Lewis• Improves forage production, quantity and palatability• Modifies fuel loads and reduce wildfire• Used to manage plant diseases, internal and external animal parasites
Rowe and Scotter 1973; Lewis 1977,1980,1988; Johnson 1992; Larsen and MacDonald 1998; Suffling 1998; Stocks et al. 2003; Pyne 2007
Pyrogenesisresulting from severity/intensity etc
August 2009
August 2010
June 2009
Study it: observation of fire as eco process
Research + analyze it
Ignition sources of wildfires between 1922 – 2012 across northeastern BC and the M-KMA (Leverkus 2015)(L). The number of prescribed fires in northeastern British Columbia, Canada year from 1980 – 2008 (Leverkus 2015) (R).
“Historically the Dene people of Fort Nelson First Nation have had an intricate cultural interaction with fire that continues to
this day. From the research work of the Fort Nelson First Nation and Shifting Mosaics Consulting, oral stories and
traditional practices of fire are finally being documented. Fire is an important tool for the Dene as well as a vital part of the ecosystem. Fire brings the Dene together with the landscape
they have been part of for centuries. The teachings and lessons learned from our elders and community members
about fire are critical to incorporate in any and all Government fire and ecosystem management and planning.”
Needlay and Leverkus, 2012
Document it
http://lands.fnnation.ca/project/fort-nelson-first-nation-fire-project-2015
Dr. Henry Lewis “Fires of Spring” and “A time for burning” K. Hoffman “Burning Bog” FNFN and SMC FNFN*fire “Imagine the Fire”
• Documented TEK oral history
Watch it
Produce it!
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/b-c-first-nation-sets-fires-to-save-bison-1.1405739Imagine the Fire – The National, CBC
We participate and lead it!Megafires: The Global Threat 2020
We publish it.
Fire history – NEBC Location Northeast BC
Hectares total 19,091,797Hectares burnable 11,736,663
Unburnable Land Cover: cloud cover (ha) 2,205,926Unburnable Land Cover: shadow cover (ha) 412,403
Area burned 1922-2012 (Wild) (ha) 3,539,814 (30.2) 9 Area burned 1980-2008 (Rx) (ha) 261,766 (2.2)
Mean per year Wild 1922-2012 (ha) 38,899 (0.3) Mean per year Rx 1980-2008 (ha) 9,026 (0.1) Average size Wild 1922-2012 (ha) 1,517Average size Rx 1980-2008 (ha) 442
Maximum size Wild 1922-2012 (ha) 244,027Maximum size Rx 1980-2008 (ha) 6,100
Years required to burn all (Wild + Rx) 281
Leverkus 2015, Leverkus et al. 2017
We see it and we know it = anthropogenic fire*broad landscapes in the borealPyric herbivory – herbivory driven by fire (Fuhlendorf et al. 2009)
Photo credit: S.E.R. Leverkus
Species Provincial Listing Bare rock Open rangeland/alpine/sub-alpine Open forest Dense forest Water/riparianHumans not at riskHorse not at riskWood bison end/threatPlains bison end/threatMoose not at riskElk not at riskWoodland caribou special concern/end/threatMountain goat not at riskThinhorn stone sheep not at riskGrizzly bear special concernGray wolf not at riskWolverine special concernFisher special concernNorthern myotis special concernLesser sandhill crane not at riskShort-eared owl special concernPeregrine falcon end/threatBay-breasted warbler end/threatCape may warbler end/threatBlack-throated green warbler special concernConnecticut warbler end/threatBull trout special concernLake trout not at riskArctic grayling not at riskRainbow trout not at riskNorthern pike not at riskWestern toad not at risk
Resource Selection of Habitat Preference
25 Priority species of the MKMA and their resource selection of habitat preference, adapted from Lamprey 1963 and Heady 1966 plus humans and horses. Leverkus et al. 2015 in review
Leverkus et al. 2017
There is an important role of variable time since fire across the land achieved by wildland and Rx fire!
Teach it!
Teach it!
2019 Pink Mountain Fire School
2019 Esk’etemc Rx Fire School
Teach it, produce it, and do it all at the
same time!
Teach it, produce it, and do it all at the same time!
Photo: R. NeedlayHonour it.
Plan it and incorporate it
TEK + LEK
TEK + LEK
TEK + LEK
TEK + LEK
TEK + LEK
TEK + LEKTEK + LEK
TEK + LEK
We specialize in it:Mobilize TEK/LEK w/ Science
NORTHEAST BC RX FIRE COUNCIL – NOVEMBER 2018
We organize ourselves for it
Fight for it!
Strategically incorporate it
TIME
0-20-10%
2-105-15%
50-90 15-30%
>90 25-55%
25-50 10-20%
10-25 10-20%
Leverkus et al. 2017
And then … we do it!
We use any and all means possible to put fire out on the land!
And we keep doing it!
We empower others to do the same
And in the process of doing it – we hand over the reins and let others learn how to plan and run ignitions
And in the process of doing it – we gain other skills and capacity
When we teach it – we also teach for transferable skills
We apply it across multiple scales
Use it to fight fire with fire
Photo credit: S.E.R. Leverkus
Photo credit: R. Gallagher – Coldstream Helicopters
Integrate it = fighting fire with fire
Integrate it + be chastised for it!“match scratcher”
Photo credit: S.E.R. Leverkus
Invest in it. Build companies for it!Northern Fire WoRx – putting fire out on the land since 2016
We light ‘em – we fight ‘em!
Build a company (or two) to integrate and mobilize TEK + LEK fire management
We are professionals at it.
We are respectful with it.
We are diligent with it.
We are safe, accountable, and efficient with it.
We do it for Industry
We love it. We continually learn from it.
We love it: Family. Passion.
Be open to mobilizing TEK/LEK with science in order to be ready for it and ahead of it
(it = more fire on the land!)
“Future promises more flame – not less” - Pyne
Pyne, S. 2013. From Yosemite to Colorado, our approach to wildfires is all wrong. Washington Post.; Kelly et al. 2013. Recent burning of boreal forests exceeds fire regime limits of the past 10,000 years. PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences). (110:32) 13055-13060.
Photo credit: S.E.R. Leverkus
Photo credit: G. Redman
Shifting paradigms is not for the faint of heart or mind. Shifting paradigms requires muscle of all type, inner strength, brain power, and standing both on the shoulders of giants and shoulder to shoulder with each other. For when we look
back on our day, on the months and the years of our lives – would we not want to say that we did the very best we could for the land and the wildlife and all those who inhabit it for current and future generations – mobilizing the very best
science with traditional, cultural and local knowledge together in a good way.
What are you waiting for?Go light it!
#goodfire #NorthernFireWoRx #firestick
Thank you - Mussi/Mahsi cho - Wuujoasaana laa – Hai hai - Sechanalyagh
http://wildfireanalytics.org/index.html
